As an author/illustrator I am fascinated by picture books that have visual appeal of the text being mostly in dialog. The text can be set in speech bubbles which gives the book another dimension and a slight graphic novel feel. Even when it is sprinkled throughout a book, it can provide a wonderful secondary story too. This list shows how little or much can be said to create a wonderful story, with the rest being told in the illustrations. In turn, a perfect marriage of what picture books are all about.
Moo Moo in a Tutu by Tim Miller
Duck, Duck, Porcupine by Salina Yoon
Snail and Worm Again by Tina Kugler
I Don't Want to Be a Frog by Dev Petty illustrated by Mike Boldt
Jannie is giving away Tummy Time Animal Parade and The Little Engine's Easter Egg Hunt to one lucky winners! To be eligible for prizes throughout the challenge, you must be registered by March 2, comment on each post, consistently read mentor texts, and enter the Rafflecopter drawing at the conclusion of ReFoReMo.
Jannie Ho is a children’s book writer and illustrator. Her artwork appears in books, magazines, toys, crafts and digital media. She is the author/illustator of BEAR AND CHICKEN (Running Press Kids/Hachette). Find her at JannieHo.comand instagram at @chickengirldesign.
It’s amazing what wonderful stories can be told through dialogue alone. Thanks for this list of mentor texts.
ReplyDeleteDev Petty and Salina Yoon are amazing in their ability to say so much with so few words. It's fun to study their books. And also to see that it can be done if you are not an author/illustrator. THanks for a great post.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this list. I'm not an illustrator - i missed the artistic gene. But i did get the writing gene; words are my world. I will look at these books when the library opens for business again.
ReplyDeleteA marriage is a great way to view this relationship...teamwork!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing a great list of balanced perfection, Jannie!
ReplyDeleteThank you Jannie for these great examples of true partnership between text and illustrations.
ReplyDeleteThese are hilarious! Nobody's Duck had me cracking up and I was totally surprised at the end! I adored the heart shaped speech bubble near the end-it was a perfect touch!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this great books to read Jannie. I have a couple of dialogue only books so I’m really curious to see how they do this and then a parallel stories that the illustrator created.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the interesting selection of titles. I am amazed by the word count.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. Salina Yoon is a master author/Illustrator. And I connect with the humor and phrasing in Dev Petty's Frog series.
ReplyDeleteGreat mentor text recommendations! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThese are such fun selections!
ReplyDeleteGreat dialogue can really draw the reader in as well. Thank you for the great texts.
ReplyDeleteI don't want to be a frog is a great picture book. Kids just love it! Thank you for your selections.
ReplyDeleteI love the humor in BEAR AND CHICKEN - and your recommendations have that same giggle worthiness :)
ReplyDeleteThese are fun books. Thanks for sharing your list. I really like I Don't Want to be a Frog. Looking forward to reading, Duck, Duck, Porcupine!
ReplyDeleteThese books look fun and the covers are great. I can't wait to find them.
ReplyDeleteThanks.
Such fun books today. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteWonderful books! Thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your book recommendations. I'm looking forward to reading them.
ReplyDeleteThis is the perfect list of mentor texts for my WIP>
ReplyDeleteWhen given the opportunity to look through a bag or box of picture books, these are often the types of books my young grandsons choose. They also love listening to the stories as I pretend to be the different characters by changing my voice intonations.
ReplyDeleteI love hearing their giggles! Thanks, Jannie Ho, for fun books to explore together.
Such an important point to keep in mind...especially for those of us who only write.
ReplyDeleteTY, Janie. I like the idea of creating "slightly graphic novel" feel to my PBs via dialogue. TY for the recs.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder about what a challenge it is to combine the two parts into one great story.
ReplyDeleteWow - as a librarian I love good reading aloud!
ReplyDeleteJANNIE: I LOVE this POV from someone who is a both a children's book writer and an illustrator! THANK YOU for the inspiration to dig into your book examples to find ways to make the picture book "marriage" work between the words and illustrations. SO IMPORTANT!!!
ReplyDeleteA great collection of books! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to getting all of these from the library when it reopens.
ReplyDeleteGreat titles! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI love your work, Jannie! Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeleteJannie, this is exactly what I needed!!! I haven't had a chance to read the mentor texts yet, but they will be SO helpful for one of my current mss! Thank you!
ReplyDelete"I love books with dialogue!"
ReplyDelete"Me too!"
"They are fun to read together."
"And take turns!"
Thanks Jannie!
interesting post, Jannie. Kids (and adults) love dialogue in books. Using bubbles like in some cartoons makes it stand out from the rest of the text. Great post!
ReplyDeleteThis makes me wonder... how would an author denote thought/comment bubbles in a MS? I noticed most of the texts were by Author/Illustrators. Thanks for the inspiration and for the great mentor texts.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy finding dialogue in picture books like these. Thanks for the mentor text book list.
ReplyDeleteGood to see some examples of books that focus on dialogue. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThese look adorable! Thanks for the book suggestions.
ReplyDeleteGreat choices - can't wait to read them.
ReplyDeleteThis is a fun way to write a book. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jannie, for the great samples of blending text and illustrations together, using the technique of mostly dialogue. With graphic novels becoming all the rage, it's interesting to see how a scaled-down version of that can be used in picture books. Inspiring mentor texts! [Posted by LouAnn Silva]
ReplyDeleteWish I was an illustrator/author! Hard to write these books unless one has a great visual imagination as the illustrations make the dialogue work so well.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this fun list!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jannie! Love these books!
ReplyDeleteThese books look like so much fun, thanks.
ReplyDeleteLoved making dialogue bubbles when a kid. And that was long ago. Some things are always with us.
ReplyDeleteI'm a fan of dialogue-driven texts and like to write them. I've read several of these, and love them! Thanks for sharing your favorites with us!
ReplyDeleteGreat examples of dialogue in a story! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteSuper list of dialogue texts--thanks, Jannie! Just what I needed while I revise mine!
ReplyDeleteI've been studying the different ways to add dialogue in books, so thanks for these great new titles!
ReplyDeleteSuch fun favorites to study and play around with. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing picture books with an interplay of dialogue and illustrations. I look forward to reading them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for these suggestions, Jannie--I Don't Want to Be a Frog is so much fun!
ReplyDeleteThank you for these suggestions. I look forward to reading the ones I haven't yet, particularly Moo Moo in a Tutu. Looks fun!
ReplyDeleteGreat list of books for different ways to use dialogue. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGreat selection. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your list of mentor texts. Looking forward to reading them.
ReplyDeleteHave got to read these books so I'll feel more comfortable writing PB dialogue. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been able to read all of your suggestions, but the ones I did are truly wonderful. Thanks for your insights!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jannie, for sharing these fun reads for mentor study.
ReplyDeleteI had so much fun reading these books! (Although I had to catch the last two titles being read online, since I didn't have them from the library yet.) Thanks, Jannie. I love how humor can be expanded by witty dialogue matched with the perfect art. I tend to use lots of dialogue, and in the past industry professionals have said a PB should be 1/4 dialogue at most, so I'm happy to see more new releases with mostly dialogue texts.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who struggles with dialogue, these stories were really a good study for me. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to reading and studying the dialogue/illustration relationships in all your suggested mentor PBs when my library reopens! Thanks, Jannie!
ReplyDeleteBooks combining dialogue and illustration are so much fun and are perfect for emerging readers. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWow, I'm learning a new long list of craft approaches to look for in mentor texts. Yum!
ReplyDeleteThese books are great example of dialogue only. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThis post is just what I needed today. I just finished a story that is all in dialogue - with the potential for great illustrations. Several people question whether this will work. Now, I can point to these wonderful mentor texts to say yes it will.
ReplyDeleteThanks, great examples of words and pictures sharing the storytelling!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this list of mentor texts. Sure makes me wish I were an illustrator too! I love I Don't Want to be A Frog. I purchased it for the library in our mentoring program, and the kids truly enjoy it. It has a great message too.
ReplyDeleteLove, “I Don’t Wanna Be a Frog!”
ReplyDeleteI love dialogue too. And as the person said above me, I really liked it I Don't Want to be a Frog.
ReplyDeleteI Don’t Want to Be Frog is the only one of these I was able to read, but dialogue is a winner nearly every time!
ReplyDeleteThese are fun to read and write. I DON'T WANT TO BE A FROG is classic. Great list, Jannie.
ReplyDeleteGreat mentor texts here, and great topic. This is something I'm becoming increasingly aware of in my PBs.
ReplyDeleteThese were fun to read. Thank you for sharing how dialog is used in sparse texts!
ReplyDeleteGreat additions to my study list. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the great list!
ReplyDeleteA wonderful point of view to keep in mind while reading and researching! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful post and such fun mentor texts! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteFun books! Duck Duck Porcupine really cracked me up! haha.
ReplyDeleteDialogue books can be hard. Thanks for sharing these great examples.
ReplyDeleteWhat good examples. I am looking forward to seeing and studying them. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteIt's with a heavy heart that I've decided to officially drop out of Reforemo for this year. In addition to being a lover of reading and writing, I'm also a teacher of young students and with the pandemic, I'm pretty maxed out with learning technology and resources for our school's new home-study program. I hope to catch up with the posts and books later this year. Thank you Carrie, Kristi, and all the bloggers for the hard work you've put into this! I gained a lot from the little time I was able to participate. Keep on reading, everyone!
ReplyDeleteRhonda, I know what you mean! Just remember that all the knowledge will still be here, and you can come back when you're ready & continue on. All the best!
DeleteI wouldn't have thought to research dialogue books only. Thanks for the post.
ReplyDelete-Ashley Congdon
The idea of creating something of a graphic novel through dialogue is fantastic. Thank you for the input!!!
ReplyDeleteLOL. Ok, I was dying laughing at some of these. We read (my grands and I) and they were captivated. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jannie! I look forward to getting some of these from my library when it re-opens. My book that's coming out this summer has speech bubbles. It definitely adds another dimension to a story!
ReplyDeleteI had not read any of these books. I have used a tiny bit of illustrator drawn dialogue, but I definitely need to experiment with more.
ReplyDeleteI am always impressed how author-illustrators balance these elements so perfectly. Thanks for suggesting these titles!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jannie, for introducing me to some new picture book titles.
ReplyDeleteSuzy Leopold
Thanks for highlighting these wonderful books!
ReplyDeleteYes to dialogue! My earliest readers also love how accessible dialogue typically is for them as readers.
ReplyDeleteLove Moo Moo in a Tutu! Can't wait to read the other books you've highlighted.
ReplyDeleteOoh, books told in dialogue are so much fun! Thanks for a great list to study more closely.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Dialogue can be a fun approach.
ReplyDeleteGreat mentor texts in brevity! I loved how much story was told in so few words.
ReplyDeleteAuthor/illustrators have it made, don't they -- no art notes required, LOL! Not only were these stories quite short, but as mentioned, the illustrators did the majority of the storytelling. These books are fantastic for what I tell me students to do who are just learning to recognize letters & words--take a picture walk & see the story that way. Thx for some new additions to my picture walk shelf!
ReplyDeleteThese are such fun, thank you! I love little duck's "takes" to the audience, and Snail and Worm are so charming. All great examples.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing some mentor texts to look to for letting the illustrations do the work.
ReplyDeleteFabulous choices! I can use all of these as mentor texts, at present, because my March 12x12 draft is all dialogue.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't help but be envious of authors/illustrators when II read these books. They are a perfect marriage. Thank you for the examples.
ReplyDeleteI’ve only been able to read I Don’t Want to Be A Frog so far, but I look forward to reading the others.
ReplyDeleteWhat great books! Especially I Don't Want To Be A Frog!
ReplyDeleteYes! I have been looking for more mentor texts that use art and dialogue together.
ReplyDeleteWonderful list! I've only created traditionally structured books so far (3 published) and am working on a dialogue-only one for the first time now, thank you! I'm really trying to get a better sense of how the eye travels when there are boxes, not just pages.
ReplyDeleteI own Duck, Duck Porcupine. I'll certainly look for the others. they will be helpful as i try to writer short texed book that give the illustrator freedom to create.
ReplyDeleteThese are really fun - the supportive relationship between Snail and Worm reminded me a little of Arnold Lobel's brilliant Frog and Toad stories.
ReplyDeleteMost were new texts for me. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteLove snail and worm. Riding a bicycle, lol.
ReplyDeleteThese were all new titles to me. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteSuper fun! This is how Mo Willems writes most of his stories, and they're always amazing.
ReplyDeleteTHAT IS NOT A GOOD IDEA, is another great example.
ReplyDeleteThank you Jannie, for your post!
Learned so much with these texts. Great examples of how the art set the scene to support the dialogue and drive story. Thanks so much!
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