Ann Jonas (January 28, 1932 – September 29, 2013)
was a writer and illustrator of several picture books for children. Her books often used odd, abstract images to stretch children's imaginations.
Biography
Jonas lived most of her childhood in
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
.
She enjoyed horseback riding, and became a babysitter to help raise funds for her rides. Her interest in art was recognized and nurtured by her parents. Her teachers also encouraged her by allowing her to design and paint the sets of plays. After many disappointing jobs, she decided to attend
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...
. After graduation, she began work in
graphic design
Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art whose activity consists in projecting visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdiscipli ...
, and married fellow artist
Donald Crews
Donald Crews (born August 30, 1938) is an American illustrator and writer of children's picture books. In 2015, the American Library Association (ALA) honored him with the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal, recognizing his lasting contribution to childr ...
. After her husband was drafted into the army in 1963, they moved to
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
, Germany.
Their first daughter,
Nina Crews was born in Germany, and their second, Amy, was born a year later in New York.
When they returned to the United States, Jonas continued her work in graphic art, while her husband began to focus on illustrating children's books. Many years later, when their daughters were almost ready for college, Jonas wrote and illustrated her first children's book ''When You Were a Baby'',
in 1982, although it wouldn't be published for another nine years. Her 1983 book ''Round Trip'' was recognized as an
ALA Notable Book American Library Association Notable lists are announced each year in January by various divisions within the American Library Association (ALA). There are six lists, part of the larger ALA awards structure.
* ''ALA Notable Books for Adults'' (est ...
and a ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' "Best Illustrated Book".
In 1985 Jonas won the
Caldecott Honor ''Holes and Peeks''.
Jonas and her husband lived in the state of New York in an old restored farmhouse overlooking the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
and the
Catskill Mountains
The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined as those areas c ...
.
Bibliography
*''Two Bear Cubs'' (1982)
*''When You Were a Baby'' (1982)
*''Round Trip'' (1983)
*''Holes and Peeks'' (1984) A 1985 Caldecott Honor Book.
*''The Quilt'' (1984),
*''The Trek'' (1985)
*''Where Can It Be?'' (1986)
*''Now We Can Go'' (1986)
*''Reflections'' (1987)
*''Color Dance'' (1989)
*''Aardvarks, Disembark!'' (1990)
*''The 13th Clue'' (1992)
*''Splash!'' (1995),
*''Watch William Walk'' (1997)
*''Bird Talk'' (1998)
As illustrator
* ''Stars Beneath Your Bed: The Surprising Story of Dust'', written by April Pulley Sayre (2005),
References
External links
Ann Jonas National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature
The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature (NCCIL, pronounced ''nickle'') is an American museum dedicated to illustrations in children's literature. It was established in 2000 and is located in Abilene, Texas.
Overview
The Center w ...
* Betty Debnam
Meet Author/Illustrator Ann Jonas ''
The Mini Page
The Mini Page is a syndicated newspaper supplement for children, created by Betty Debnam in 1969 and authored by her and two other writers.
History
The Mini Page began in August 1969 and appears weekly in hundreds of newspapers in the United Sta ...
'', October 13, 1998
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonas, Ann
1932 births
2013 deaths
American children's writers
Cooper Union alumni
American women artists