AUTHOR VISIT AT ANDERSON SCHOOL, GARDEN GROVE, CA

Anderson Elementary School, Garden Grove, CA, wall mural.

Last week I had an enjoyable author visit at Anderson Elementary School in Garden Grove, California (Westminster School District). I had a full day, speaking to two groups of kindergarten children in their classrooms and to grades one through six in the multipurpose room. With the younger children I did an interactive presentation in which they participated in a Lion Hunt (similar to a Bear Hunt) and helped sing the Wiggle and Waggle song. With the older children I used PowerPoint slides to talk about my books and being an author. I am grateful to the teachers who helped me navigate the technology of the screen for my slide show--every school seems to have a different system!

With my PowerPoint Presentation in the MPR

I thank teacher Denise Greene who organized the day and wrote the grant that supported my visit and funds for the purchase of my books for the school library. And I also thank Principal Kimberly Breckenridge for guiding me around the campus and for introducing me. I also thank Denise for providing my lunch--a delicious sandwich from Jersey Mikes. 

ROOM 8: A CAT IN THE CLASSROOM: Exhibit at the Los Angeles Public Library, Photos by Richard Hewett

Room 8: A Cat in the Classroom, Exhibit at LAPL Central Library, Los Angeles, CA.

Last Saturday, when I was at the Los Angeles Public Library I went with friends to the library's History and Genealogy department to see the exhibit, Room 8: A Cat in the Classroom, of photographer Richard Hewett's photos of the cat named Room 8, who famously "lived" at Elysian Heights Elementary School from 1952 to 1968. (Elysian Heights is in Echo Park, not far from downtown LA.)

I never met the cat named Room 8, but I heard about him from Dick whose photographs illustrated many of my books. I met Dick in 1977 and over the next 20 years we did 49 books together. Dick’s specialty was photographing animals. (Many of my books are about animals, including the first book we did together, Pets Without Homes (Clarion, 1983). I remember Dick telling me about the Room 8 cat and how his photo story about Room 8 in Look Magazine in 1962 made the cat famous all over the world.

Exhibit at LAPL of photographs by Richard Hewett of Room 8.

If you visit the Central Library, be sure to see the exhibit! It is up until January 11, 2026. And, you can buy the book by Brenda Rees about the exhibit in the library gift shop--which I did. It is also available on Amazon.

Room 8: A Cat in the Classroom, Photographing Los Angeles' Most Famous Feline, by Brenda Rees, Photographs by Richard Hewett, Illustrated by Stuart Rapeport (Photo Friends Publications, 2025.) Photographs from the collection of the Los Angeles Public Library.

Looking at Room 8: A Cat in the Classroom at the library.

If you search the internet you can find a lot of information about Room 8. He even has his own Facebook page. I found the recent documentary by Scott Mabbutt about Room 8 on YouTube. It tells the story of how the cat came to Elysian Heights School and how he became so famous. Dick Hewett and his photos of Room 8 are mentioned in the documentary. A number of former students are interviewed telling what it was like to have Room 8 at the school. After Dick's photos were published in Look Magazine, Room 8 became even more famous and began to receive letters from all over the world. Students at the school answered them. When Room 8 died in 1968 his obituary was in newspapers all over the country. He is buried in a pet cemetery in Calabasas, California. The video is surprisingly emotional.

The video is about a half hour long but takes much longer to watch because it is interrupted by lots of short ads. Even so, I recommend watching it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHjuMEztzow

ANIMAL PRINTS ON SALE AT MY ETSY SITE!

Animal prints at my Etsy site are now on sale! Suitable for framing. Prints make great holiday gifts! Pandas, penguins, polar bears, a platypus and more! Get them while they last!

These are art quality prints of my cut paper illustrations for my books.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CarolineArnoldArt

Note: The 25% off sale ended on Dec 2 but prices are still very affordable!

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Books Make Perfect Gifts for the Holidays!

Exactly two years ago today, on Dec 1, 2023, I published my memoir SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the 1950s at North East Neighborhood House, Minneapolis, Minnesota, which chronicles my childhood years growing up in the settlement house my father directed and explores the roots of the person I am today.

It imakes a great gift to give during the holidays to friends and family. You can order it on Amazon or you can go to your favorite bookstore, give them the ISBN number ( ISBN 9798864 903285 ) and they can order it for you. And, if you haven’t yet read SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL I encourage you to read it now. 

Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!

"The book captures life in colorful anecdotes, and Arnold draws the intriguing settlement house residents with a loving hand. ... Endnotes provide even more personal insight, all resulting in an enjoyable encapsulation of one family's experiences as the settlement facility transitioned into modernity." BlueInk Review (March 2024)

"Settlement House Girl is a look back at Northeast Minneapolis in the 1950s. Arnold has authored books for children and she writes in a clear, straightforward manner. If you're a collector of Northeast history books, it's a good one to put on your bookshelf." Cynthia Sowden, Northeaster Newspaper, April 3, 2024

"Settlement House Girl is engaging, tracing Arnold's growth from a young girl to an adult journeying into being a writer in her later life, but it's also a valuable contribution to the social history of 20th-century America...The detailed accounts of Arnold's experiences provide a unique glimpse into the fabric of community life during this era, highlighting the interactions and shared experiences that defined the settlement house environment." BookLife (Publishers Weekly) June 7, 2024

More about the book is at my website, www.carolinearnold.com/settlementhousegirl.html 

ANIMAL PRINTS AT MY ETSY SITE: Perfect Gifts for the Holidays!

 

Illustration from A Killer Whale's World (PictureWindow Books, 2006.

I have recently updated my Etsy site where I feature art quality giclee prints of the cut-paper illustrations from my children’s books. Printed to size (10 x 20 inches for rectangular images, and 10 x 10 inches for square images) they are perfect for framing and to give as gifts.

The prices have recently been reduced. There are 16 different designs available, depicting pandas, polar bears, walruses, eagles, moose, killer whales, kangaroos, koalas, platypuses, wombats, and zebras. Get them while they last!

The art is shipped in a sturdy mailing tube.

Illustration from A Kangaroo's World (PictureWindow Books, 2008)

Two of my self-published books are also available on Etsy: SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the 1950s at North East Neighborhood House, Minneapolis, Minnesota and MY FRIEND FROM OUTER SPACE, illustrated by Paige Arnold.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CarolineArnoldArt

17th BLOG ANNIVERSARY: Time to Celebrate!

Seven

Seventeen years ago, in November 2008, I launched this blog. At first my plan was to use it to feature my art, which is why the link is carolinearnoldart. But a little more than a year later I decided to expand the blog to include my writing as well and changed the name to Caroline Arnold Art and Books (the link is still carolinearnoldart) with the plan of putting up a new post once a week--sometimes two. 

For me, this blog is a way to keep track of my book and art related activities, including school and library visits, publishing, reviews, activities for children and teachers, announcements of prizes and awards and more.  Since launching the blog I have posted almost 1000 items that have been viewed by more than 700,000 visitors!

Thanks to all of you who have been following this blog either on Google or by email. I appreciate your support.

(Note: The Comments section is no longer active. If you would like to comment you can reach me at Facebook or by email.) 

FOCAL AWARD PRESENTATION 2025: Celebrating CACTUS QUEEN by Lori Alexander, illustrated by Jenn Ely

FOCAL Award Program, LAPL celebrating Cactus Queen by Lori Alexander

On Saturday, November 15th, friends, family, and members of FOCAL (Friends of Children and Libraries) gathered at the Mark Taper Auditorium of the LAPL Central Library for the annual FOCAL Award presentation, this year to Lori Alexander for her book Cactus Queen, a picture book biography of Minerva Hoyt, the woman who campaigned for the creation of Joshua Tree National Park and to Jenn Ely, the illustrator of the book. 

Cactus Queen: Minerva Hoyt Establishes Joshua Tree National Park, by Lori Alexander, illustrated by Jenn Ely

In the tradition of the award, the author and the illustrator were presented with a puppet of the main character of the book. A second identical puppet will go on display in the children's room of the library, joining puppets from previous years. The puppets were created by Jesse Kingsley and Moira MacDonald.  

Jesse Kingley, Puppeteer, with puppets of Minerva Hoyt

The program was introduced by Marilyn Robertson, FOCAL President. After a presentation by Lori Alexander about how she came to write the book and a question and answer session with the audience, the essay contest winners were introduced by Sandy Schuckett. 

Sandy Schuckett, Introducing the Essay Winners

The three students read their excellent essays to the audience. They wrote about how they responded to the book, a favorite part or character, and why they would like to meet the author. Then we all enjoyed chocolate chip cookies in the library patio.

Lori Alexander, Question and Answer Session

I have been a member of FOCAL for many years. In order to be awarded the FOCAL book award, the book must be of the highest literary and artistic quality, and must have California content. I know how hard it is to choose a winner–I served on the committee for four years. This year’s choice is excellent and a fitting book to celebrate. I have visited Joshua Tree National Park a number of times. It is a remarkable place filled with a diversity of wildlife, desert plants, impressive rock formations, and the unique Joshua trees, which are endemic to the place. We can all be grateful that Minerva Hoyt worked so hard to make sure it was preserved.

Marilyn Robertson, President of FOCAL