Book Birthday!

Festive February at Luciana Illustration's headquarters! In a bookstore near you or online, "Ten Playful Tigers" is out: written by Betty Schwartz and Lynn Seresin, published by Capstone Young Readers, it's my first novelty book!
"Who can resist fuzzy tigers? With this sturdy touch-and-feel book, young fingers can poke and prod and count along as one little tiger turns into ten playful tigers (and their mama!). Then when you're done, count the butterflies back to one!"
http://www.capstonepub.com/consumer/products/ten-playful-tigers/

Valentine's Day is Just Around the Corner!

Spider Magazine February Issue brings art by Luciana Illustration

Highlights Magazine "Draw with a Purpose" illustrators retreat

Luciana Illustration was invited to a fantastic weekend in Boyds Mills, Pennsylvania by Highlights Magazine at the end of September. About 30 illustrators from around the US and Canada all converged to the beautiful (and Fall-colored) headquarters of Highlights Foundation to learn more about the history of this amazing publisher and company. We also learned great tips about Hidden Pictures by master illustrator Tim Davis who has done more than 550 hidden pictures illustrations for them. Getting to know and hanging out with all these immensely talented illustrators and a lot of the Highlights staff was the icing on the cake. The food was all local and delicious, the grounds and lodging comfortable and charming, and the opportunity to spend a weekend with peers was just priceless. Illustration is such a lonely endeavor that we sometimes forget that there are others out there just like us - it was such a treat to share portfolios and tips and techniques with all the group (there was even an illustration celebrity among us, the great Robert Neubecker) not to mention how fun it was to chat with the folks from Highlights and get to hear their stories. Here are some photos from this unforgettable "Draw with a Purpose" weekend!

Story Time this morning at the New Children's Museum San Diego

Always a good time at one of my favorites story time venues! It was a great turn-out, a total of 66 toddler/preschoolers/parents today! I read Colorosaurus, Countasaurus and Shapeasaurus with the help of some very bright kids, and then we moved to our art making session. Favorite coloring technique of the day, by a cute preschooler named Amayah: "making gum" - just jam those crayons on the paper as hard as you can, and the colorful-waxy-dots will be "gum". Artist kids never cease to amaze me! Special guests: Tessa and her grandparents, and Ana and her cute Valentina!

Cover art for the September issue of Ladybug Magazine!

Sample-happy week at Luciana Illustration's headquarters! Fresh from the mail box: my first appearance at Ladybug Mag - art cover for the September issue!

Back to School!

Where did summer go? We are all super excited to go back to school at Luciana Illustration's headquarters! I worked on over a hundred illustrated activity cards for McGraw-Hill Everyday Mathematics last year, and I just got samples in the mail! These cards will be used by second-graders all over the country. It was a long but rewarding project with the always great-to-work with designer team at McGraw-Hill!

"My Dad is the Best Playground" at the PBS parents website! "10 Books that Celebrate Dads" list!

http://www.pbs.org/parents/adventures-in-learning/2014/06/fathers-day-books/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=PBSParents&utm_campaign=AL-Camp-fathers-day-books

Luciana Illustration's first appearance in Highlights Magazine!

Keep your eyes peeled for the June 2014 issue, page 24... and August will bring more!

Mother's Day is just around the corner!

Sometimes you think your mom is more than just a mom... well... you are right! Get this soon-to-be-classic for that special juggler in your life!
http://www.amazon.com/My-Mom-Is-Best-Circus/dp/0307931439/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399487363&sr=8-1&keywords=my+mom+is+the+best+circus

Special Guests from Canada at the New Children's Museum reading today

My readings for the Toddler Program at the New Children's Museum www.thinkplaycreate.org are always fun, but today it was thrice-special! After reading I set up the art-making time, and this adorable family stood out because their 3 year-old boy is ambidextrous and was coloring with both hands - at the same time! He was so excited that he couldn't decide which hand to choose, so he went with both! Then the lovely mom told me that they actually have my whole Dino book series at their home - which is in Calgary, Canada, where I lived as a teenager! It was so lovely to meet them all, they made a very rewarding reading even more special!

New Year, New Puzzle!

Luciana Illustration starts 2014 with a brand new mini-puzzle from Crocodile Creek! For bug lovers, puzzle lovers and everyone in between!
http://store.crocodilecreek.com/p/ladybug-mini-shaped-box-floor-puzzle?pp=12

Dive into 2014... balls!

May you have a ball - or many - in 2014 ;)

Recommended apps by the Horn Book magazine!

Very thrilled to see that both "Goodnight Safari" and "Spatter and Spark" made this list! Congratulations Polk Street Press and Deborah Underwood, I'm honored to have illustrated these amazing book apps!
http://www.hbook.com/2013/12/choosing-books/recommended-books/recommended-apps-e-books/

"My Mom is the Best Circus" in the Best Board Books of 2013 list

thank you The Children's Book Review!

http://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/weblog/2013/11/best-kids-board-books-of-2013.html

Join me on Aug 16th for Story Time at the New Children's Museum in San Diego!

I'm very excited to announce that Luciana Illustration will be a part of the New Children's Museum activities: come and join me for Story Time at the NCM on Aug 16th at 10:30am, and check out this fun, whimsical, unique place.

http://www.thinkplaycreate.org/studios/studios-toddlers.html

Goodnight Safari Playtime now available on iTunes!

The lovable characters from Goodnight Safari are back and ready to play! Join them to play 6 learning games where you can practice letters, shapes, and much more!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/goodnight-safari-playtime/id654767165?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D2

Father's Day is just around the corner!

Book trailer for "My Dad is the Best Playground". (No little child or dad was harmed in the production of this video) The book is available now, wherever books are sold!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb0RqMnwgWA

Let's support independent bookstores, brick-and-mortar and online!

Children's Bookstore.com is a fully independent internet store that is 100% dedicated to juvenile literature, and is constantly striving to find quality titles for their customers. Check out their review of "My Mom is the Best Circus"!
http://www.childrensbookstore.com/shop/books/my-mom-is-the-best-circus-9780307931436/

"The Best Thing About My Mom is....

.... she pretty much does all the work"  Hilarious, true words from a Kindergartener friend of my son... HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307931439/ref=s9_psimh_gw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0ZMF37XXAANHN8Y1VTFZ&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846

Luciana Illustration visits Mr. Schu's blog

"My Mom is the Best Circus" official book-trailer debut is today, and we answered some fun sentence-starters at Mr. Schu's blog.
http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/2013/05/author-illustrator-luciana-navarro.html

Grand Premiere! Book trailer for "My Mom is the Best Circus" release!

Thank you to all the wonderful and inspiring juggler, acrobats and magician moms and their kids that helped me in this cinematographic endeavor. This book is dedicated to all moms who are all that, at the same time, all the time.

Praise for "My Mom is the Best Circus" from Publisher's Weekly

http://publishersweekly.com/978-0-307-93143-6

Weekend Special! "Spatter and Spark" Activity Pack for only $.99!