The best sign in Stockholm

The Stomatol sign in Söder. How cool is that? Other cool Swedish signs: check them out here. (don't actually speak swedish. as such. Just pretending. I like it so much in fact--pretending and signs--that I'm going to start a small series of Swedish signs for Fridays... this is the first...)

world magazine interview & photo

World Magazine, in their Books Issue, interviewed me and did a fun article about how I came to write in the first place and what brought me to the US. (You can read here.) Which was very nice of them. (Thank you World Magazine and Marvin Olasky!) The photo was taken standing by a window at the Tribeca Barnes and Noble one day last month. The photographer (James Allen) was great--and came with big lights and fancy reflectors and lots of leads and very large cameras to photograph me while I was at an event (I think Barnes and Noble now believe this is how I always arrive, with paparazzi and lights). A friend says it looks like I'm balancing on a building ledge and how did I get there; another says it looks like I have NYC at my feet; and my sister says what's that big round elbow growth you've got? In Other Reviews... HOW TO GET MARRIED turns up as a June pick for the older sibling here (they can't say enough good things about the book so I love them I love them I love them); and THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO GRANDMAS AND GRANDPAS is a Summer Reading Selection from none other than Grandparents.com (and they should know) which you can read here. And The Witchita Eagle says of BEING A PIG IS NICE: "dirty, slow, noisy, messy, goofy kids everywhere will love this book" and you can read more here and it's also featured in a piggy round up here.

succinctness

"I have made this [letter] longer, because I have not had the time to make it shorter."

— Blaise Pascal (1623 - 1662), Lettres provinciales, letter 16, 1657 Reminds me what that giant of succinctness, the Revd. John Stott, says. For every minute in the pulpit he spends an hour preparing. If you miss one word, you're lost. A bit like poetry. And (good) picture books. (All I can say is there are A LOT of preachers and public speakers out there spending 90 hours or more a week on their sermons...)

plot and character

"Plot springs from character... I've always sort of believed that these people inside me- these characters- know who they are and what they're about and what happens, and they need me to help get it down on paper because they don't type." Anne Lamott (b. 1954)

we are the world

Written by Michael Jackson & Lionel Richie MJ RIP

the importance of reading to your babies

My little friend found a favorite certain children's Storybook and started reading it first to herself and then to all her babies. See how her babies are so well behaved and looking at the pictures and listening so carefully. Even as such a young age. I think they must have their listening ears on. (Plus she must be quite a compelling reader that they can even overcome even the disadvantage of being plastic).

new forest donkey

I think he's interested in taking it to go. There aren't just New Forest Donkeys. There are also the famous New Forest Ponies who run free across the open heather-covered heath, wander through the ancient forests, across roads, stroll into shops. It's true. They really do. I went to boarding school in the New Forest (which of course is extremely ancient) and they are part of the scenery. They had free reign of the place. Actually so did we. It was a different time and a quite magical place to be a child.

Being a Pig Is Nice book trailer

check out this uber cool Book Trailer Random House made of the new book. WOW! I love it!