Z is for the character Zero from Holes by Louis Sachar, and also the number of letters I have left in my children's literature illustration alphabet. I think I will try to illustrate a novel that's in the public domain next. Stay tuned!

I love the Graveyard Book. It is a wonderful example of an author (Neil Gaiman) taking something old (Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book) and making it his own. There isn't a wasted sentence or turn of phrase, and I was very happy that it was recognized by the Newbery Award committee. (Sometimes fantastic books get ignored by award committees.) I love the characters, in particular Silas, who doesn't eat bananas, and Bod, the kid growing up in the wilds of the graveyard.  It might not happen, and I wouldn't want it to happen unless Mr. Gaiman thinks it can be as good as this one, but since there are two Jungle Books, I hope that maybe one day, there will be two Graveyard Books. It had a great ending, but it was one of those books that I didn't want to leave behind on the last page. I tried to depict the graveyard a grey, misty place with just a hint of color. I imagine Silas as the darkest thing on a dark night. My scene is from chapter 2, when he brings Bod books and teaches him to read with gravestone letters.