Lucy and the String by Vanessa Roeder. unpgd. Dial Books for Young Readers/ Penguin Young Readers Group, August 7, 2018. 9780735230491.
I was lucky enough to receive an fng of this delightful book and reviewed it here back in March. When I was part of an email chain asking for blog tour participants, I was thrilled to revisit Lucy and Hank.
The finished book is lovely. The red string is slightly embossed on the wraparound cover. The pages have heft and will stand up to the multiple readings I predicted in my review.
Lucy and the String is Author/ illustrator Vanessa Roeder's author debut and she was kind enough to answer three questions from me:
1. Do you knit?
I actually don’t knit, though I did have a short-lived sewing obsession. My poor daughter had to suffer the shame of wearing some of my creations, one of which was made out of a curtain. She’s probably very thankful I didn’t take up knitting.
2. What were you like at Lucy's age?
I was a pretty resourceful kid, like Lucy. I grew up in a very small town where there wasn’t a lot to do, so my imagination became the captain of many adventures. I would do things like build forts out of old billboard scraps, or construct makeshift roller coasters in our horse barn, or convert my brother’s room into a news studio to report our own version of the headlines. These escapades didn’t always work out, like when a rope I strung from the barn rafters snapped mid swing, or when the roller coaster came crashing down under the weight of four kids. I was a problem solver though, so when an old rope snapped, I just started over with my dad’s good lasso.
3. Your other books are so colorful. What about this story said, three colors only?
When I first started writing Lucy and the String, I had planned to use my colorful collage style. But after making several samples, I realized that the saturated palette took away from one part of the story that really needed to shine… the string. The story itself is simple, and I wanted a style that mirrored that simplicity. Once I pared down the palette to black, white, and poppy red, it just fit. I love the limited palette and simplified style so much that I’m now trying to weave it into future books.
Thank you, Vanessa for taking the time to answer my questions! If you are looking for a delightful read aloud, Lucy and the String will be available August 7. Happy book birthday!
Bio: Vanessa Roeder is an author and illustrator whose work has been featured in Highlights magazine and on Apartment Therapy. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and three kids.
Be sure to visit the other stops of the Lucy and the String Blog Tour!
July 30 – Read. Learn. Repeat – Q&A + Review
July 31 – Picture Book Playdate – Creative Instagram Picture
August 1 – Tuesday Stiches – Creative Instagram Picture
August 2 – Proseandkahn – Q&A
August 3 – Mundie Kids Book – Review + Creative Instagram Picture
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