Peter Spier (June 6, 1927 – April 27, 2017) was a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

-American illustrator and writer who created more than thirty

children's books A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...

Bio

Spier was born in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

North Holland North Holland (, ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht (province), Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevola ...

, and grew up in

Broek in Waterland Broek in Waterland is a village in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland, Netherlands, with a population of about 2,745 inhabitants as of 2021. It is a part of the municipality of Waterland, and is situated about 8 km s ...

, the son of Jo Spier, a popular artist and illustrator, and Tineke van Raalte. Jo Spier was Jewish, and, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Peter and his father were two of nine prisoners of Villa Bouchina and were later imprisoned in

Theresienstadt Theresienstadt Ghetto was established by the SS during World War II in the fortress town of Terezín, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia ( German-occupied Czechoslovakia). Theresienstadt served as a waystation to the extermination c ...

. After the war he studied at the

Rijksakademie The Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten (State Academy of Fine Arts) was founded in 1870 in Amsterdam. It is a classical academy, a place where philosophers, academics and artists meet to test and exchange ideas and knowledge. The school supports ...

in Amsterdam and joined the

Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy (, ) is the Navy, maritime service branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It traces its history to 8 January 1488, making it the List of navies, third-oldest navy in the world. During the 17th and early 18th centurie ...

for four years. The entire Spier family emigrated to the United States in 1950. Spier started his career as a

commercial art Commercial art is the art of creative services, referring to art created for commercial purposes, primarily advertising. Commercial art uses a variety of platforms (magazines, websites, apps, television, etc.) for viewers with the intent of promo ...

ist for advertising agencies and only later focused on writing and illustrating children's books. He died on April 27, 2017, in

Port Jefferson, New York Port Jefferson, also known as Port Jeff, is an incorporated village in the town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 7,962 at the time of the 2020 census. Port J ...

Medium and artistic style

Like other children's illustrators such as

Beatrix Potter Helen Beatrix Heelis (; 28 July 186622 December 1943), usually known as Beatrix Potter ( ), was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' ...

Christopher Wormell Christopher Wormell (born 1955) is an English printmaker, principally known for his illustrated books. Biography He was born in 1955 in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. He had no formal training as an artist, working as a road-sweeper, rubbish colle ...

, Peter Spier demonstrates his talent and skills as an artist/illustrator using

pen PEN may refer to: * (National Ecological Party), former name of the Brazilian political party Patriota (PATRI) * PEN International, a worldwide association of writers ** English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International ** PEN America, located ...

ink Ink is a gel, sol, or solution that contains at least one colorant, such as a dye or pigment, and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen, brush, reed pen, or quill. ...

and

watercolour Watercolor (American English) or watercolour ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting method"Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to the ...

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

. Many of Spier's illustrations are extremely detailed and historically accurate. Close examination will often yield a humorous scene not readily apparent at first glance the finding of which often delights readers of all ages.

Copyrights

Spier reserved all rights and retained the copyrights to his works. In correspondence he noted that many of the original publishing plates used to reproduce his work were not available though the original works were thought to survive.

Publishers

The Doubleday & Company, Inc., of

Garden City, New York Garden City is a village located in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 23,272 at the time of the 2020 census. The Incorporated Village of Garden City is primarily located within the Town of Hempstead ...

, originally published many of Spier's works including ''The Mother Goose Library Series: "London Bridge Is Falling Down!"''. More recent publications can be found under the labels

Doubleday Books Doubleday is an American publishing company. It was founded as the Doubleday & McClure Company in 1897. By 1947, it was the largest book publisher in the United States. It published the work of mostly U.S. authors under a number of imprints and ...

For Young Readers, Dragonfly Books and

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

Awards

''Noah's Ark'' (1977) won the annual

Caldecott Medal The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

from the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

, recognizing the illustrator of the year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". In its first paperback edition, it won a 1982 National Book Award in category Picture Books."National Book Awards – 1982"

National Book Foundation The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established with the goal "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America." Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: ...

(NBF). Retrieved 2012-02-27. The book was named to the

Lewis Carroll Shelf Award The Lewis Carroll Shelf Award was an American literary award conferred on several books by the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Education annually from 1958 to 1979. Award-winning books were deemed to "belong on the same shelf" as ''Al ...

list in 1978. ''People'' (1980) won a

Christopher Award The Christopher Award (established 1949) is presented to the producers, directors, and writers of books, films and television specials that "affirm the highest values of the human spirit". It is given by The Christophers, a Christian organizatio ...

and was one of five finalists for the 1981 National Book Award in category Children's Nonfiction."National Book Awards – 1981"
NBF. Retrieved 2012-02-27. It was also adapted into a 1995 animated television special that soon aired on

Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...

. ''The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night'' (1961) was named a Caldecott Honor Book by the

in 1962.

Works

* ''Island City: Adventures In Old New York'' (1961) * '' The Fox Went out on a Chilly Night: An Old Song'' (1961) * ''London Bridge Is Falling Down!'' (1967), in the Mother Goose Library Series * ''To Market! To Market!'' (1967) * ''Hurrah, We're Outward Bound!'' (1968) * ''And So My Garden Grows'' (1969) * ''Of Dikes and Windmills'' (1969) * ''The Erie Canal'' (1970) * ''Gobble, Growl, Grunt'' (1971) * ''Fast-Slow High-Low'' (1972) * ''Crash! Bang! Boom!'' (1972) * ''Tin Lizzie'' (1975) * '' Noah's Ark'' (1977) * ''Bored—nothing to do!'' (1978) * ''Oh, Were They Ever Happy!'' (1978) * ''The Legend of New Amsterdam'' (1979) * ''Nothing Like a Fresh Coat of Paint'' (1980) * ''People'' (1980) * ''Peter Spier's Village Board Books'' (1981) ** ''Bill's Service Station'' ** ''Firehouse'' ** ''The Toy Shop'' ** ''My School'' ** ''Pet Store'' ** ''Food Market'' * ''Peter Spier's Christmas'' * ''Peter Spier's Little Bible Storybooks'' ** ''Genesis creation narrative, The Creation'' ** ''Noah'' ** ''Jonah'' * ''Peter Spier's Little Animal Books'' ** ''Little Cats'' ** ''Little Dogs'' ** ''Little Ducks'' ** ''Little Rabbits'' * ''Dreams'' * ''We the People: The Constitution of the United States'' (1987) * ''Peter Spier's Advent Calendar: Little Town of Bethlehem'' * ''Peter Spier's Advent Calendar: Silent Night, Holy Night'' * ''Rain'' (1982) * ''No Such Things'' (1983) * ''Christmas!'' (1983) * ''The Book Of Jonah'' (1985) * ''Big Trucks, Little Trucks'' (1988) * ''Fast Cars, Slow Cars'' (1988) * ''Here Come The Fire Trucks'' (1988) * ''Trucks That Dig And Dump'' (1988) * ''Circus'' (1995)

As illustrator

* ''The Cow Who Fell in the Canal'' (1957), by Phyllis Krasilovsky"The Cow Who Fell In The Canal"
Retrieved 2012-04-29. * ''Wonder Tales of Seas and Ships'' (1957), by Frances Carpenter * ''

Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates ''Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates'' (full title: ''Hans Brinker; or, the Silver Skates: A Story of Life in Holland'') is a children's novel by American author Mary Mapes Dodge, first published in 1865. The novel takes place in the Netherland ...

'' (1958), by

Mary Mapes Dodge Mary Elizabeth Mapes Dodge (January 26, 1831 – August 21, 1905) was an American children's author and editor, best known for her novel '' Hans Brinker''. She was the recognized leader in juvenile literature for almost a third of the nineteen ...

(1865, revised 1876) * ''Betty Crocker's Guide to Easy Entertaining'' (1959) * ''The Sailing Ship'' (1964), by

Jan de Hartog Jan de Hartog (April 22, 1914 – September 22, 2002) was a Dutch playwright, novelist and occasional social critic who moved to the United States in the early 1960s and became a Quaker. Early life In 1914, Jan de Hartog was born to a D ...

* ''History of the Theater'' (1964), by Hannelore Marek * ''Great Furniture Styles, 1660–1830'' (1965), by Donald D. MacMillan * ''Elizabethan England'' (1965), by Anthony West * ''Here and There: 100 poems about places'' (1967), compiled by Elinor Parker * ''The Erie Canal'' (1970), an edition of " Low Bridge" by Thomas S. Allen (1905), "includes musical notation" * ''

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written by American lawyer Francis Scott Key on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort ...

'' (1973), an edition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" by

Francis Scott Key Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779January 11, 1843) was an American lawyer, author, and poet from Frederick, Maryland, best known as the author of the poem "Defence of Fort M'Henry" which was set to a popular British tune and eventually became t ...

(1814) —"includes music, background history, and pictures of flags" * "A Traveler’s Tale of Ancient Tikal," ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

'' (December 1975), pp. 799-811. * ''We The People: The Constitution Of The United States Of America'' (1987) —"includes the text of the Constitution of the United States", a bicentennial edition of the

US Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally including seven articles, the Constitut ...

* ''The Last Hurdle'' (1988), by F. K. Brown (1953) * ''The Little Riders'' (1988), by Margaretha Shemin —later adapted as a Disney film

Notes

References

External links

Peter Spier Papers
in the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection — with biographical sketch
Review of "The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night"
a 1961 Caldecott Honor Book by Spier

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spier, Peter 1927 births 2017 deaths American children's writers American people of Dutch-Jewish descent Artists from Amsterdam Caldecott Medal winners American children's book illustrators Dutch emigrants to the United States Dutch illustrators 20th-century Dutch Jews Jewish American illustrators 20th-century American illustrators Jewish American children's writers National Book Award for Young People's Literature winners Royal Netherlands Navy personnel Theresienstadt Ghetto survivors People from Waterland 21st-century American Jews