Magic Pencil

This volume presents the work of thirteen of the top children's book illustrators working today. Each chapter contains a commentary by the illustrator, introducing their work and explaining how they started to illustrate children's books, and shows several original artworks by each illustrator. The introduction reflects on the complexities of providing an illustrative response to the characters and activities of a writer. Joanna Carey, formerly Children's Book Editor of The Guardian, contributes an illustrated essay on the history of children's book illustration, from the work of Cruikshank,…