SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: BUNNY’S BIG SURPRISE
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Savannah
STATE:
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 276
http://www.charlesbridge.com/contributorinfo.cfm?ContribID=17
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born March 23, 1945, in Stratford, CT; children: Jeff.
EDUCATION:Rhode Island School of Design, B.F.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Author and illustrator. Freelance graphic designer for over twenty-five years. Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, assistant art director at Hopkins Center for the Arts; former designer for Hallmark Cards.
AVOCATIONS:Birdwatching, gardening, writing.
WRITINGS
Author’s work has been translated into Spanish.
SIDELIGHTS
SUBMITTED IN SGML FORMAT. Growing up in Connecticut, Phyllis Limbacher Tildes nurtured the ambition to someday create children’s books. In addition to drawing, Tildes also developed a love for literature, spending hours studying works by celebrated nineteenth-century “Golden Age” illustrators such as Arthur Rackham and Beatrix Potter. After earning a bachelor’s degree from the Rhode Island School of Design, she worked as an art director for the Hopkins Art Center at Dartmouth College and as a designer for Hallmark Cards. She spent more than twenty-five years as a freelance graphic designer before publishing her first self-illustrated children’s book, Counting on Calico, in 1995. Since then Tildes has written and illustrated more than a dozen books for young readers, from concept books featuring animals and nature to stories starring Calico the cat, as well as creating artwork for stories by others.
In Counting on Calico youngsters develop counting skills and also learn about feline anatomy and behavior. As Calico the cat and her kittens play with paper bags, watch birds, and groom themselves, a tiny mouse points out the number of paw prints the cat family leaves behind as well as the colorful patterns distinguishing the fur of each kitten. Carolyn Phelan, writing in Booklist, suggested that Counting on Calico would make a good read-aloud and praised the “softly shaded colors” of the illustrations.
In Calico Picks a Puppy Tildes’s title character introduces a variety of dog breeds, including spaniels, setters, and huskies, in a “brief and lighthearted yet informative text” that garnered praise from Booklist contributor Ellen Mandel. Calico’s Cousins: Cats from around the World focuses on cat breeds such as Persians, Angoras, and Norwegian Forest cats. “Tildes draws cats beautifully, and here she has an opportunity to show off that talent,” Ilene Cooper remarked in appraising this work for Booklist. Calico’s rambunctious youngsters are the subject of Calico’s Curious Kittens, and here “brightly hued, detailed landscapes contain plenty of sly feline humor to tickle little fancies,” according to a Kirkus Reviews writer. Cooper wrote of Calico’s Curious Kittens that Tildes’s “watercolors capture all the friskiness and charm of kittens on the loose.”
Tildes examines how animals blend in with their environment in Animals in Camouflage. Here readers are provided with clues to the identities of seven creatures and then search a brightly colored illustration of their habitats to locate the critters. A polar bear, crab spider, and great horned owl are among the animals featured. In Booklist Todd Morning praised the “well-rendered gouache paintings” in Animals in Camouflage, while Patricia Manning asserted in School Library Journal that the book “deserves a place in quality collections of natural history.”
Turning from animals to humans, Tildes addresses a milestone in a little boy’s life in Billy’s Big-Boy Bed. Although Billy has chosen a roomy new bed at the furniture store, he is reluctant to leave his crib, where he has been surrounded by his collection of teddy bears. With his parents’ help, the toddler gradually adapts to the unfamiliar sleeping arrangement. “Drawn with a loving hand, the watercolor illustrations are gentle and realistic; Billy’s expressive face is adorable,” a Kirkus Reviews critic observed, and Maryann H. Owen wrote in School Library Journal that Tildes’s art, rendered “in cheerful primary colors, tell the story well.”
Tildes’s artwork invites young readers to play detective in Eye Guess, as children first see the eyes of an animal before lifting a flap to reveal the creature’s identity. “The gouache paintings energize the information in this book of fact-filled fun,” noted Booklist reviewer Connie Fletcher.” She employs a looser illustration style in Will You Be Mine? A Nursery Rhyme Romance, which draws on familiar fictional tropes to tell the story of a cat and poodle’s courtship and marriage. Many rhymes are “open to visual interpretation and, as illustrator, Tildes makes imaginative use of that,” noted Phelan in Booklist, while a Kirkus Reviews critic praised her “bold and bright” illustrations for presenting “a pleasant spin on tradition.” Hailing the “cheery gouache art” in Will You Be Mine? , a Publishers Weekly reviewer predicted that “nursery rhyme fans should appreciate this surprising yet traditional take on some old favorites.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, June 1, 1995, Carolyn Phelan, review of Counting on Calico, p. 1780; November 1, 1996, Ellen Mandel, review of Calico Picks a Puppy, p. 505; February 1, 1998, Ilene Cooper, review of Calico’s Cousins: Cats from around the World, p. 978; January 1, 2000, Todd Morning, review of Animals in Camouflage, p. 934; February 1, 2003, Ilene Cooper, review of Calico’s Curious Kittens, p. 1002; August, 2004, Carolyn Phelan, review of Pumpkins, p. 1938; September 1, 2005, Connie Fletcher, review of Eye Guess: A Foldout Guessing Game, p. 138; June 1, 2007, Gillian Engberg, review of Apples, p. 64; March 15, 2009, Carolyn Phelan, review of Plant Secrets, p. 63; January 1, 2011, Carolyn Phelan, review of Will You Be Mine? A Nursery Rhyme Romance, p. 86.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, April, 2009, Elizabeth Bush, review of Plant Secrets, p. 321.
Kirkus Reviews, January 15, 2002, review of Billy’s Big-Boy Bed, p. 111; February 1, 2003, review of Calico’s Curious Kittens, p. 240; June 15, 2007, review of Apples; January 1, 2009, review of Plant Secrets; December 15, 2010, review of Will You Be Mine?
Publishers Weekly, November 22, 2010, review of Will You Be Mine?, p. 54.
School Library Journal, April, 2000, Patricia Manning, review of Animals in Camouflage, p. 127; October, 2001, JoAnn Jonas, review of Baby Face, p. 132; March, 2002, Maryann H. Owen, review of Billy’s Big-Boy Bed, p. 204; February, 2003, Gay Lynn Van Vleck, review of Calico’s Curious Kittens, p. 124; July, 2004, Marge Loch-Wouters, review of Pumpkins, p. 93; September, 2007, Grace Oliff, review of Apples, p. 182; March, 2009, Carol S. Surges, review of Plant Secrets, p. 134; February, 2011, Gay Lynn Van Vleck, review of Will You Be Mine?, p. 99.
ONLINE
Charlesbridge Web site, http://www.charlesbridge.com/ (August 18, 2014), “Phyllis Limbacher.”*
Author and Illustrator PHYLLIS LIMBACHER TILDES
I was a lucky child growing up in Connecticut in a home filled with pets and an occasional orphaned wild animal. I showed an early interest in the natural world. At only two years old I amazed my mother with a drawing of a butterfly. When I was a little older, I explored the woods behind our house with my father, whose love of nature was infectious. That early passion for wildlife is reflected in many of my books, including EYE GUESS, ANIMALS BLACK AND WHITE, and ANIMALS IN CAMOUFLAGE.
When I had learned to read and write, I began to make up stories with illustrations. By the time I was a teenager I knew I wanted to be and author and illustrator of children's books. I was thrilled to receive a scholarship to the prestigious art college, Rhode Island School of Design, where I majored in Illustration. I was chosen to be a European Honors Student studying in Italy for my senior year.
After graduation I was a graphic designer for many years before my lucky break with my first book contract from Charlesbridge for COUNTING ON CALICO. They have been my publisher since 1995. I have written and illustrated books on subjects such as pets and wildlife, an ethnic tale (THE MAGIC BABUSHKA), and a book on the deaf culture (THE GARDEN WALL), and baby board books. My most recent board book is BABY'S FIRST BOOK OF BIRDS AND COLORS. My 24th picture book, BUNNY'S BIG SURPRISE, was released January 2020.
With my picture books I hope to instill a sense of wonder and discovery in young readers.
Phyllis exhibited artistic talent at the age of two and a half when she presented her mother with a drawing of a butterfly, followed by a man selling peanuts at a peanut stand. She was anxious to follow her older brother and sister to school in Stratford, Connecticut, where she was soon writing poems and stories to illustrate and give to family and friends. As a child, she was always curious about nature and enjoyed exploring in the woods behind her home. The Limbacher house was always filled with pets and an occasional wild, orphaned animal. Phyllis was a voracious reader and loved her town library where she selected stacks of books for summer reading. She would often climb onto a branch of an old chestnut tree outside the library to read a book and study the artwork of her favorite illustrators such as Arthur Rackham and Beatrix Potter.
After graduating with honors from high school, Phyllis attended Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) where she received a B.F.A. as an illustration major. For her senior thesis she wrote and illustrated an eastern European folktale for children titled Sasha. Phyllis has worked as a designer for Hallmark and was the assistant art director for Hopkins Art Center at Dartmouth College after her graduation from RISD. She was a freelance graphic designer for over twenty-five years, doing everything from logos to opera and ballet promotion pieces. She never lost sight of her original dream of becoming an author/illustrator, however, and in 1995 her first children's book, Counting on Calico, was published. Since then she has published several other stories on topics ranging from pets and wildlife to folk tales.
The North Royalton Branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library (suburban Cleveland, Ohio) proudly incorporated illustrations from Ms. Tildes' books Animals in Camouflage and Eye Guess in the Children's area of their new facility. A large mural and custom interactive play panels serve to delight and educate young people in this backyard wildlife themed space.
For many years, Phyllis lived with her family in Connecticut. They have also lived in Nottingham, England, and enjoy traveling abroad. They now live in Savannah, Georgia, where Phyllis enjoys birdwatching, gardening, writing, and expanding her artistic abilities.
Click here to read an interview with Phyllis Tildes about Bunny's Big Surprise.
Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher BUNNY'S BIG SURPRISE Charlesbridge (Children's Fiction) $16.99 1, 7 ISBN: 978-1-58089-684-9
A bunny boy finds a large egg to decorate for Easter, with an astonishing revelation when the egg hatches.
In his light blue sweater, the charming bunny looks like a distant relative of Peter Rabbit. He is outside by himself, collecting eggs in his Easter basket for painting later. When Bunny finds a single, large egg near the edge of a lake, he unsuccessfully tries to find the creature that laid the egg. He questions a goose, a heron, and an osprey, finally taking the huge egg home to paint as an Easter egg. When the decorated egg hatches, a surprise emerges--a baby alligator, although the little rabbit isn't sure what sort of critter this might be. Bunny returns the baby to the lake where he found the egg, and a page turn reveals a mother alligator with four babies swimming nearby. The lost baby alligator jumps in the lake to rejoin its family, and the mother swims away, carrying the five babies in her mouth. The simple text includes repeated elements and a winning sense of dramatic pacing as the alligator angle of the plot is revealed. Appealing watercolor illustrations strike a satisfying balance between the cuddly bunny and the slightly scary mother alligator with yellow eyes and a mouthful of pointed teeth.
A fresh and entertaining take on the bunny-and-Easter egg theme. (Picture book. 3-6)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2020 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher: BUNNY'S BIG SURPRISE." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2020. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A612618959/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=c71f52be. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020.
Arnold, Marsha Diane BABY ANIMALS TAKE A BATH Charlesbridge (Children's Fiction) $6.99 2, 7 ISBN: 978-1-58089-538-5
Two-word descriptions and realistic art depict the ways a variety of baby animals bathe. "Snow bath" shows a young polar-bear cub enjoying a roll in the snow; across the spread, a sea-lion pup snoozes on a sandy beach in a "sun bath." The book continues with a variety of bathing techniques, including "dust bath" (zebra foal), "mud bath" (hippopotamus calf), and "tongue bath" (tiger cub). Tildes' sunny paintings fill each page, with a squiggly black line as an informal border. The final double-page spread reveals a white infant with brown hair and brown eyes in a baby bathtub receiving a "bubble bath!" The companion book, Baby Animals Take a Nap, follows the same formula to demonstrate how baby critters rest, often with a grown-up in close proximity. The title ends with a white baby peacefully snoozing in the crook of a grown-up's arm, likely the babe's father. Both offerings list the animals depicted in order of appearance in the book on the back cover. While the imagery in both may skew to the adorable, the information it presents is solid. This is developmentally appropriate nonfiction for the youngest animal lovers. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Arnold, Marsha Diane: BABY ANIMALS TAKE A BATH." Kirkus Reviews, 1 July 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A497199425/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=53c3d4a2. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020.
Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher BABY'S FIRST BOOK OF BIRDS & COLORS Charlesbridge (Children's Informational) $7.99 5, 2 ISBN: 978-1-58089-742-6
Gorgeous birds amid foliage of similar hues introduce eight basic colors. The two birds presented on each spread not only are of similar coloration, but also live in the same North American habitat. A scarlet tanager and a cardinal, both male, perch in a red maple tree; a male Eastern bluebird and a blue jay appear with morning glories and blueberries. The name of each color is printed in large font, while the name of each bird is in a much smaller one. Whether the bird shown is male or female, or if the male and female have similar coloring, is also indicated. The names of the trees they perch upon are identified in a note on the back cover. These details will be lost on most toddlers, but caregivers will appreciate being able to answer questions knowledgeably. Colors featured are from the standard box of crayons, except that pink is substituted for purple. Black and white share a spread. The cover image, of a cardinal, goldfinch, and bluebird in a birdbath, is not nearly as inviting as the images within. The final spread shows children (one white, one black, one Asian) assembling a puzzle that includes the same birds. This may serve as a reprise but will probably be skipped over. Bird-loving readers will probably feel that the space could have been put to better use by giving white birds their own page or adding a purple martin. Useful for toddling birders in need of board books about colors. (Board book. 1-3)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher: BABY'S FIRST BOOK OF BIRDS & COLORS." Kirkus Reviews, 1 July 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A497199498/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=3b95d55b. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020.
Baby Animals Day & Night
Phyllis Limbacher Tildes, author
Charlesbridge Publishing Inc.
85 Main Street, Watertown, MA 02472
www.charlesbridge.com
9781580896092, $6.95, Board Book, www.amazon.com
"Baby Animals Day & Night" is a child's board book filled with black and white illustrations/portraits of four animals awake (black against white background) and asleep (white against black background). Two animals are nocturnal (bobcat and skunk), and two are diurnal (chipmunk and otter). The delicate black and white animal portraits end with two full color pages showing a charming boy baby with brown curly hair, awake in the daytime, and asleep in the night. On his lavender pajamas are images of the daytime animals during the day, and the nocturnal animals during the night. It has been suggested that bold black and white images stimulate eyesight and brain development, which adds to the impact and value of the board book, "Baby Animals Day & Night." The message is: "Some animals sleep during the day. Some sleep at night. But everyone needs a good rest!"
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/cbw/index.htm
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Baby Animals Day & Night." Children's Bookwatch, June 2016. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A459507415/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=9e11f150. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020.
Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher BABY ANIMALS SPOTS & STRIPES Charlesbridge (Children's Picture Books) $6.95 1, 6 ISBN: 978-1-58089-608-5
Photorealistic, black-and-white images of baby animals dominate this infant-oriented offering.Newborn and infant eyes will appreciate the high contrast. Black-and-white images of a bunny, raccoon, turtle, snake, owl, duck and two kinds of fish appear against alternating black and white backgrounds. While in many such efforts images tend to appear flat and lifeless, the baby animals shown here are rendered in considerable detail. Appearing textured and lifelike, each exudes charm of its own. The baby owl and duck, in particular, look downright cuddly. The final double-page spread--rendered, surprisingly, in full color--features an African-American girl and a Caucasian boy contentedly playing with a box full of toys. Notably, most of these toys resemble the very animals that have appeared on prior pages. Adults can prompt little ones to connect the black-and-white animal images they have seen previously to the toys that appear in the final, colorful spread. This slim volume is a lovely introduction to books for the tiniest babes. (Board books. 0-2)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Tildes, Phyllis Limbacher: BABY ANIMALS SPOTS & STRIPES." Kirkus Reviews, 1 July 2015. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A419698257/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=23cf4d87. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020.