David Small
Encyclopedia
David Small is an American author and illustrator. He was only 2 years old when he began drawing, health problems having kept him home for much of his childhood.

Life

David Small attended Cass Technical High School
Cass Technical High School
The Cass Tech Technicians football team is a high school football program in Division 1 Public School League, representing the prestigious Cass Technical High School in Detroit, MI. Cass Tech High School has long been recognized nationwide for its extraordinary football program dating back to its...

 and began studying writing in college, but at age 21 switched to art. He earned a bachelor of fine arts degree at Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...

 and a master of fine arts degree at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

. Small taught art for many years on the college level, ran and film series, and made satirical sketches for campus newspapers. His first book, which he wrote and illustrated, Eulalie and the Hopping Head, was published in 1981.

Small earned the 1997 Caldecott Honor and The Christopher Medal for The Gardener, with Sarah Stewart
Sarah Stewart (author)
Sarah Stewart is an award-winning author of children's books. She is married to David Small.-Works :*The Gardener with David Small , Trumpet Club, New York 1998*'The Library with David Small , Farrar, Straus and Giroux...

, his wife, recipient of the 2007 Michigan Author Award. In 2001 he won the Caldecott Medal
Caldecott Medal
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...

 for So You Want to Be President?
So You Want to Be President?
So You Want to Be President? is a children's picture book written by Judith St. George and illustrated by David Small. Published in 2000, the book features a comprehensive guide to the Presidents of the United States. The book includes information about the education, family, and prior occupations...

, combining political cartooning with children's book illustration. Small's drawings have appeared in the New Yorker and the New York Times. In 1990, he was commissioned to paint one of the pillars in the children's room with nursery rhyme character of the Kalamazoo Public Library, in Kalamazoo Michigan
Kalamazoo Public Library
The Kalamazoo Public Library is an independent district library in Kalamazoo, Michigan, that serves about 120,000 people, has a salaried staff of 90, and spends about $10 million annually. The library consists of the central branch downtown, and four branch libraries.-History:Kalamazoo Public...

.

David Small and Sarah Stewart make their home in an historic manor house in Mendon, Michigan
Mendon, Michigan
Mendon is a village in St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 917 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Mendon Township.-Geography:...

.

Stitches

David Small's graphic memoir, Stitches, was published in September, 2009. "Stiches", the memoir, is the story of David Small's twisted childhood in Detroit. Small's childhood was full of lies ever since he was born. As a boy, Small and his brother snuck into his father's office to secretly look at his medical books and documents. While his brother was snooping through one of the medical books he wound up on a page entailing the picture of a growth on a man's neck; Small and his brother were confused of what it was but yet the image stayed in his mind. "Stiches" also shows that Small was abused physically and mentally by his mother and grandmother. He was never very happy with his family and never thought they supported him at all.Now eleven, with his parents at a yacht party, one of Small's father's coworkers at the hospital noticed a small growth on Small's neck. The apparent "cyst" was first brought into question at one of the hospitals women's auxilary bridge club meetings at his house: when his mothers friend Mrs.Dillon points out to his mom he may have some sort of a growth on his neck. After the "cyst" growths for three more years they decide to put Small into surgery. After surgery, Small awoke from a supposedly harmless operation to discover that he had been transformed into a virtual mute—one of his vocal cords had been removed. He was fourteen, and had not been told that he had cancer and was expected to die. His parents didn't care to tell David that he had cancer or any of the troubles he might have had due to the cancer. They let him find out on his own. This decision to let Small find out about the cancer by himself results in even more disorder in the family. Small admits to finally ,for once, wanting to actually make noise and express his anger to his parents in a household that's used to being silent, but now unfortunately he can't. Small does, however, try to rebel in anyway he can, but this only gets him sent to therapy. It is here where Small meets the first person in the book he actually takes a liking to: his therapist. It is here where we learn that Small's mother, "Doesn't love him." This part is a bit unclear, but it makes a good implication that Small's mother is a sociopath. Surprisingly, these talks with his therapist actually seem to brighten his life and make him a stronger person from that point on throughout the memoir. shortly after therapy he comes home to find his mother having an affair with Mrs.Dillon it is not until later he finds out about his mothers secret life as a lesbian. At the age of 15, four and a half years later after being diagnosed with cancer, his father finally admits to the unfortunate fact that he was the cause of his own son's cancer. Small had been born with breathing difficulty. At the time, any newborn with any sort of breathing difficulty were treated with X-rays. So, Small had been treated with harmful X- rays (two to four hundred rads).Stitches tells the story of Small's journey from sickly child to cancer patient, to the troubled teen who made a risky decision to run away from his home life at sixteen—with nothing more than to pursue his dream of becoming an artist.

Stitches has been reviewed by the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and is a #1 New York Times Best Seller. It was named one of the ten best books of 2009 by Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20091102/26073-best-books-of-2009.html and Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000444391. It was also a finalist for the 2009 National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...

 for Young People's Literature http://www.nationalbook.org/nba2009_finalist_pr.pdf.
Small, David. Stitches: a memoir--. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2009. Print.

Written and Illustrated by David Small

Stitches by David Small, W.W. Norton & Company, 2009

Eulalie and the Hopping Head by David Small
MacMillan 1982, Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2001 A "School Library Journal" Best Book of the Year.

Imogene's Antlers by David Small Crown 1985

Ruby Mae Has Something to Say by David Small Crown 1992

Paper John by David Small Farrar Straus Giroux 1987

Hoover's Bride by David Small
Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

George Washington's Cows by David Small
Farrar, Straus and Giroux 1997

Fenwick's Suit by David Small Farrar Straus Giroux 1996

Written by Sarah Stewart and Illustrated by David Small

The Money Tree by Sarah Stewart, David Small (Illustrator)
Farrar, Straus and Giroux 1994

The Library by Sarah Stewart, David Small (Illustrator)
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Farrar, Straus and Giroux is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger W. Straus, Jr. and John C. Farrar. Known primarily as Farrar, Straus in its first decade of existence, the company was renamed several times, including Farrar, Straus and Young and Farrar, Straus and Cudahy...

  1995

The Gardener
by Sarah Stewart
Sarah Stewart (author)
Sarah Stewart is an award-winning author of children's books. She is married to David Small.-Works :*The Gardener with David Small , Trumpet Club, New York 1998*'The Library with David Small , Farrar, Straus and Giroux...

, David Small (Illustrator)
Trumpet Club, New York 1998 Caldecott Honor Award

The Friend by Sarah Stewart, David Small (Illustrator)
Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2004

The Journey by Sarah Stewart, David Small (Illustrator)
Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2001
A "Publishers Weekly" and "School Library Journal
School Library Journal
The School Library Journal is a monthly magazine with articles and reviews for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with a focus on technology and multimedia. Reviews are included for preschool to 4th grade,...

" Best Book of the Year.

Illustrated by David Small

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, David Small (Illustrator), Antheum, 2008

So You Want to Be President?
by Judith St. George
Judith St. George
Judith Saint George is an American author, most famous for writing So You Want to Be President? Author and illustrator David Small was awarded the 2001 Caldecott Medal for his illustrations in the book. She has written more than 40 books, most being historical fiction. Mrs. St. George was born in...

, David Small (Illustrator)
Philomel
Philomel
Philomel is the name of a musical instrument similar to the violin, but having four steel, wire strings.The philomel has a body with incurvations similar to those of the guitar; therefore, without corner blocks, the outline of the upper lobe forms a wavy shoulder reminiscent of the viols but more...

 2000
Year 2000 Notable Books by the New York Times, one of the Best Children's Books 2000 by Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...

, winner of the 2001 Caldecott Medal
Caldecott Medal
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...

.

So You Want to Be an Inventor? by Judith St George, David Small (Illustrator)

So You Want to Be an Explorer? by Judith St George, David Small (Illustrator)
Philomel
Philomel
Philomel is the name of a musical instrument similar to the violin, but having four steel, wire strings.The philomel has a body with incurvations similar to those of the guitar; therefore, without corner blocks, the outline of the upper lobe forms a wavy shoulder reminiscent of the viols but more...

 2005

Once Upon a Banana by Jennifer Armstrong
Jennifer Armstrong
Jennifer Mary Armstrong is a children's author of fiction and non-fiction.-Books:* Armstrong, Jennifer. . Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World : The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance Crown Books for Young Readers...

, David Small (Illustrator)

When Dinosaurs came with Everything by Elise Broach
Elise Broach
Elise Broach is an author from Easton, Connecticut. Among Broach's publications are the acclaimed novels Shakespeare's Secret, Desert Crossing and Masterpiece...

, David Small (Illustrator) Athenium

The Christmas Crocodile by Bonnie Becker, David Small (Illustrator)
Simon & Schuster, New York 1998

The Essential Worldwide Monster Guide by Linda Ashman, David Small (Illustrator)
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2003

My Senator and Me: A Dog's Eye View of Washington, D.C.
by Edward Moore Kennedy, David Small (Illustrator) Scholastic Inc, 2006

Mouse & His Child by Russell Hoban
Russell Hoban
Russell Conwell Hoban is an American writer, now living in England, of fantasy, science fiction, mainstream fiction, magic realism, poetry, and children's books-Biography:...

, David Small (Illustrator) Arthur A. Levine Book 2001

Huckabuck Family: And How They Raised Popcorn in Nebraska and Quit and Came Back
by Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...

, David Small (Illustrator)
Farrar, Straus and Giroux 1999

Company's Coming by Arthur Yorinks
Arthur Yorinks
Arthur Yorinks has written and directed for opera, theater, dance, film, and radio and is the author of over thirty-five acclaimed and award-winning books, including "Hey, Al," a children's book which earned the Caldecott Medal in 1987....

, David Small (Illustrator)
Knopf Books for Young Readers 1988

Petey's Bedtime Story by Beverly Cleary
Beverly Cleary
Beverly Cleary is an American author. Educated at colleges in California and Washington, she worked as a librarian before writing children's books. Cleary has written more than 30 books for young adults and children. Some of her best-known characters are Henry Huggins, Ribsy, Beatrice Quimby, her...

, David Small (Illustrator)
HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...

 Publishers 1993

Company's Going by Arthur Yorinks, David Small (Illustrator)
Hyperion Books 2001

A Surfeit of Similes by Norton Juster
Norton Juster
Norton Juster is an American architect and author. He is best known as an author of children's books, including The Phantom Tollbooth and The Dot and the Line.- Biography :...

, David Small (Illustrator)
William Morrow & Company, New York 1989

That book woman by Heather Henson, David Small (Illustrator)
Atheneum, 2008

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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