David Small (born February 12, 1945) is an American writer and illustrator who is best known for children's picture books. His books have been awarded a Caldecott Medal and two Caldecott Honors, among other recognition.

Biography

David Small was born in Detroit, Michigan. He began drawing at the age of two years, and health problems that kept him home for much of his childhood, also led to his developing his drawing skills. He attended Cass Technical High School and wrote plays throughout his teenage years. At age 21, he switched to art. He earned a bachelor of fine arts degree at Wayne State University and a master of fine arts degree at Yale University. Small taught art for many years on the college level, ran a film series, and made satirical sketches for campus newspapers. His first book, ''Eulalie and the Hopping Head'', which he wrote and illustrated, was published in 1981."David Small: Biography"
''Authors/Illustrators''. Pippin Properties, Inc (pippinproperties.com). Archived July 4, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2015. Small earned a 1997 Caldecott Honor and The Christopher Medal for ''The Gardener'',American Library Association
Caldecott Medal & Honor Books, 1938–Present
Retrieved April 27, 2013. with

Sarah Stewart Sarah Stewart may refer to: * Sarah Stewart (author) (born 1939), American children's author *Sarah Stewart (basketball) (born 1976), Australian wheelchair basketball player * Sarah Stewart (cancer researcher) (1905–1976), US-Mexican viral oncolo ...

, his wife. She also received the 2007 Michigan Author Award. In 2001 Small won the Caldecott Medal for ''

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 in ...

'', combining political cartooning with children's book illustration. He received a second Caldecott Honor in 2013 for illustrating Toni Buzzeo's ''One Cool Friend''. Small's drawings have appeared in the ''New Yorker'' and the ''New York Times''. On July 15, 2014, he was announced as a finalist for the 2015 NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature. In 2020 it was announced that Western Michigan University Libraries would acquire David Small and Sarah Stewart's archives, including their original artwork, sketchbooks, journals, published and unpublished writings. David Small and his wife Sarah Stewart make their home in an historic manor house in Mendon, Michigan.

''Stitches''

Small's graphic memoir, '' Stitches'', was published in September 2009. It tells the story of Small's journey from sickly child to cancer patient, to troubled teen who ran away from home at sixteen to become an artist. ''Stitches'' was reviewed by the ''New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. It was a #1 ''New York Times'' Best Seller, and was named one of the ten best books of 2009 by '' Publishers Weekly'' and Amazon.com. It was a finalist for the 2009 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.National Book Awards – 2009
''Stitches'' has been translated into seven different languages and published in nine different countries.

Works

As writer and illustrator

* ''Eulalie and the Hopping Head'' (

Macmillan MacMillan, Macmillan, McMillen or McMillan may refer to: People * McMillan (surname) * Clan MacMillan, a Highland Scottish clan * Harold Macmillan, British statesman and politician * James MacMillan, Scottish composer * William Duncan MacMillan ...

, 1982) – named a '' School Library Journal'' Best Book of the Year * ''Imogene's Antlers'' ( Crown Publishers, 1985) * ''Paper John'' ( Farrar, Straus and Giroux SG 1987) * ''Ruby Mae Has Something to Say'' (Crown, 1992) * ''Hoover's Bride'' ( Knopf Books for Young Readers, 1995) * ''Fenwick's Suit'' (FSG, 1996) * ''George Washington's Cows'' (FSG, 1997) * '' Stitches'' ( W.W. Norton, 2009) * ''Home After Dark'' (Liveright Publishing Corporation, 2018)

As illustrator with Sarah Stewart

Small has illustrated several books written by

and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG). * ''The Money Tree'' (FSG, 1994) * ''The Library'' (FSG, 1995) * ''The Gardener'' (FSG, 1997) – Caldecott Honor Book * ''The Journey'' (FSG, 2001) * ''The Friend'' (FSG, 2004) * ''The Quiet Place'' (FSG, 2012) *''This Book Of Mine'' (FSG, 2019)

As illustrator with other writers

* ''Gulliver's Travels'', Jonathan Swift ( William Morrow & Co., 1983) * ''The Dragon Who Lived Downstairs'', Burr Tillstrom ( William Morrow & Co., 1984) * ''Company's Coming'', written by

Arthur Yorinks Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more ...

(Knopf, 1988) * ''A Surfeit of Similes'',

Norton Juster Norton Juster (June 2, 1929 – March 8, 2021) was an American academic, architect, and writer. He was best known as an author of children's books, notably for ''The Phantom Tollbooth'' and ''The Dot and the Line''. Early life Juster was born in ...

( William Morrow & Co., 1989) * ''Petey's Bedtime Story'', Beverly Cleary ( HarperCollins, 1993) * ''The Christmas Crocodile'',

Bonnie Becker Bonnie, is a Scottish given name and is sometimes used as a descriptive reference, as in the Scottish folk song, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean. It comes from the Scots language word "bonnie" (pretty, attractive), or the French bonne (good). That ...

( Simon & Schuster, 1998) * ''Huckabuck Family: And How They Raised Popcorn in Nebraska and Quit and Came Back'', Carl Sandburg, (FSG, 1999) – one of the 1923 '' Rootabaga Stories'', * ''

'',

Judith St. George Judith Saint George (February 26, 1931 – June 10, 2015) was 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. Sh ...

( Penguin Philomel, 2000) – winner of the 2001 Caldecott Medal * ''Company's Going'', Arthur Yorinks ( Hyperion Books for Children, 2001) * ''

The Mouse and His Child ''The Mouse and His Child'' is a novel by Russell Hoban first published in 1967. It has been described as "a classic of children's literature and is the book for which Hoban is best known."Awl, DaveThe Mouse and His Child (1967): a novel by Russ ...

'', Russell Hoban ( Arthur A. Levine Books, 2001) * ''So You Want to Be an Inventor?'', Judith St. George (Philomel, 2002) * ''The Essential Worldwide Monster Guide'', Linda Ashman (Simon & Schuster, 2003) * ''So You Want to Be an Explorer?'', Judith St. George (Philomel, 2005) * ''My Senator and Me: A Dog's Eye View of Washington, D.C.'', Ted Kennedy (

Scholastic Books Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

, 2006) * ''Once Upon a Banana'',

Jennifer Armstrong Jennifer Mary Armstrong (born May 19, 1961) is an American children's writer known for both fiction and non-fiction. She was born in Waltham, Massachusetts, grew up outside of New York City, and now lives in Saratoga Springs, New York. She was ...

(Simon & Schuster, 2006) * ''When Dinosaurs Came with Everything'',

Elise Broach Elise Broach (born September 20, 1963) is an American writer. Her publications include the acclaimed novels ''Shakespeare's Secret'', ''Desert Crossing'', and '' Masterpiece''. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in history from Yale Un ...

(

Atheneum Books for Young Readers Atheneum Books was a New York City publishing house established in 1959 by Alfred A. Knopf, Jr., Simon Michael Bessie and Hiram Haydn. Simon & Schuster has owned Atheneum properties since its acquisition of Macmillan in 1994 and it created Athene ...

, 2007) * ''That Book Woman'', Heather Henson (Atheneum, 2008) * ''The Underneath'',

Kathi Appelt Kathi Appelt (born July 6, 1954) is an American author of more than forty books for Children's literature, children and Young adult fiction, young adults. She won the annual PEN Center USA, PEN USA award for Children's Literature recognizing ''T ...

(Atheneum, 2008) * ''One Cool Friend'', Toni Buzzeo (

Dial Books for Young Readers The Dial Press was a publishing house founded in 1923 by Lincoln MacVeagh. The Dial Press shared a building with ''The Dial'' and Scofield Thayer worked with both. The first imprint was issued in 1924. Authors included Elizabeth Bowen, W. R. Bu ...

, 2012) – Caldecott Honor Book * ''Long Road to the Circus'', Betsy Bird (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2021)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Small, David 1945 births American children's book illustrators American children's writers Caldecott Medal winners Writers from Detroit Wayne State University alumni Yale University alumni Living people People from Mendon, Michigan