Please welcome my guest author, Valerie Bolling with her newest book release, an easy reader series called Rainbow Days.
Rainbow Days: The Gray Day by Valerie Bolling, illustrated by Kai Robinson
In this sparkly, full-color early reader series, Zoya and her puppy, Coco, love to make art.
This book is part of a Scholastic Acorn early reader series about Zoya and her puppy, Coco, who love to make art together. It was inspired by my nieces, Zorah and Anyah (notice that the main character’s name is a combo of their names) and takes the reader on fun adventures as these two pals create artistic masterpieces – always with a splash of glitter! [early reader series, ages 4 and up]
6 Children’s Books About Art and Creativity
The All-Together Quilt by Lizzy Rockwell
This is such a wonderful story with beautiful art that’s based on a real-life diverse, intergenerational quilting group called Peace by Piece in Norwalk, CT. Since I know the author/illustrator, I was fortunate enough to attend an exhibit of her work which included a number of the quilts made by members of this group. This book also won a 2021 Connecticut Book Award. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
Katie Spector The Art Collector by Lisa Cloherty, illustrated by David A. Rodriguez
Katie is an art-lover like Zoya, creating art with whatever she finds. When her mother tells Katie to pick her favorite creations and get rid of the rest, she comes up with a plan to keep all of them, but then something happens that sends her hidden art flying out into the world. [picture book, ages 4 and up]
The Art of Miss Chew by Patricia Polacco
I love that this beautiful book celebrates two of my favorite things: art and teachers. It also highlights the value and power of art as well as the value and power of a caring teacher. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
This book proves that anyone can be an artist. It just depends on your perspective. And, once again, the positive impact of a teacher is highlighted, showing that a special teacher can make all the difference in how a child views herself. [picture book, ages 4 and up]
Alma’s Art by Rhoda Ahmed, illustrated by Anita Cheung
This story is inspired by Alma Woodsy who made her debut as an artist at age 80. In the book, Alma focuses on one color at a time in her paintings. Eventually, she blends them all together to create her favorite color: rainbow. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
Ask Me Anything GIVEAWAY!
We are giving away a 15-minute Ask Me Anything (AMA)! This is perfect for anyone who wants to learn about becoming a children’s book author, literacy, and more. To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter below.
Valerie Bolling is the author of the 2021 SCBWI Crystal Kite award-winning and CT Book Award finalist LET’S DANCE! (March 2020). In 2022 Valerie is happy to welcome TOGETHER WE RIDE (April) and RIDE, ROLL, RUN: TIME FOR FUN! (October). Sequels to these books as well as a Scholastic early reader series, RAINBOW DAYS, are slated for 2023.
A graduate of Tufts University and Columbia University, Teachers College, Valerie has been an educator for almost 30 years. She currently works as an Instructional Coach for Greenwich Public Schools and is on the faculty at Westport Writers’ Workshop. She is also a WNDB mentor and deeply immersed in the kidlit writing community, particularly involved with SCBWI, the 12X12 Picture Book Challenge, and Black Creators HeadQuarters.
Valerie and her husband live in Connecticut and enjoy traveling, hiking, reading, going to the theater, and dancing. To learn more about Valerie, go to her website and Linktree, and follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
p.s. Related posts:
Picture Books About Strong, Independent Female Artists
10 Diverse Picture Books on Fine Artists!
Children’s Books about Unconventional, Inspirational Artists
Children’s Books About Art Mysteries
10 Inspirational Art Books for Arty Kids
Learning to See Art Books for Your Budding Artist
Visiting Artist Victor Hugo Zayas
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My books:
Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Selected as one of 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023 by dPICTUS and featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Starred review from School Library Journal
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Scholastic / Signed or Inscribed by Me
