Thanks to YOU!

Thanks to you, this week's NYTimes bestseller list includes 2 of my books:

The brand new Cat the Cat adventure Cat the Cat Who is That? clocks in at #3!

Elephant and Piggie's latest, I Am Going!, spends it's 3rd week on the list at #8!


This is the second time in my career that two separate books have been on NYTimes' list during the same week; a big thrill for me and all of the folks at Harper and Hyperion who have worked to get the books out.

Thanks, you.

(and here's a nice blog review of CAT THE CAT)

Rhymes with recap...

A mid-tour recap of my takeover of Rhymes with Orange last week. Mega thanks to pal Hilary Price. Now, go read her strips for the next 51 weeks. She's always funny.

scenes from the tour:

Thanks to everyone who has turned out so far! It's been great fun. Now for Chicago and Cleveland!

(and thanks to Ed, a fan on my flight to Chicago for his nice note)

Pigeon Play!

If you attended last weeks Toy Fair in NYC and you passed by the University Games booth, then you've already seen this:



Yup, it's a whole bunch of prototypes for Pigeon games, including a Pigeon Matching Game housed in a real Pigeon-shaped carrier, "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" board game, cool Colorforms and more!

More mofo as we get closer, but you can expect to see stuff hitting the shelves this fall!

Exciting!

Now, back to touring.

updates...

Took the day off yesterday visiting pals (on and off the set of the upcoming Children's Hospital show, which was good fun. A talented group there and definitely not for the kiddies). Back to work today in Santa Monica.


In the meantime, here's a quick Q+A in the Chicago Sun Times and a quick review of PIGS MAKE ME SNEEZE! in the Sac Bee.

I'll be spending Thursday chatting (via satellite) with local TV News folks across the country. If you see me on your TV sets, be sure to wave hello.

Pigeons Read!

What a cool dude! Reminds me of my Snoopy costume I had when I was that age.




Tours are fun...

(See ya in Santa Monica tomorrow)

Audie Nominee!

More good news from the road:

My daughter and I have been nominated for a 2010 Audie award for the audio book version of Knuffle Bunny Too: An Unexpected Diversion! This is exciting news for the whole family. 3 years back, we (along with my wife) took home the award for the audio version of the first Knuffle Bunny book.

Trixie did a fantastic job on this one as well. You can look (or listen) for her spreading her acting wings as the Duckling with me as the Pigeon in this fall's upcoming Weston Woods production of The Pigeon Finds a Hotdog! animated by rock star Pete List.

See ya on tour!

Last day of "Rhymes with MO"!

My week-long takeover of pal Hilary Price's "Rhymes with Orange" strip ends today, but you should keep reading it each and every morning because it's so funny!

Thanks, Hil!

And some more good news: Thanks to you, Elephant & Piggie's new book, I Am Going! is back on the NYTimes Bestseller list, clocking in at #9. Thanks, you!

West Coast Live! interview on Saturday

Tune your radio station to San Francisco's NPR affiliate KALW on Saturday Feb 20th at 10am PST for a live interview on West Coast Live! Other guests include T C Boyle and some cool music.

I'll be chatting about Cat the Cat and other book stuff.

If you're not in San Francisco, the show runs around the country and streams on-line

Beyond the Bus! (notes from the road)

Most awesome Pigeon Tattoo yet!

Love ya, Houston!

Cat the Cat, Who DAT? post-Mardi Gras edition

Thanks to all y'all who came to the New Orleans Children's Museum to hear a seasonally appropriate Cat the Cat, Who Dat? We had great fun!


While I've been in the thick of Mardi Gras, throwin' beads, catchin' beads, and generally creating mayhem in my hometown with team Willems and pals, the good news and fun stuff has been pouring in like a parade with too many beads.

Elephant and Piggie have snagged another CYBILs award for easy readers, this time for Watch Me Throw the Ball! The CYBILs are chosen by a cadre of devoted fans of two things: children's books and the internet. Consequently, they write about the books they love and have become a valuable resource for those who want to keep track of the industry.

So being recognized by these folks is about as great as it gets. Thanks, bloggers!

Frankly, it's almost as cool as being recognized by actual children who read the books. Luckily for me the kids in New Jersey have just done that as Elephant and Piggie's Today I Will Fly! has been named a recipient of the 2010 Garden State Children's Book Award, an award voted on by real, live, kid readers!

It's just been announced that old Sesame Street, Sheep in the Big City, and Avenue Q pal, Stephanie D'Abruzzo will lead the cast in DC, playing Trixie in the upcoming Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical. She rocks! (ps: tickets are selling out!)

My week-long take-over of pal Hilary Price's comic strip, Rhymes With Orange, continues.

And the Cat the Cat tour starts in earnest today.

Phew!

Want mo'?

Check out this fun article from the Austin paper, and this Q+A from the Houston one.

And for a final cool thing, check out this awesome float from either the Bacchus or Orpheus parade:

(and, no, it wasn't the camera that was blurry. It was me)

See ya on the road!

Cat the Cat publishes TODAY!

Today is the pub date for Cat the Cat's first two adventures!


Cat the Cat, Who is That?



and Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly!



I hope you enjoy them!

Tell someone you love 'em...

Rhymes with Mo!

Those of you who have followed this blog or read up on me know of my childhood dream of becoming a syndicated cartoonist. When I turned 5 I wrote to Charles Schulz asking if I could have his job when he died*.

As life would have it, my dream would go unfulfilled for 37 years ("Awwwww").

Until next Monday, when I will be taking over pal Hilary Price's fantastic Rhymes With Orange comic strip for a whole week! ("Yaaaay!")


Yup, I didn't even have to wait for Hilary to die. She went on a cultural exchange with some cartoonists and needed someone to fill in the slot.

For the week, the strip will be called "Rhymes with Mo", which is better than "Rhymes with Morange". Maybe.

I'm on the road all week telling kids about my new Cat the Cat books, but you can bet I'll be picking up the paper each morning this week. I hope that starting Monday you'll check your local paper (or visit someone else's) too and read my funnies.

*You can check out the story in Guys Write for Guys Read.

I'm off!

On Cat the Cat's Tour the Tour! Hope to see you if you're in the area.

There will be sporadic updates on the blog (including some big cartoon news), and of course The Pigeon will tweet (or coo) while I'm away.

Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical tickets on sale TODAY!

Tickets for the general public go on sale TODAY!

All the info is here!

I'll be there opening night.

I hope those who make it to the shows have a great time!

(you can see a mock up of the set here!)

Why should I have all the fun?

Yesterday was Knuffle Manor's 3rd annual luncheon/party for the awesome pals who do all of the hard work editing, designing, publicizing, representing, and supporting my feeble efforts and turn them into books. This year the gang included folks at Hyperion, Harper, and Shelly's.

Affectionately dubbed "Sausage Fest" (on account of a menu consisting of homemade Dutch Meatball Soup, Suzitije Broodjes [Dutch sausage pastries], Champagne, Polish Sausage, Various Cheeses, Other Sausage, Wine, Tea, and Some Sausage)* in past years the event has been merely an excuse to eat and drink to excess.

But this year, I put the crew to work drawing aliens on my dining room's chalk board walls!




I'm sure you'll agree the results were just as weird as past efforts by family and friends, which is how I like it!







Thanks to everyone for a great year, weird doodles, and more great years to come!



*vegetarians in the group (and they exist) are aghast, but we feed them fresh carrot soup and that quiets them down.



.

Ta-Da!

On an unrelated note, I spent my childhood in New Orleans watching the 'Aints with a Schwegman's paper grocery bag on my head. If you'd told me then that there would be something called "The Internet", I could have imagined it. If you'd told me the New Orleans Saints would have won a Super Bowl I would not have believed you. It's gonna be a wild Mardi Gras.

Geaux Saints.

On another unrelated note, check out this sneak peek of a model of the set for Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical.

Spot the Pigeon! (NY Times Bestseller!)

Can you find the Pigeon in the just published I Am Going!?

You can? Cool.

Oh, and thanks to you, debuts on the NYTimes Bestseller list at #2 along side pals Jerry Pinkney, Mark Teague, Jane Yolen, and Peter Brown. This is an unexpected treat! Thanks, you!

Huzzah!

Spiderwicked Cool...

A cool recent arrival in the studio mailbag:


The complete Spiderwick Chronicles by pals Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black in one volume!

It also includes great behind the scenes sketches by Tony and a fan gallery with Spiderwick inspired sketches by cool folks like Peter Brown, Eleanor Davis, Scott Fischer, Jarrett J. Krosooczka, LeUyen Pham, Dan Santat, Peter McCarty, Danny Yaccarino and mo' (Literally. I'm in there too).

It's a pretty cool volume and worth checking out.

Ahem....

A story for grown up fans....