A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt Guests: Marsha Diane Arnold and her Granddaughter, Gráinne + a Giveaway

Posted on by Penny Parker Klostermann

poetry friday buttonThanks to Kat hosting the Poetry Friday Roundup today. If you’d like to know more about Poetry Friday, click HERE for an explanation by Renee LaTulippe.

Ants may rule the hill, but they don’t rule here! Art by Landon
Ants may rule the hill, but they don’t rule here! Art by Landon

Hello Friends! Just In case you haven’t visited before, let me tell you a little about A Great Nephew and A Great Aunt. My great nephew, Landon (now an eighth-grader) and I (his great aunt) collaborate. I write a poem which he illustrates. We started this collaboration in the fall of 2014 and had so much fun with it that we decided to invite others along. Landon and I will continue to have a new episode on one Friday of each month. The other Fridays are filling up quickly with guests sharing poetry and art in beautiful collaborations. I have created a page on my website to view all the episodes of A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt. Click HERE to visit the page and enjoy past episodes.

**GIVEAWAY! Before you view today’s collaboration I wanted to let you know that Marsha has generously offered a signed copy of her newest board book, Baby Animals Take a Bath, with delightful illustrations by Phyllis Tildes. Many are giving this book with a hooded towel and bath toy for baby showers.

About the Story: From a polar bear rolling in the snow to a zebra in the dust, animals in various settings enjoy their special kind of bath, ending with a human baby having fun in a bubble bath. Little ones will discover some new animals and understand that all animals, including humans, have important things in common.
**Those who enter must have a US address. All you have to do is leave a comment below by September 8th at midnight CST. A winner will be randomly selected.

Today it’s my pleasure to share a creative collaboration from . . .

Marsha Diane Arnold and her Granddaughter, Gráinne

From Marsha: My granddaughter Gráinne recently turned four. Her favorite things to draw are faces, the sun, and trees. She has always been enchanted by the wind. So, I wrote a simple poem about the wind and dancing with leaves for our collaboration.

Marsha’s Poem

Being an independent soul, Gráinne’s mind took her first to fiery eyes and burning marshmallows before she settled down to the wind dance. Here is her progression:

Gráinne’s Process

Art by Gráinne
Art by Gráinne

Gráinne’s Final Art

Art by Gráinne

Proud Artist

After Gráinne made a few drawings of herself dancing with the leaves, she declared she wanted to go outside to talk to a tree. She stood in front of our big oak for a few moments having a conversation, then danced with the oak. I love that our collaboration of poem and drawing also took her outside for some real dancing and to commune with nature. Thank you, Gráinne, for sharing your creativity and your enthusiasm.

The Collaborators

Many thanks to Marsha and Gráinne for sharing their talents with us today.

Meet Marsha: Marsha Diane Arnold is a multi-award winning picture book author whose books have sold over 1 million copies. The media has called her, “a born storyteller.” Recent books are Waiting for Snow and Junior Library Guild selection Lost. Found.. Three new picture books are scheduled for 2018.

Marsha shares her love of books and writing by visiting schools around the world and through her online course, Writing Wonderful Character-Driven Picture Books, http://www.childrensbookacademy.com/writing-character-driven-stories.html. Like her granddaughter, she enjoys climbing and talking with trees. You may find more about Marsha’s books and school visits at www.marshadianearnold.com or visit her on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/MarshaDianeArnoldAuthor/

25 thoughts on “A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt Guests: Marsha Diane Arnold and her Granddaughter, Gráinne + a Giveaway”

  1. Pingback: Winner of Marsha Diane Arnold’s Baby Animals Take a Bath!!! | Penny Parker Klostermann

  3. Love this cycle of inspiration – Gráinne’s love of wind inspired your poem and your poem inspired her to get outside and dance with the leaves! Exactly what we all want our writing to do!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. First, welcome HOME! It’s nice that you are out promoting a new book and enjoying summer and all….but it’s really great to see you back at Poetry Friday. And, next what a cute, cute artist to illustrate such a pretty poem. Dancing with the wind….such a universal idea of beauty that poets have played and played with. Makes me want to write about it now.

    Liked by 1 person

  9. I love the smiles on Gráinne’s art, and that she was inspired to have some talk and dance with the tree. This collaboration makes me happy, knowing what joy children can bring to us. Thanks, Penny, Marsha, and Gráinne.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. This book is perfect for baby shower gifts. Great idea for a gift package. I would give it to a new mom and dad too. The cover is adorable and so is the message.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. What a beautiful collaboration! I LOVE those fiery sun eyes that also seem to dance with the breeze. And what I love even more, is that Marsha’s poem was brought to life by a granddaughter who lives the poetry. I’ve heard that trees are very good listeners and love to dance too!

    Liked by 1 person

  13. After posting about play-based learning, and all these beautiful memories of my much-younger boys, I come here to see artwork that I almost feel I know. So many more memories flooding my happy-heart. And yes, loving that all this creativity led to a conversation, and then dance, with a tree.

    Liked by 1 person

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