I WISH I COULD DRAW

This encouraging and amusing faux notebook will have many nervous artists picking up their own pens and pencils.

Author Fagan, posing as his boyhood self, wants to be a boy who can draw. Like many, he is endlessly critical of his talent as an artist. He tries with little success to draw a self-portrait and a still life but realizes that he should try to draw things he likes. Soon he realizes he can draw birds, ice cream cones, exploding stars and even a movie star riding a bike. Simple black-and-white illustrations, often broken down to their component parts for the aspiring but nervous artist, make drawing look simple and enjoyable. Humor is the order of the day, especially when Cary imagines (and draws) a dragon attacking his home. Children are often asked to illustrate their stories in school, and many kids lack confidence. While some art teachers might object to any instruction that encourages young artists to draw from a formula rather than from their hearts, classroom teachers will celebrate any book that encourages the paralyzed would-be illustrator to move on from stick figures.

This friendly volume, told in the first person and directly addressing readers, is sure to encourage the perfectionist artist and wannabe cartoonist alike. Draw on! (Informational picture book. 4-10)