New Releases by Hanoch Piven

This clever, informative, and artful picture book from Hanoch Piven and Shira Hecht-Koller imagines what advice 14 Biblical figures would have given. Feel your power. Trust the journey. Change and grow. The Bible is full of stories that teach us to dream big, be curious, and be ourselves. And who better to learn these lessons from than Biblical characters themselves? Dream Big, Laugh Often: And More Great Advice from the Bible contains portraits of 14 Biblical figures, brought to life with Hanoch Piven’s joyful and clever art made from found objects, including Abraham and Sarah, Moses and Miriam, David and Deborah and more. Read, learn, play, search, and find! You’ll love studying each portrait and imagining what piece of advice each character from the Bible would offer.

Have you ever wondered what it takes to make a legandary sports star? Talent? Determination? Teamwork? You''re right, but it takes more than that. Using everyday items like toy airplanes, Coke bottles, and pencil sharpeners, and with fun and fascinating tales of each player''s life -- on and off the field -- Hanoch Piven shows us what our favorite pro-athletes of the past and present are really made of.

How do you draw your smelly dog? Your playful daddy? Your yummy mommy? See how one girl does it in this simple, clever picture book that''s comprised of family portraits made out of objects. For example, her baby brother is so noisy—he''s as loud as a whistle, a horn, and even a fire truck!—that she creates a picture of him with whistles for eyes, a horn mouth, and holding a fire truck. After the girl has described everyone in her family (including herself, in great detail), she asks, "What does your special family look like?" encouraging readers to create their own portraits. With a list of objects at the end of the book to use as a guide, this is the ideal choice for budding artists everywhere. Here''s a wonderful exploration of simile and metaphor for young readers. And don''t miss the companion book My Best Friend is as Sharp as a Pencil!

In paperback for the 2012 election, this sophisticated and playful look at U.S. presidents includes a new portrait of President Obama. See America''s presidents as never before--made of objects Using everything from blue jeans to boxing gloves, Hanoch Piven "builds" the characters of eighteen of our nation''s leaders. Revealing anecdotes accompany the creative collages and lend insight to the charismatic personalities of prominent presidents from George Washington to Barack Obama, resulting in an irresistible resource that transcends party lines.

Here''s the perfect back-to-school gift for budding artists. Like the creator''s previous picture book, My Dog Is as Smelly as Dirty Socks, this picture book encourages children to be creative and make their own object portraits. It''s a fun activity for home or for the classroom. You can even check out portraits made by other readers in the "kids'' gallery" of author Hanoch Piven''s Web site, www.pivenworld.com—and while you''re at it, send in your own! Learn how to create a funny librarian, a colorful art teacher, or your best friend by seeing how one girl does it in this simple, playful picture book that''s comprised of portraits made of objects. Once the girl has talked about—and drawn—the key figures in her school, she ends with the pièce de résistance—a class portrait!

Hanoch Piven has taken the art of caricature to a whole new level. With a minimalist stroke of his deft hand, combined with an object related to what the subject is noted for -- along with his sharp wit -- Piven presents his vision of the celebrities he portrays. The stories Piven tells about each face are enlivened by elemental puns, developed from a three-step creative process. As Piven is sketching the subject in pencil, he is coming up with a word or two to describe the person: "Americana" for Bruce Springsteen, "media" for Jesse Jackson. Now he goes out "to the field" to find the appropriate object, the field being anything from a toy store to a hardware store. Then he lays out all the stuff he has found and combines the objects, adding or culling as necessary, until he achieves the minimum amount of information the viewer needs to recognize the person. Thus we have Steven Spielberg''s beard and moustache expressed with strips of film; Jesse Jackson''s mouth is a speaker. Within the seven categories of TV, film, music, American politics, the world, finance, and miscellaneous, Faces by Hanoch Piven presents 76 deliciously wicked takes on the likes of such diverse folks as Sigmund Freud, Marilyn Monroe, and the Unabomber.