Watier’s ‘Secret Magicks of Maine’

Article and image source: Village Soup

Author/illustrator Matt Watier, originally from Union, will introduce his new book “The Secret Magicks of

Author/illustrator Matt Watier, right, and his father Roland are shown visiting with a guest at a Vose Library signing for his first book in 2004.

Maine“Saturday, Aug. 15, at two Midcoast locations.

Watier will be at Union’s Vose Library from 10 a.m. to noon and at Rockland’s Lucky Dog Gallery from 1 to 3 p.m. His father, storyteller Roland Watier, will read from his son’s book at the library event.

“The Secret Magicks of Maine” is the Matt Watier’s second book. He graduated from Medomak Valley High School in 1997 and received his bachelor of arts degree in illustration and design from University of the Arts in Philadelphia. His first book, “ANTS: Another Nice Tasty Sweet,” was published by Marhwood Press in both Hebrew and English in 2004.

Watier’s childhood in Union was spent listening to the sounds of the pond near his house, playing in the mud, exploring the rocky coast and tide pools and hiding in the deep woods. Those experiences are captured in “The Secret Magicks of Maine,” which is published by Xlibris Publications.

Watier’s illustrations have won online awards (on DeviantArt.com) and been hung in various gallery shows throughout the East Coast including the “Maine Lobsterman Art Show” at Seasrport’s Penobscot Marine Museum. He works in Web

According to Matt Watier's imaginative new children's book, the Minotaur of Maine is the blacksmith of Oberon and spends each fall in the deep woods near Moosehead Lake.

illustration and design in the Washington, D.C., metro region.

Copies of the book will be available for purchase. For directions to Vose Library, call the library at 785-4733. For more information about the signing at Lucky Dog Gallery, 373 Main St., call 590-0120; refreshments will be served.

To see art work and other information about the new book, visit sercretmagicksofmaine.com.

The Herald Gazette Art/Entertainment Editor Dagney C. Ernest can be reached at 207-594-4401 or by e-mail at dernest@villagesoup.com.

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Xlibris Publishing Guide - Get this free guide now and learn how you can self-publish your children’s book!

Children’s books fun, educational

by Robert Walch (Thecalifornian.com)

“Freddy the Fire Hydrant Finds His Purpose,” by Lisa Rorman, illustrated by Kevin Scott Collier (Xlibris; $21.99).

i Local connection: A Pebble Beach resident, Lisa Rorman is the parent of three children.

i Content: “Freddy the Fire Hydrant…” centers on an old and somewhat worn fire hydrant who has lost a sense of what his purpose is.

He’s not sure if he exists to serve as a resting place for those who want to sit for a short while or as a latrine for neighborhood dogs.

Poor Freddy just isn’t sure what his real function is until a fire breaks out one day in a store across from his corner.

When the firemen arrive to save the building, Freddy finally realizes he actually has a very important role in the community and he now understands what it is.

i Audience: Lisa Rorman writes that the idea behind her picture book is to show that everyone and everything has a purpose. “Freddy the Fire Hydrant…” is appropriate for children ages 3 and up. With its colorful, full-page illustrations, this would be a perfect read-aloud picture book for bedtime.

“Wuzzie Comes to Camp,” by Nancy Raven (Trafford; $18.27).

i Local connection: Nancy Raven, a longtime teacher, musician, photographer and artist, lives in Monterey.

i Content: “Wuzzie Comes to Camp” is based on the life of a Paiute Indian, Wuzzie George, who spent years teaching people in northern Nevada how her people survived in the harsh desert. Based on this remarkable woman’s life, this story is written in the voice of a young boy who has absorbed many of the lessons Wuzzie shared.

The reader will discover the difference between tules and cattails, how to use a winnowing basket and how to cook with coals in a basket.

i Audience: Aimed at an older audience, “Wuzzie Comes to Camp” is appropriate for youngsters in the fourth grade and up. The illustrated chapter book is based on Nancy Raven’s own contact with Wuzzie George at the Washoe Pines Camp in Nevada.

Both books can be obtained online at the publishers’ Web sites.

i Robert Walch of Monterey writes about Central Coast Authors for the Arts & Books page Friday in The Salinas Californian. Contact him in care of Central Coast Authors, The Salinas Californian, P.O. Box 81091, Salinas 93912; fax to 754-4293; or e-mail to newsroom@thecalifornian.com.

Xlibris Publishing Guide - Get this free guide now and learn how you can self-publish your own book!

Image source: Exchange3d.com