New Releases by Thacher Hurd

Put the brush in your hand. Stick it in the water, then smush it around in one of the colors. Now take a deep breath and plop it down on the page . . . You’re an artist. Yes, really! Young or old, there is an artist in each of us. If yours is hiding (perhaps behind a shred of self-consciousness?), just remember: Art is personal expression. You have your talent. Nobody else has anything like it! If you are ready to discover (or re-discover) your genius, Paint This Book! is here to help. The paints, the brush, and the watercolor paper are all included—plus irresistible encouragement and exercises from authors John Cassidy and Thacher Hurd: Work small: Quick, spontaneous strokes will happen more naturally. Trust your instincts: Watercolor can turn to mush with a lot of revision. You’re better than you think you are! Choose your techniques: You’ll learn about light and shadow (page 43), perspective (page 51), and more. But it’s up to you whether to use these skills often, or never! Either way, there are many artists who do the same. Don’t forget: Sometimes a shimmer of color on the page can look even fruitier than a realbowl of fruit. Between these covers, there are no mistakes. Just add imagination (and water)!

Cat’s pajamas, doodley-doo. Kitties on the prowl, two by two! This rhythmic book of hip cats, cool cats, and all kinds of other cats is a hand-clapping good read that’s ideal for children ages one and up.

Originally published in New York by Crown in 1986.

Published to commemorate its 75th anniversary, The World Is Round brings back into print the classic story created by Gertrude Stein and Clement Hurd. Written in her unique prose style, Gertrude Stein''s The World Is Round chronicles the adventures of a young girl named Rose—a whimsical tale that delights in wordplay and sound while exploring the ideas of personal identity and individuality. This stunning volume replicates the original 1939 edition to a T, including all of Clement Hurd''s original blue-and-white art printed on the rose-pink paper that Stein insisted upon. Also featured here are two essays that provide an inside view to the making of the book. The first, a foreword by Clement Hurd''s son, author and illustrator Thacher Hurd, includes previously unpublished photographs and sheds light on a creative family life in Vermont, where his father and mother, author Edith Thacher Hurd, often collaborated on children''s books. The second essay, an afterword by Edith Thacher Hurd, takes readers behind the scenes of the making of The World Is Round, including the numerous letters exchanged between Hurd and Stein as well as images of Stein with the real-life Rose and her white poodle, Love.

Berkeley, California, middle-schooler Jason Jameson has a close encounter of the fun kind when Sam, a bluish alien from the Pleiades, arrives in a 1960 Dodge Dart spaceship and invites Jason to go fishing.

High above the world, a weaver spins thread from such things as clouds, dyes it with colors from the sky and grass, and weaves a cloth filled with the emotions she sees throughout the day to make a blanket of dreams.

They’re wild! They’re irrepressible! And they’re very, very bad! These gleefully naughty frogs are certain to tickle the inner imp in reader and listener alike. Calling all frog fans! Follow Thacher Hurd’s crew of 170 funny, funky BAD frogs as they slurp, burp, skateboard, parachute, and PLAY their way through the bright, action-packed pages of this rollicking book. A hoot to read aloud, this spirited romp will have kids reciting its froggy words and poring over the details in its froggy artwork from morning till midnight. Celebrate life! BAD FROGS FOREVER!

One night, while the pigs and chickens are sound asleep -- KABOOM! -- Farmer George''s Moo Cow disappears! A low-down Space Cowboy has whisked her off to a galaxy far, far away. What''s this sweet cow to do now, forced to become the Wild Beast Earthling Moo Cow at the Inter-Galactic Rodeo? Saddle up and get ready to ride Thacher Hurd''s zany trip to Planet 246 and back!

Miles and the Swamp Band have the time of their lives playing at the Alligator Ball, until they discover the menu includes Swamp Band soup.

When Santa Mouse''s sleigh crashes into a snowbank, a mouse named Rosie is determined to save the day with a few cookies and lots of Christmas cheer. Full-color illustrations.

Cars honk, beep, stop, go, zoom, crash, and get repaired.

Faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, more powerful than a locomotive -- well, that''s Superman for you. But now there''s Art Dog -- a new superhero on the block -- and he''s fighting crime with a paintbrush and an unstoppable creative might. Just as Superman and Batman lead quiet lives during the day as Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne, Art Dog spends his days as Arthur Dog, a mild-mannered guard at the Dogopolis Museum of Art. But under the light of a full moon, he undergoes a transformation into a creative force to be reckoned with. Through a little creativity and an astounding nose for art he manages to sniff out and apprehend a band of thieves who have stolen the priceless Mona Woofa. Highlighted with characteristically bright and bold illustrations, Thacher Hurd has created an action-packed story that offers a whimsical view of many artistic masterpieces. Littering the pages of Art Dog are canine interpretations of paintings such as Wood''s American Gothic, Matisse''s Dance of Life and Jazz, Vermeer''s Girl with Turban, Seurat''s A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, da Vinci''s Mona Lisa and others. Children will recognize some of the paintings and will delight in the dogs replacing their human counterparts. Oh, no! Someone has stolen the Mona Woofa from the Dogopolis Museum of Art and the police don''t even realize that they are barking up the wrong tree when they collar their number one suspect. So it''s up to Art Dog, the mysterious, masked painter who roams the streets of Dogopolis, to find the missing masterpiece. Zip! Splash! Smoosh! He paints himself a Brushmobile, and he''s off––on a wild and funny chase to capture the dastardly crooks. With the same deft touches of high-spirited fun and adventure that have made Mystery on the Docks and Mama Don''t Allow (both Reading Rainbow Featured Selections) such perennially popular stories, Thacher Hurd serves up a new action-packed tale that will delight young readers. 1996 ‘Pick of the Lists'' (ABA) Children''s Choices for 1997 (IRA/CBC) 1998 Red Clover Book Award (VT) Oh, no! Someone has stolen the Mona Woofa from the Dogopolis Museum of Art and the police don''t even realize that they are barking up the wrong tree when they collar their number one suspect. So it''s up to Art Dog, the mysterious, masked painter who roams the streets of Dogopolis, to find the missing masterpiece. Zip! Splash! Smoosh! He paints himself a Brushmobile, and he''s off––on a wild and funny chase to capture the dastardly crooks. With the same deft touches of high-spirited fun and adventure that have made Mystery on the Docks and Mama Don''t Allow (both Reading Rainbow Featured Selections) such perennially popular stories, Thacher Hurd serves up a new action-packed tale that will delight young readers. 1996 ‘Pick of the Lists'' (ABA) Children''s Choices for 1997 (IRA/CBC) 1998 Red Clover Book Award (VT)

When spring comes to Farmer Clem''s farm, Baby Mouse loves to go exploring.

Johnny had a bad cold and the medicine he took as well as the dreams he had were terrible.

Disappointed that his friends seem to have forgotten his birthday, Little Mouse goes skiing by himself.

After several unsuccessful attempts to give his special valentine to someone, Little Mouse finally finds just the right recipient.

As night falls, everyone and everything quiets down.

Hobo Dog''s train trip to the land of better junkyards is interrupted when he runs into Bad Cat.

Saxophone-playing Miles and his Swamp Band find a bevy of sharp-toothed, long-tailed alligators who love to listen to their music. But little do Miles and his band know what the alligators plan for them at the close of their jubilant all-night ball! Inspired by a traditional song, this vibrant picture book is "ebullient, fast-paced, and funny." 1985 Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Illustration A Reading Rainbow Featured Selection Children''s Books of 1984 (Library of Congress)

Hobo Dog finds a friend and some useful junk when he jumps train in a ghost town, but has a narrow escape getting home.

Miles and the Swamp Band have the time of their lives playing at the Alligator Ball, until they discover the menu includes Swamp Band soup.

Ralph, the opera-loving short order cook at the diner on Pier 46, helps to save his favorite singer from the clutches of tough rat kidnappers. ‘Brisk, entertaining melodrama.

Traces the early life of a sea otter, from birth to the moment he realizes he has lost his mother''s protection.

Hobo Dog''s train trip to the land of better junkyards is interrupted when he runs into Bad Cat.

A lonely cat meets a new friend in a traffic jam.

The various members of a family react to the death of their dog.