Pictured Worlds

The illustrated children's book came of age in the eighteenth century as part and parcel of rising middle-class demand for economic and social advancement. Inspired by Enlightenment philosopher John Locke's prescient insights into child development, London publisher John Newbery established the first viable commercial market for illustrated "juveniles" in the West, and the pattern he helped set has often repeated itself since as books tailored to the interests and capacities of young readers have been recognized around the world as indispensable gateways to literacy, cultural enfranchisement, and a better life. In Pictured Worlds, renowned historian Leonard S. Marcus shares his incomparable knowledge of this global cultural phenomenon in the definitive reference work on children's book illustration. The author of more than twenty award-winning books in the field, Marcus here highlights an international roster of 101 artists of the last 250 years whose touchstone achievements collectively chart the major trends and turning-points in the history of children's book illustration. While several of the illustrators explored in this lively volume (John Tenniel, Maurice Sendak) have become household names, Marcus's wide-ranging survey also shines a light on lesser-known figures whose unique contributions to the illustrated children's book merit a closer look. The result is a sweeping chronicle of a vibrant art form and cultural driver that has touched the lives of literate peoples everywhere. More than 400 splendid examples of art from landmark books showcase the work of illustrators from Great Britain, the United States, France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic, Russia, Japan, China, Hungary, Argentina, Cameroon, and more.Each artist's entry is comprised of a finely etched biography and career overview, a deep-dive look at one pivotal book and its legacy, and a selection of full-color reproductions of preliminary and finished art. Featured artists and books include Ivan Bilibin's The Golden Cockerel, Richard Doyle's In Fairyland, Gustaf Tenggren's The Poky Little Puppy, Kveta Pacovská's One, Five, Many, Helen Oxenbury's We're Going On a Bear Hunt, Mitsumasa Anno's Anno's Journey, and Crockett Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon, and the source books of such ubiquitous pop-cultural characters as Struwwelpeter, Curious George, Alice, Max, the Little Prince, Moomintroll, Corduroy, and Winnie-the-Pooh. At once a visual celebration of illustrated children's books from around the world and an essential reference work by an esteemed expert, Pictured Worlds encapsulates, in the author's words, 'the special nature of the illustrated children's book as a cultural enterprise that is at once a rewarding art form, a bridge across cultures, and a ladder between generations."