RAR #26: How Illustrations Nourish the Imagination, Zach Franzen
If you’ve listened to the Read-Aloud Revival podcast much, you probably know I’m a huge fan of The Green Ember. I think it’s the best book my kids and I read together all year long. You’ll understand, then, why I was so excited to chat with Zach Franzen, the illustrator of The Green Ember for today’s show.
I was floored by how insightful Zach is – how much careful thought and real consideration goes into his work.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
- whether illustrations help or hinder a child’s imagination
- why illustrations deeply matter
- how one simple sentence helped him to realize he was an artist
Click the play button below:
Books from this episode:
(All links are affiliate links.)
Links from this episode:
- Zach’s guest blog post about Hospitality and the Holy Imagination
- Find Zach on Instagram
- Visit Zach at his website
This was fabulous! Your little conversation about modern illustrations was especially gratifying – I have been really disappointed with the recent illustrated books coming off the presses and onto the library shelves. They seem to reflect the ‘minimalism’ fad, but are mostly just unsatisfying. I wonder if moms are thinking that they are supposed to like it because it’s ‘simple’, when it’s really more just barren. I also wonder if they are trying to make the art approachable to kids (i.e. ‘I could draw that’ rather than ‘wow, I could never draw like that’), which kind of relates to the narcissism bit. So, yeah, there was so much good in here. Thank you! (If you still read stuff on your podcast archives!…OOh, I just realized that this being old means that that prequel book you were talking about is probably out already! Hurrah!)
Oh my gosh, I am dying laughing…this may be your best podcast ever. Zach is so insightful and wise and hilarious…I can totally see basketball players running to bed for a story…lol
So glad you asked about illustrations interfering with the story! We had the misfortune of seeing the Narnia movies before reading the book (or maybe fortune? as we would have never enjoyed the movies AFTER reading the books??!!) and the actors are forever engrained in our minds so much so that we don’t enjoy the illustrations!
Charlotte Mason’s teaching leans towards letting the child do their own images in their minds and limiting illustrations but I personally love the depth illustrations give. I cannot image my children’s lives without picture books!
On a side note, I think Zach illustrating text books is probably saving the child and giving them something to attach to! ;).
Very good discussion and podcast. Thanks!
I’m only half way through the podcast but I LOVE (LOVE!) what he says about the illustration of the book about the grandfather where the illustrator chose to make the grandfather be a bear and how it makes the story more universal. I’ve never thought about how stories about animals include ALL children.
Oh I just love everything about this one! If there is more to this convo you could do a part 2!
This podcast was wonderful! I think I have now heard just about every podcast, some twice, this one was in my top 3! I can’t tell you how inspiring RAR and all the show notes and links have been to me. Like you mentioned though, I cannot listen to close to bedtime or I will be up all night thinking.
I loved this episode, Sarah! A lot to think about and very educational!
Oh, this was just wonderful! I would have loved to hear the whole conversation!!
Sigh. I just really miss the days when you blogged about your family, your homeschooling, and real day-to-day life . Those posts seem so few and far between now. I guess the R.A.R. and other posts of that nature may be inspiring for some readers, just not so much for me. I’m not always looking to learn something, be inspired, or motivated when I read a blog . . . I just like a little glimpse into the real life of a lovely family. Double sigh.
Thanks for this, Mary. :) I miss blogging about ordinary day to day family life, too! I’ve been caught in a place recently where I don’t have time to do all the things I’d love to do when I’m online– I’m still wiggling around a little, trying to find the best fit. :) I lovelovelove the RAR, and getting it off the ground has taken up most all of the time I have for online doings.
There is one more episode of the podcast, and then we are taking a break for summer, and I’m sure the posts here will be much more day-to-day familyish in nature. Just wait till you see how big my baby boys have become!
Awww . . . thanks, Sarah! I will look forward to it so much.
Really enjoyed the show! I know I personally am very affected by illustrations and have been known to make books disappear based on illustrations alone. Better no illustrations than poor ones!
I can’t help but wish you could have let us enjoy your whole, unedited conversation! :)
Thank you for all you do!
My kids loved hearing themselves in “Let the Kids Speak” today. Thank you for making their day, Sarah! The interview was great, too! I loved all of Zach’s explanations for choosing his desert island books. He really gave that question a lot of thought! My daughter adored The Green Ember and was excited to hear Zach speak about the illustrations.
Amazing. So insightful. And THANKS for the kind words!
We just got this for our Kindle and read the first two chapters this afternoon with our tea. They’d like me to read the whoel thing today I think! Well done.