Calef Brown

Spooky light-verse poems featuring otherworldly creatures and things: witches and warlocks, the 'Creeping Crud' and a cannibal's fingery fondue, fictional characters such as Dr. Jekyll and Medusa, and more.

A young boy's questions lead to more and more questions, but there do not seem to be any answers.

Illustrations and rhyming text invite the reader to explore a store that provides everything a privateer, mutineer, or buccaneer might want in the way of high-quality pirate gear, from clothing to classes in smuggling molasses.

The master of poetic imponderables once again collects his thoughts on the inner workings of Grandpa's nose hair, tasty donuts, noodles in a haystack, and more.

"In Calef Brown's poem "We Go Together," he jubilantly decrees: "We go together / like fingers and thumbs. / Basses and drums. / Pastries and crumbs." In "You Are Two (Kiwis)," he muses, "I am quite frequently, / reminded by thee / of a kiwi. / Either kind." Yes, silliness and sentimentality have free rein in this "curious selection" of childlike poems about love and friendship, each accompanied by an equally absurd, stylized acrylic painting. Like...

Painter and writer Calef Brown pours his boundless creative energy into his poetry and illustrations. In Flamingos on the Roof, Brown crafts 29 nonsense poems conjuring mythic and contemporary images of everything from gatorflies to light-bulb-topped birthday cakes. Kids will revel in the lively wordplay, while parents and teachers will recognize the value in teaching kids alliterative and assonant sounds.

In the 1960s, Harold Knishke, a Chicago teenager with a special place in his heart for Bushman, the famed departed gorilla of the Lincoln Park Zoo, embarks on a hometown adventure, in a quest to become a great artist and figure out how he became the object of a famous folk song.

An inspiring children's biography collection, Immigrant Innovators highlights the stories of 30 immigrant entrepreneurs who have made it big in America. Geared toward readers ages 8–12, the book features people from around the world who played a major role in establishing global companies and products. These entrepreneurs come from more than 25 countries and have been successful in a wide range of fields, from energy bars (KIND), yogurt (Chobani),...