Podcast – Mac Barnett

So, you want to make a picture book. Mac Barnett is here to share how the unique form of the picture book works to pull the reader in using a variety of techniques.

Mac Barnett is a New York Times-bestselling author of stories for children. His work has been translated into more than 30 languages and sold more than 2 million copies worldwide. Mac’s books have won many prizes, including two Caldecott Honors, three New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Awards, three E.B. White Read Aloud Awards, and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award. Mac’s international awards include Germany’s Jugendliteraturpreis, China’s Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award, and Italy’s Premio Orbil. His picture book collaborations with Jon Klassen have brought us the beloved books Sam & Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn. Mac reads a different a picture book each Saturday on his Instagram show Mac’s Book Club Show Book Club.

In this episode, Mac Barnett shares how the layout and format of a picture book informs how the reader will engage with the story on different levels. Even the trim size of a book changes the way it’s read.

Listen here:

As part of Mac’s episode, he mentions The Nutshell Library and Count the Monkeys. Here are those trim sizes for comparison:

Mac Barnett’s Picture Book Proclamation: http://thepicturebook.co/

For even more insight into how picture books work and an in-depth look at making page turns work for you (and to hear Mac’s Grover impersonation), check out Mac Barnett’s full Picture Book Summit session “Let Us Make Picture Books” on our Teachable site HERE.