Robert Sabuda: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: A Pop-Up Adaptation

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: A Pop-Up Adaptation

Sabuda's interpretation of Lewis Carroll's classic children's story Alice's Adventures in Wonderland literally brings the story to life in ways no other illustrated interpretation can. At the end of the book, for example, Alice's skirmish with the Queen of Hearts and her army of playing cards, is depicted in an unusual style as hundreds of individual cards fly above Alice's head in a chaotic arc. The pop-up is fascinating in and of itself, but the interpretation also reinforces the novel's underlying themes of chaos and madness. In addition, the eye-popping artwork reinforces the feeling of excitement the reader feels when reading the text by adding an additional element of surprise and wonder to the experience.

YouTube website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUOs7heNfrk

New York Times review: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/16/books/children-s-books-ready-for-her-close-up.html

AWARDS

ALA Notable Children's Books
Bank Street Best Books of the Year
Booklist Editor's Choice
Kirkus Editor's Choice
New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books
New York Times Book Review Notable Books
Nick Jr. Family Magazine Best Books of the Year
Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award
Publisher's Weekly Best Books

Brava Strega Nona!: A Heartwarming Pop-Up Book

Brava Strega Nona!: A Heartwarming Pop-Up Book

Robert Sabuda's pop-up retelling of Tomie dePaola's famous children's classic "Strega Nona" features some of Sabuda's best work to date. In this spread, the hearts spill from Strega Nona's magic pot (her secret ingredient is love) straight into the reader's lap as they read. The magic of the story is reinforced by the three-dimensional pop-ups which add a sense of whimsy and wonder. Another spread shows The outline of Strega Nona's house, which stands more than seven inches tall from the center of the book and shows vines and grapes hanging from the rafters.

The Night Before Christmas Pop-Up

The Night Before Christmas Pop-Up

Some of Sabuda's most artistic work comes when he uses only white images rather than color. Then, the reader can truly appreciate the forms, the shapes, the cuts without being distracted by the coloring. The effect is something like paper dolls or snowflakes we all made as kids, though these creations are much more detailed and intricately designed. In this book, one spread shows the white reindeer leaping from the book, making the action seem almost real. The white pop-ups create a classy, almost dream-like interpretation of the classic tale, reinforcing the magic of the text.

The Chronicles of Narnia Pop-Up: Based on the books by C.S. Lewis

The Chronicles of Narnia Pop-Up: Based on the books by C.S. Lewis

In this pop-up adaptation by Sabuda, one double-page spread is devoted to a different book in the seven-book classic series by C.S. Lewis. The scenes chosen are those that are most easily translated to the pop-up artistic form. In the first spread, for example, the lion Aslan pops out from the spread toward the reader just as he seems to in the highly stylized cover drawing shown here. Aslan is an important, almost mystical character in the first book. Therefore, the pop-up reinforces the power that his character yields.

Peter Pan: A Classic Collectible Pop-Up Book

Peter Pan: A Classic Collectible Pop-Up Book

This book came out in November 2008. With each new pop-up adaptation, Sabuda's expertise in the pop-up genre widens and grows. At the end of this book, Captain Hook's pirate ship rises from the center of the book complete with cloth sails, held in place by small sticks and tied together with string. Sabuda shows here that all kinds of materials can enhance the pop-up experience, not just paper cutouts. The pop-ups also reinforce the themes of the text. In the opening spread, the children, in pop-up form leap from the page toward Neverland, reinforcing the idea of leaving the structured, rule-based world behind and heading toward a land where they can play all day and never have to worry about growing up and having responsibility. View the incredible inside artwork at: http://authors.simonandschuster.co.uk/Robert-Sabuda/1077661

Encyclopedia Prehistorica Dinosaurs: The Definitive Pop-Up

Encyclopedia Prehistorica Dinosaurs: The Definitive Pop-Up

Sabuda did a series of three Prehistorica books, one about sharks, one about mega-beasts and one about dinosaurs. This book makes all of kids' favorite dinosaurs literally come to life by making them pop up and out from the pages. The most memorable spread is this one where the Brontosaurus stands tall above the text. Another is a spread where the head of a T-rex comes directly out of the gutter as if it is going to take a bite of the reader. The pop-ups give child readers three-dimensional models of the dinosaurs they are reading about, thereby reinforcing the educational nature of the text.

America the Beautiful: A Pop-Up Book

America the Beautiful: A Pop-Up Book

This book is perhaps Sabuda's most artistic and metaphoric. Done almost entirely in stark white, Sabuda here chooses American icons to represent symbolically the lines of the classic American song. For example, the first line, "O beautiful for spacious skies," is represented by a beautiful pop-up depiction of the Golden-Gate bridge. It seems a strange choice at first, but in every postcard of the famous San Francisco landmark, the sky around the bridge is what makes the bridge so beautiful.