Chrustowski, Rick

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Chrustowski, Rick

Personal

Born April 17, in Valparaiso, IN. Education: University of Wisconsin—Madison, B.A., 1992. Hobbies and other interests: Gardening, exploring nature, hiking, photography.

Addresses

Home and office—River Falls, WI. E-mail—[email protected].

Career

Children's book author and illustrator. Creator of artwork for Minnesota Library Association/State of Massachusetts summer reading program, "What's Buzzin' at Your Library." Kerlan Collection Friends, member of board.

Awards, Honors

Parent's Choice Award, 2001, and Best Children's Book of the Year citation, Bank Street College, both for Lunch at the Zoo.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

Bright Beetle, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2000.

Hop Frog, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2003.

Blue Sky Bluebird, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2004.

Turtle Crossing, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2006.

ILLUSTRATOR

Joyce Altman, Lunch at the Zoo: What Zoo Animals Eat and Why, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2001.

Sara Swan Miller, Will You Sting Me? Will You Bite?: The Truth about Some Scary-looking Insects, Stemmer House (Owings Mills, MD), 2001.

April Pulley Sayre, Army Ant Parade, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2002.

Sidelights

Children's book illustrator and author Rick Chrustowski knew from an early age that he wanted to be an artist, and as a child he drew constantly. "For me the only thing that came close to my love of art was exploring the outdoors," Chrustowski recalled on his home page. "I wandered far from home, sliding down ravines, swinging from branches, wading into ponds. It was so much fun pretending to be the animals I saw." In his books, Chrustowski shares his dual loves of art and nature, depicting the life cycles of familiar creatures in books such as Hop Frog, Blue Sky Bluebird, and Bright Beetle. In addition, he has also illustrated several titles for other authors, portraying animals and insects in their natural setting rather than as the anthropomorphized creatures commonly found in children's books.

Chrustowski's first book, Bright Beetle, was inspired by a chance encounter with a ladybug. Curious as to how ladybugs live, he began doing research on the familiar insect at his local library. When this conventional research did not provide the answers he was looking for, Chrustowski decided to take another approach to his research. "I dug up a huge part of my backyard and planted a prairie habitat," he explained on his home page. "Once the flowers and grasses filled in, I climbed through on my hands and knees to see what the world looked like from a ladybug's point of view."

The research for Hop Frog developed in much the same way. "I invited friends over and we dug a hole twelve feet across and three feet deep in the middle of my garden. I laid in a liner, filled it with water, and planted water lilies," Chrustowki explained. Soon he had plenty of frogs living in his back yard that he could study. A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that in the final result of Chrustowski's work, Hop Frog, young naturalists will "learn some pretty cool frog facts." In School Library Journal Laurie von Mehren praised Chrustowski's detailed art, writing that the book's "vibrant and crystal clear" illustrations feature both close-up views and broader images of a frog's habitat.

With Blue Sky Bluebird Chrustowski moves from pond to air. This time he set up a bluebird run—a long row of bluebird houses—not far from his house, and soon a bluebird couple was roosting within sight of his window. "Every morning I took coffee and binoculars out to the lawn," the author/illustrator noted on his home page. Chrustowski "shows a fine-tuned sense of what interests children," wrote Carolyn Phelan in her Booklist review of the book that resulted, the critic also praising the illustrations as "both accurate and appealing." In School Library Journal Susan Scheps found Blue Sky Bluebird "so interesting and informative that it will easily hold the attention of children," including those who are not yet reading independently. A Kirkus Reviews contributor commented on the "remarkably crisp outlines and details" Chrustowski incorporates into his art.

While Turtle Crossing did not require Chrustowski to re-landscape his back yard, it did require daily field trips to a local pond. The book follows the life cycle of a painted turtle, beginning when she hatches and continuing as she crosses a road to reach her new pond home before returning to lay her own eggs in the same spot where she herself was hatched. "This colorful book offers an informative look at the life cycle of a turtle," wrote Booklist critic Phelan, while a Kirkus Reviews contributor called the title an "accessible and accurate natural history for the youngest readers."

Chrustowski's illustrations have also been featured in books on more exotic animals. His pencil drawing were deemed "a nice addition to the facts" featured in Joyce Altman's Lunch at the Zoo: What Animals Eat and Why by School Library Journal reviewer Arwen Martin. Of his work for April Puley Sayre's Army Ant Parade, Karey Wehner wrote in School Library Journal that "Chrustowski's close-up, realistic illustrations, comprised of multiple layers of colored pencil over watercolor wash, are vivid and effective." Discussing the same title, Horn Book critic Danielle J. Ford commented that "the artwork provides near guidebook-level detail but is infused with more action and personality."

Chrustowski makes his home in rural Wisconsin in order "to be closer to nature," as he explained on his home page. "As an author I'm amazed at the stories that play out in my own backyard. Love. Death. Birth. Rebirth. As an illustrator there are so many little worlds to explore." When he is not writing or researching a new title, Chrustowski also makes school visits, where his presentations focus not on the life cycle of a particular animal, but on the life cycle of a book, from research to writing, to sketching, to actual illustrations. "One of the most exciting parts of my work as an author and illustrator is meeting students and educators and sharing my books with them," the author/illustrator wrote on the Cooperative Children's Book Center Web site.

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Booklist, December 1, 2001, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Lunch at the Zoo: What Zoo Animals Eat and Why, p. 658; March 1, 2002, Lauren Peterson, review of Army Ant Parade, p. 1138; August, 2004, Carolyn Phelan, review of Blue Sky Bluebird, p. 1938; March 1, 2006, Carolyn Phelan, review of Turtle Crossing, p. 95.

Horn Book, September-October, 2002, Danielle J. Ford, review of Army Ant Parade, p. 601.

Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2002, review of Army Ant Parade, p. 189; March 15, 2003, review of Hop Frog, p. 462; March 1, 2004, review of Blue Sky Bluebird, p. 220; March 15, 2006, review of Turtle Crossing, p. 287.

Publishers Weekly, March 4, 2002, "Animal Kingdom," p. 82; March 29, 2004, "Earth Day," p. 65.

School Library Journal, February, 2001, Arwen Marshall, review of Lunch at the Zoo, p. 108; May, 2002, Karey Wehner, review of Army Ant Parade, p. 144; May, 2003, Laurie von Mehren, review of Hop Frog, p. 135; April, 2004, Susan Scheps, review of Blue Sky Bluebird, p. 130; June, 2006, Hope Marie Cook, review of Turtle Crossing, p. 134.