SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Everyone’s Awake
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: www.colinmeloy.com
CITY: Portland
STATE:
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 335
Married to Carson Ellis; lead singer of Decemberists
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born October 5, 1974, in Helena, MT; married Carson Ellis (an illustrator); children: Henry.
EDUCATION:University of Montana, B.A., 1998; also studied at University of Oregon.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Musician and writer. Lead singer of indie rock band the Decemberists. Solo recordings include Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey, 2005, Colin Meloy Sings Trad. Art. Shirley Collins, 2006, Colin Meloy Sings Live!, 2008, and Colin Meloy Sings Sam Cooke, 2008; vocalist, with the Decemberists, on recordings 5 Songs, 2001, Castaways and Cutouts, 2002, Her Majesty, 2003, The Tain, 2004, Picaresque, 2005, Picaresqueties, 2005, The Connect Set, 2006, The Crane Wife, 2006, Live from Soho, 2007, The Perfect Crime Number 2, 2007, and The Decemberists: A Practical Handbook, 2007.
POLITICS: Democrat.WRITINGS
Author of song lyrics.
Wildwood film rights were sold to Laika animation studio, 2011.
SIDELIGHTS
SUBMITTED IN SGML VERSION.
Colin Meloy has an unlikely résumé for a children’s book author. As lead singer and songwriter for indie rock band the Decemberists, Meloy is known for creating dark, disturbing imagery and for crafting song tales that are often bleak in theme and even visceral in their descriptions of death and carnage. Wildwood, the first book in his “Wildwood Chronicles” trilogy, is geared for middle-grade readers and is illustrated by Meloy’s wife, artist and illustrator Carson Ellis.
Wildwood is set in Portland, Oregon, and its story begins when twelve-year-old Prue McKeel takes her infant brother Mac to a local playground. When a proverbial “murder of crows”—a large flock of the black birds—snatches Mac and carries him off, the distraught Prue decides to take matters into her own hands and find the young lad. She knows the crows have carried Mac to a nearby forest, one that Portland locals refuse to enter. Known as the Impassable Wilderness, it is a mysterious, forbidding place and Prue is joined by brave classmate Curtis on her adventure. Once they cross the boundary, the preteens discover talking animals and even communicative plant species, and they are also warned about the forest’s authoritarian ruler, the Dowager Governess. The two are separated when Curtis is forcibly conscripted into a coyote army that protects the despot, and Prue’s anxiety turns to outright fear when she senses a major battle looming.
“Meloy smartly weaves realism and the otherworldly, building suspense and adding elements of surprise as the novel comes to a satisfying conclusion,” wrote Paula J. Gallagher in a Voice of Youth Advocates review of Wildwood. In London’s Sunday Times, Nicolette Jones called the novel “an unpretentiously written tale with a strong start, an engaging denouement and a green theme,” and Booklist reviewer Daniel Kraus picked up flashes of Meloy’s songwriting themes by writing that the story’s “flashes of darkness—blood sacrifices, death in battle, and more—… would make the Brothers Grimm proud.”
Meloy set Wildwood in his hometown of Portland, and his home is located near the edge of the city’s majestic Forest Park, the real-life version of the Impassable Wilderness. “Folding elements of real-life Portland into the story, Meloy lovingly describes the jungles to the north and the cobbled streets and elegant tree houses of the more civilized south,” remarked Claire Dederer in the New York Times Book Review. “He has shaped the real stuff of Portland into a fantastic epic with a rainy, bicycle-riding Northwestern heart.”
Readers return to this alternate Portland in Under Wildwood, the second book in Meloy’s series. Here Prue returns to the enchanted but perilous forest and finally locates Curtis. Still searching for Mac, the two preteens venture further into the Impassable Wilderness, this time reaching its secret underground lair. A subplot involves the search by Curtis’s devastated parents for their son; they unwisely leave their two daughters at an orphanage that turns out to be a front for a child-labor racket. A Kirkus Reviews contributor called the sequel “droll and ornate, elegiac and romantic,” adding that in Under Wildwood “Meloy mulches his verdant wilderness with wildly eclectic cultural references.”
In 2013 Meloy published Wildwood Imperium, the third novel in the “Wildwood Chronicles” series. Prue returns to the Wood to find the world she helped through its revolution is struggling once more. She aids her friends in resurrecting the automaton prince to fulfill a prophecy of peace. However, naïve Zita is working to resurrect the evil Alexandra, setting up the book’s final conflict.
Booklist contributor Daniel Kraus opined that “Meloy is the Wes Anderson of authors … and he nails the tone of this gentle, but not inconsequential, adventure.” A contributor to Kirkus Reviews observed that “Meloy gives his antic imagination full rein to produce work that, if occasionally uneven, is brilliantly sui generis.” The same reviewer found it to be “wildly original.” Writing in School Library Journal, Caitlin Augusta concluded that “Meloy reunites his characters in a manner most of the series readers will find satisfying.”
Meloy published The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid in 2017. Charlie Fisher is the son of a neglectful diplomat in Marseille, France, in 1961. He gets involved in a gang of child pickpockets and finds a sense of family and belonging with them. He quickly learns, though, that this is not an ordinary group of kids. They were trained at the School of Seven Bells in Colombia, one of many such institutions around the world. He starts to doubt their friendship and wonders if he is being used by them.
Writing in Horn Book, Katie Bircher took note of the “witty, self-aware narrative voice.” Bircher rationalized that “readers of heist and mystery stories will … welcome this clever caper.” In a review in BookPage, Hannah Lamb observed that “Meloy writes in a voice sharp with wit and precision, creating a rich and vibrant world complemented by” the illustrations by Ellis. Lamb called it “unique.” A Publishers Weekly contributor claimed that the “extravagant vocabulary and Meloy’s attention to detail vividly evoke the period setting and will reward ambitious readers.” A contributor to Kirkus Reviews described the book as “a gleefully metafictional caper and middle-grade picaresque bound to appeal to discerning young readers.” Booklist contributor Julia Smith lauded that Meloy writes “with panache, turning out an infectious—and at times cinematic” story. Smith noticed that the author “raises the bar in terms of standard vocabulary, which will no doubt lead to a pinched dictionary or two, but this enhances rather than impedes the reading experience.” Smith later recorded that “the narration becomes conspiratorial at times, speaking directly to readers and transporting them to different places or times in order to fill in plot details.”
Meloy published The Golden Thread: A Song for Pete Seeger in 2018. The book highlights the life of Pete Seeger and his work as a songwriter, performer, civil rights advocate, union organizer, carpenter, sailor, ship builder, and environmentalist. Seeger’s lyrics are used to punctuate different periods of his eventful life.
Booklist contributor Kay Weisman reasoned that “this makes a good introduction to Seeger and his many contributions to American music.” A contributor to Kirkus Reviews said that Meloy “honors the long career of this remarkable activist in words that sing and soar in joyful homage.” The same reviewer found the book to be “positively joyous.” A Publishers Weekly contributor observed that Meloy “hails his hero in emphatic, lyric-like poetry” in this “gorgeous, emotionally expansive book.” Writing in School Library Journal, Clara Hendricks rationalized that “because of the limitations of forty-eight pages written in rhyming stanzas, Meloy does not go into great detail, making the book better for casual reading than information-gathering.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, July 1, 2011, Daniel Kraus, review of Wildwood, p. 53; August 1, 2012, Daniel Kraus, review of Under Wildwood, p. 81; December 15, 2013, Daniel Kraus, review of Wildwood Imperium, p. 50; August 1, 2017, Julia Smith, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid, p. 54; April 1, 2018, Kay Weisman, review of The Golden Thread: A Song for Pete Seeger, p. 61.
BookPage, November 1, 2017, Hannah Lamb, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid, p. 47.
Horn Book, March 1, 2018, Katie Bircher, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid, p. 90.
Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2011, review of Wildwood; August 15, 2012, review of Under Wildwood; December 15, 2013, review of Wildwood Imperium; August 1, 2017, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid; March 15, 2018, review of The Golden Thread.
New York Times Book Review, September 18, 2011, Claire Dederer, review of Wildwood, p. A&E 20; October 12, 2011, Stephen Heyman, “A Dark Lyricist Turns to Tales for Children,” p. C1.
Publishers Weekly, July 18, 2011, review of Wildwood, p. 154; August 14, 2017, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid, p. 79; March 5, 2018, review of The Golden Thread, p. 68.
School Library Journal, December 1, 2011, Sarah Flood, review of The Wildwood Chronicles, p. 69; March 1, 2014, Caitlin Augusta, review of Wildwood Imperium, p. 145; August 1, 2017, Heidi Grange, review of The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid, p. 89; March 1, 2018, Clara Hendricks, review of The Golden Thread, p. 137.
Sing Out!, June 22, 2008, Mark D. Moss, “The Ancient Modernism of the Decemberists’ Colin Meloy,” p. 52.
Voice of Youth Advocates, August 1, 2011, Paula J. Gallagher, review of Wildwood, p. 292.
ONLINE
Colin Meloy website, http://www.colinmeloy.com (August 4, 2018).
Wildwood Chronicles website, http://www.wildwoodchronicles.com/ (August 4, 2018), author profile.*
No bio
Colin Meloy
USA flag (b.1974)
Colin Meloy once wrote Ray Bradbury a letter, informing him that he "considered himself an author too." He was ten. Since then, Colin has gone on to be the singer and songwriter for the band the Decemberists, where he channels all of his weird ideas into weird songs. With the Wildwood Chronicles, he is now channeling those ideas into novels.
Genres: Young Adult Fantasy
New Books
March 2020
(hardback)
Everyone's Awake
Series
Wildwood Chronicles
1. Wildwood (2011)
2. Under Wildwood (2012)
3. Wildwood Imperium (2014)
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Novels
The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid (2017)
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Picture Books
Everyone's Awake (2020)
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Novellas
The Golden Thread (2018)
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Non fiction
The Replacements' Let It Be (2004)
Colin Meloy
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Colin Meloy
Colinmeloy1.jpg
Colin Meloy performing with The Decemberists in Atlanta (2006)
Background information
Birth name Colin Patrick Henry Meloy
Born October 5, 1974 (age 45)
Helena, Montana, U.S.
Genres Indie rock, indie folk, folk rock, baroque pop, alternative country
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, guitarist, author
Instruments Vocals, guitar, bouzouki, percussion, harmonica, keyboards
Years active 1990–present
Labels Kill Rock Stars
Capitol
Associated acts The Decemberists, Tarkio, Happy Cactus
Website colinmeloy.com
Meloy performing in Brussels (2006)
Colin Patrick Henry Meloy (born October 5, 1974) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and author best known as the frontman of the Portland, Oregon, indie folk rock band The Decemberists. In addition to vocals, he performs with an acoustic guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bouzouki, harmonica and percussion instruments.
Contents
1 Early life and education
2 Musical career
3 Television
4 Personal life
5 Work with The Decemberists
6 Solo discography
7 Work as an author
8 References
9 External links
Early life and education
Meloy was born in Helena, Montana.[1][2] He attended the University of Oregon in Eugene for two years, studying English and theatre. He then returned to Montana and studied creative writing at the University of Montana in Missoula, graduating in 1998.[3]
Musical career
While in high school, Meloy was in the band Happy Cactus, and when in college, in Missoula, he was the lead singer and songwriter for Tarkio. Both were indie/folk/alternative country bands. Soon after graduation, he left Tarkio and moved to Portland with the hope of establishing himself among the city's music scene. There, Meloy worked in a pizza parlor to pay rent while starting his musicianship anew by performing at various open mics, sometimes with no one listening except for the bartender. He later reflected in an interview with The Montanan that this experience helped to develop his musical style in the long run: "'When I was in that position, with nobody to appeal to or scare away, I thought, 'I might as well do whatever I want to do'...And that created a new thing.'"[3]
The Decemberists formed in 2000 after Meloy met Nate Query, who introduced him to keyboardist Jenny Conlee, and the three scored a silent film together. Meloy had met multi-instrumentalist Chris Funk, who was a fan of Tarkio, at a solo show prior to meeting Conlee and Query. Since its formation, Meloy has served as the band's singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. His work with The Decemberists thus far entails seven studio albums, eight EPs, thirteen singles, two compilations, and a live album.
In 2003 Meloy contributed vocals to the track "The Lady From Reims" on Reclinerland's The Ideal Home Music Library. Meloy also contributed vocals on the tracks "Cemetery Row" and "Twilight Distillery" on The Minus 5's 2006 Yep Roc release. Meloy covered the Elliott Smith song "Clementine" for a compilation of Portland, Oregon artists to support a children's charity, and in mid-2006, he contributed the track "Lazy Little Ada" on the Kill Rock Stars compilation, The Sound the Hare Heard. In 2007, Meloy lent his voice to an episode of Lil' Bush. He appeared with Charlie Salas-Humara in the music video for "A Pillar of Salt" by The Thermals.
In 2005, Meloy went on his first solo tour to support the self-released six-song EP, Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey, consisting of six Morrissey covers. Only 1000 copies of the album were made and they were sold only on this tour. Meloy did a second solo tour in January 2006, playing with Laura Veirs and Amy Annelle. On this tour, he sold an EP featuring covers of British folk artist Shirley Collins. 2006 tour performances were recorded for a live release.
Meloy contributed an online bonus track for Lavender Diamond on their Imagine Our Love album, performing a solo version of "Oh No."
Meloy began another solo tour in April 2008. This coincided with the release of his debut solo album, Colin Meloy Sings Live!, on the Kill Rock Stars label. Singer-songwriter Laura Gibson was the supporting act for the full tour. As with previous EPs, Meloy sold an EP only available on this run: Colin Meloy Sings Sam Cooke, a collection of five Sam Cooke songs, arranged and performed by Meloy, with Gibson singing harmonies.
Meloy appeared in the 2013 documentary film Another Day, Another Time: Celebrating the Music of "Inside Llewyn Davis", which detailed a one-off concert in New York City honoring traditional American folk music in preparation for the release of the Coen brothers' film Inside Llewyn Davis. The concert, organized by T Bone Burnett, featured several notable musicians representing multiple generations; Meloy performed a cover of Jackson C. Frank's "Blues Run the Game" as well as a version of "Joe Hill" alongside Joan Baez and Gillian Welch.[4]
Television
In the 2014 two-part episode of Parks and Recreation entitled "Moving Up: Part 1" and "Moving Up: Part 2", Meloy made a cameo appearance as himself with the rest of The Decemberists at The Unity Concert along with other notable artists such as Jeff Tweedy, Ginuwine, and Yo La Tengo.[5]
Personal life
On February 24, 2006, Carson Ellis, Meloy's wife, gave birth to a son, Henry "Hank" Meloy. Ellis shares her birthday with Meloy, and produces much of the Decemberists' album and promotional artwork.[6] In 2010, Meloy revealed that Hank has high functioning autism.[7] On March 14, 2013, Ellis gave birth to another child, Milo Cannonball Meloy.[8] Meloy's sister is Maile Meloy, a fiction writer often published in The New Yorker and The New York Times, and his aunt is the late Ellen Meloy, who was also a writer.
Work with The Decemberists
See: The Decemberists discography
Solo discography
Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey (2005)
Colin Meloy Sings Shirley Collins (2006)
Colin Meloy Sings Live! (2008)
Colin Meloy Sings Sam Cooke (2008)
Colin Meloy Sings The Kinks (2013)
Work as an author
In 2004, Meloy wrote a 100-page book on The Replacements' third album, Let It Be, released as part of the 33⅓ series.[9]
Meloy made his debut as a children's writer with Wildwood, illustrated by his wife, Carson Ellis. He kicked off the book tour as the keynote of the AJC Decatur Book Festival on September 2, 2011.[10] Meloy released a sequel, Under Wildwood, in 2012, and the third book in the series, Wildwood Imperium, was released in 2014.
In October 2017, Meloy released his fourth children's book The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid.[11]
Colin Meloy is the writer of the bestselling Wildwood Chronicles and the singer and songwriter for the band the Decemberists. The Golden Thread: A Song for Pete Seeger is his first picture book. He once joined Pete Seeger onstage, singing American folk standards at the Newport Folk Festival in 2011, and even now, he can barely believe it actually happened, it was so cool. He lives just outside Portland, Oregon, with his family.
Colin Meloy is the charismatic lead singer and songwriter of The Decemberists, a highly celebrated (and uncommonly literary) band that has sold in excess of 1 million records. Colin has been recognized as much for his musical abilities--his ear for inventive and timeless melodies and his lilting vocals--as he has been for his unmatched lyrical prowess. Crafting each song as a vivid, imaginative story unto itself, he's become one of the most distinctive and appreciated voices of our time. WILDWOOD marks Colin's debut as children's author. Follow Colin on Twitter, @colinmeloy.
In Conversation: Colin Meloy and Shawn Harris
Feb 25, 2020
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Shawn Harris (l.) and Colin Meloy.
Colin Meloy is the lead singer and songwriter of The Decemberists, and the author of several children’s books, including the bestselling Wildwood series. Shawn Harris is an artist and musician as well as the illustrator of award-winning children’s books, including Her Right Foot and What Can a Citizen Do?, both by Dave Eggers. In their forthcoming picture book comedy, Everyone’s Awake (Chronicle), Meloy and Harris team up for a story about a family’s late-night antics. We asked the duo to interview each other about their collaboration and their shared passion for music.
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Shawn Harris: My illustrations have long had a relationship to music—my first illustration work was mostly album art, merch, and posters for touring bands (though never yours). Maybe because of this, I imagine my illustration having a similar relationship to a book’s text that a band or orchestra has to a song’s lyrics. Pace, tempo, tension, and harmony are all musical terms that also apply to illustrating a picture book—I remember reading a great Maurice Sendak essay called “The Shape of Music” about the musical quality of (good) illustration. I wonder, how is sitting down to write a song different and/or the same for you than/as sitting down to write a book? (Especially a book in verse.)
Colin Meloy: I’ve always said that writing books and writing music, while ostensibly coming from the same part of the brain (I’m guessing here, I’m no neuroscientist), could not be more different. Maybe writing a picture book in verse is like a kind of middle distance? I ended up using a lot of the same processes that I use in songwriting, when it comes to the editorial end of things—finessing rhymes, counting out the meter and rhythm. I wrote a few songs in Wildwood that had no music to them and there was something strangely freeing in that. It’s like doing a puzzle with a cheat mode—there’s just one less stricture dictating the boundaries of the piece. Similarly, writing a book in verse is easier than writing a song—at least I don’t have to worry about melody and chord progression!
Harris: You reference a lot of music in the book (Prince, jazz, Sinatra, the song “Clementine”). Were you listening to an insanely eclectic playlist while writing this?
Meloy: I love listening to music while I write, but it has to be completely lyric-free, instrumental music. Ambient music is ideal, so I end up with a lot of Brian Eno in my writing playlists. I’m not sure what I listened to while writing this. I don’t think I listened to anything, because there was a lot of tapping out meter, which any kind of music—ambient included—would’ve interfered with. I’ve always envied you illustrator-types. Not only can you listen to lyric-based music while you work—you can listen to whole podcasts and audiobooks! The multi-tasking possibilities really boggle the mind. You don’t know how good you got it. So, Shawn, how much of your reading list did you get through while working on Everyone’s Awake?
Harris: Well, on the page where you wrote, “My brother’s making laundry lists of every book he’s read,” I actually got to include my recent reading list of middle grade, YA, and graphic novels for our observant older readers. (The list is cascading down a pile of books, so you’ll have to flip the book upside-down to read it.) And while I was sketching this book, I read Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick DeWitt, which probably influenced some of the mystical, fairy-tale-ish liberties the illustrations took, like the plague of frogs, or the ghost ship rising from the lake.
One of my favorite things about starting a new project is curating a new reading list—both picture books and books for adults—to influence me. I think serious writers call that research? Of course, I only get through a fraction of the pile before I have to sidle up to my desk and start making deadlines, which reminds me of a line you wrote in the book about productivity as it’s related to the family’s lack of sleep: “We all at least are getting some things done.” How is that a reflection of your own use of non-circadian work habits? Are you good at keeping a schedule, or does your creativity more often appear in the form of the narrator’s imagination’s less-than-convenient timing?
Meloy: I wish I could be as blasé about sleeplessness as the characters in this book. They really make short work of their to-do list during their insomniac hours. Me, I’m too paranoid about bad sleep hygiene. I’m resigned to a pretty narrow group of activities when I’ve given up on sleep—reading, looking at my phone. Sometimes I’ll take a shower, but that’s about as active as I get. I think the characters in Everyone’s Awake are aspirational to me, in that they’re embracing their sleeplessness in a way I don’t think I could. What about you? What happens in the Harris household when no one’s sleeping?
Harris: There is a bird that roosts outside my bedroom window, don’t ask me what kind, I have never seen it—it only chirps in the dark an hour before sunrise. We used to pound the window and run outside imitating the sound of rifle fire with our mouths, but my wife and I have since resigned ourselves to its existence and have now affectionately named the bird “Surf Bird.” When it wakes us up, we get up in the dark, throw our boards in the truck, and paddle out for a sunrise surf.
Speaking of partners, what was it like to not live with/be married to your illustrator for a change?
Meloy: Ha! Carson [Ellis] and I have worked on so many projects together over the years that it’s always a nice break for both of us to work with other collaborators. Carson might be my most steadfast creative kindred spirit, but working with other creators on projects is a necessary part of our working relationship, I think. I tend to feel refreshed coming back to work with Carson after having done a project with someone else. Also, Shawn, you and I don’t have to argue about who’s picking up the kids—so that’s a plus.
Harris: What’s the worst thing that’s ever come of your having stayed up too late?
Meloy: Oh God, I hate to think. I’ve done television shows on zero sleep and I’m always terrified I’m going to muck things up majorly. So far, so good. I’ve managed to push through.
Harris: And the best thing?
Meloy: In my high school, just after graduation, the school would host a “senior all-night party.” I suppose it was to deter kids from celebrating in a more illicit way. If you left the party, you weren’t allowed back in. They were drawing names for prizes all night long, culminating in a grand prize at like five in the morning. I made it to the bitter end—and my name was drawn at the end! I won a thousand dollars, which was a lot of money for an 18-year old. I mean, I still think that’s a lot of money. I think I bought an amp with it.
So I got to know your work through your collaborations with Dave Eggers, specifically Her Right Foot. All of that stuff was done using cut paper, right? And this book—you basically made yourself a human Photoshop, doing all the separated color layers by hand. I wonder what draws you to unconventional mediums in your work.
An illustration from Everyone's Awake.
Harris: I guess I recoil from mediums that have a process that is “correct” by some sort of scholarly consensus. When I work in more traditional mediums like pen or paint, I’m constantly worrying my technique is unaccomplished and that my work will look amateur, but the thought never crosses my mind that I might not be collaging right. There’s a freedom I get from playing in more philistine mediums that makes me recall making art as a kid.
In Everyone’s Awake, I drew original art for each printed color separately—each illustration uses three colors—so the outcome of the combined colors remained a mystery to me until I was finished with all three drawings. This hindrance is what created the warbly, offset look of the book. Misusing the printing process freed me to be loose and playful, and not worry about whether I was doing things right. I’m sure I wasn’t!
Meloy: I know you got started doing illustration work by doing flyers for your band. There’s a real history behind that, bandmembers doing their own design and illustration work. Was there a particular band or scene that influenced that?
Harris: Yeah, each music scene sort of has its own visual language, and I don’t know that an outsider can show up and immediately communicate with the bands and fans the way someone deeply entrenched and invested can, even if the outsider has more skills and training in art and design. Punk rock especially embraced a DIY visual language, so I guess I was especially (overly?) comfortable dropping out of art school, calling myself a professional, and asking for art jobs from all of those bands.
Meloy: Which was your first love, illustration or music?
Harris: Definitely writing and drawing. I was illustrating my stories as soon as I could talk—my mom would transcribe my dictation. In elementary school, I started to like music, but I nearly put myself off of it completely by learning the flute instead of a songwriting instrument. The flute is a terrible instrument to use if you want to write a song with lyrics. To sing, you have to stop blowing into the flute, which of course stops the music. Once I figured that out, I picked up the guitar, and thankfully, my love for writing and music got to coexist.
Everyone’s Awake by Colin Meloy, illus. by Shawn Harris. Chronicle, $17.99 Mar. 3 ISBN 978-1-4521-7805-9
ALSO ON PW
Meloy, Colin EVERYONE'S AWAKE Chronicle (Children's Fiction) $17.99 3, 3 ISBN: 978-1-4521-7805-9
An energetic, insomniac romp of an anti-bedtime book.
A wakeful child narrator recounts the goings-on in a large, multiracial family's zany household long after everyone should be asleep. Rhyming verse with a singsong cadence details activities ranging from the mundane ("Grandma's at her needlework. / Dad is baking bread. / My brother's making laundry lists / of every book he's read") to the bizarre ("Now Mom just took an audience / with Queen Sigrid the Third. / My brother has just taught the cat a dozen dirty words"). It's a rollicking read-aloud, but inconsistent line breaks may cause some to slip up upon first reading. Pop-culture references pep things up and range from the stodgy (Sinatra, "Clementine") to the very contemporary (poke tattoos, the film Condorman), though the conceit drags on a bit too long. Throughout, Harris' illustrations have a retro feel that evokes, at turns, Tomie Ungerer and Maira Kalman, and they expand on the details of the text to ratchet up the humor and drama--building on the mention of a lake to depict the setting not as a mere house but an elaborate lighthouse. The conclusion shows the narrator descending the stairs to find everyone asleep at daybreak, a predictable, yet satisfying, end.
Don't sleep on this one. (Picture book. 3-7)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2019 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Meloy, Colin: EVERYONE'S AWAKE." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Dec. 2019. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A608364593/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=55ab28dc. Accessed 2 Mar. 2020.
MELOY, Colin. Everyone's Awake. illus. by Shawn Harris. 48p. Chronicle. Mar. 2020. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781452178059.
Gr 3-5--The plot of this picture book is summed up by the title. There is a large family living under one roof and they should be sleeping--but everyone is awake, including our young narrator. Written by Meloy, front-man of the band The Decemberists, the text frequently makes literary and pop culture references for adults to catch, like shout-outs to Prince and Baudelaire. Our narrator expresses quiet bewilderment at the antics of his siblings, parents, grandparents, and even the family pets. Illustrated by Harris, Dave Eggers's frequent collaborator, spreads start off delightfully simple but quickly grow more hectic as the family's insomniac activities intensify. Pictures are packed with details, inclusing clever allusions to other picture books and chapter books for young readers. The plot turns increasingly ridiculous, with brother and sister fighting an international war. However, the text ends with a crowd-pleasing underwear joke sure to crack up anyone, even those who might not follow the rest of the action. VERDICT Recommended for youngsters (and their grownups) who come from or enjoy observing a family with more quirks than every cast member of a Wes Anderson movie combined.--Chance Lee Joyner, Wilton Public and Gregg Free Library, NH
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2020 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Joyner, Chance Lee. "MELOY, Colin. Everyone's Awake." School Library Journal, vol. 66, no. 2, Feb. 2020, p. 54. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A613048734/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=a7186e7c. Accessed 2 Mar. 2020.