Karen Ritz

Illustrator Karen Ritz has a degree in Children’s Literature from the University of Minnesota and learned to draw along the way, attending Rhode Island School of Design for summer classes as a high school student. She has illustrated over forty books, including Kate Shelley and the Midnight Express, a Public Television Reading Rainbow feature, Ellis Island, a 1995 Minnesota Book Award Winner, and A Picture Book of Anne Frank. Her work is housed at the Children’s Literature Research Collection at the University of Minnesota, and several of her books have been chosen for the annual Society of Illustrator’s Show in New York. Karen uses her thirty years of experience in the field to teach about Visual Language at the college and graduate levels. She will customize an elementary school presentation to meet your needs as well. Check her website for details. Karen lives and paints on the 30th floor in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, overlooking the Mississippi River.

Windows With Birds
Boyds Mills Press, 2010
ages 5 to 7, ISBN 978-1-59078-656-7

A cat discovers a new world. The cat loves its home, a house with places to climb, places to hide, windows to watch, and a mouse to chase. There’s a boy who fills his water dish and scratches him in just the right spots. Best of all, the windows have birds. One day the boy takes the cat to a strange, new home, high above the ground. The cat hides, and cries, hoping the boy will bring it back to the old house. In time, however, the cat discovers that this new world has wonders of its own.

Daddy's Song
written by Leslea Newman
illustrated by Karen Ritz
Henry Holt, 2007
ISBN 978-0-8050-6975-4

Before I tuck you in tonight,
Kiss your cheek and shut the light,
The last thing left for me to do
Is sing my Daddy’s song to you.

And what a song it is! Ice-cream cones fall from the sky, foxes play baseball, reindeer ride in fancy cars, kangaroos bake birthday cakes, panda bears twirl hula hoops, and rain falls up instead of down.

The imaginative rhythmic text and evocative full-color paintings make this fun and reassuring good-night book ideal for Father’s Day.

Max Talks To Me
written by Claire Buchwald
illustrated by Karen Ritz
Gryphon Press, 2007
ISBN 978-0-940719-03-3

Alex and his dog, Max, are true friends—the kind that share each other's excitement, comfort each other when they are sad, wait together when parents are away, and have fun wherever they are. Alex is learning that every good relationship is a mutual one.

Snowboarding on Monster Mountain
written by Eve Bunting
illustrated by Karen Ritz
Cricket Books, 2003
ISBN 978-0-8126-2704-6

Eleven-year-old Callie, with a serious fear of heights, agrees to go on a snowboarding weekend with her best friend, Jen.

Awards
A junior Library Guild selection

Martha Washington
written by Candice F. Ransom
illustrated by Karen Ritz
Carolrhoda, 2003
ages 4 to 8, ISBN 978-0-87614-918-8

Easy reader biography of the first Fist Lady of the Country, illustrating her daily life and contributions during the beginnings of America. Watercolor illustrations.

Rescue on the Outer Banks
written by Candice F. Ransom
illustrated by Karen Ritz
Carolrhoda, 2002
ages 4 to 8, ISBN 0876144601

Ten-year-old Sam Deal dreams of becoming a surfman someday. On October 11, 1896, he finds a way to brave a storm to help save nine people stranded on a shipwreck. This easy reader tells the dramatic story of the first black sea rescue team in North Carolina in 1896. Watercolor illustrations.

Awards
2003 Best Children's Books of the Year, selected by the Children's Books Committee at Bank Street College

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