| | Comment from (2008-12-31) |
| One of my all-time favorite picture-book authors, both now and when I read his books as a child. Nobody could tell a tale like Jay Williams.
His language is fabulous, his characters vivid, and his fairy tales, though you know you've run across elements of them in Grimm, always have a distinctly original feel. It's all about the little details. Williams has a true gift for fresh metaphor, and always seems to choose the one perfect descriptive word or phrase. I love the clever, unexpected twists, the subtle humor.
I'm astonished to find most of his books out of print, which seems just plain wrong. What qualifies as a classic if at these books don't? My favorites: Everyone Knows What a Dragon Looks Like; The King With Six Friends; Petronella (the 1973 version--I hate the pictures in the 2001 reprinted one). |
| |
|
|
