Books with author Mike Artell

These simple little cartoons that people scribble while they’re chatting on the phone or listening to someone boring can also really improve a person’s drawing skills. Just a few strokes—a rainbow arc, a wavy line, a small cone for a stem—make an acorn appear on the page. Complete the picture by giving it a smiley face and a “speech balloon” with some witty words inside. It’s just a short jump from a single picture to a full-fledged comic strip.

An incredibly cool, close-up look at the skulls of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles. Dozens of Images of animals (including their scientific name), fun facts, jokes, wordplay and off-the-word, fascinating trivia related to each animal. Plus, there's a "match the skull" quiz at the end of the book and some links for related web sites. Your young scientist is going to love this book!

9 stories of fiction (one or two pages each) with a surprise ending. A total of 15 pages. Great for kids who prefer quick-reads or for kids who want to squeeze in some reading when there's only a little time to read. Each story is only one or two pages long and has a fun twist at the end. Do you know a child that is reluctant to read fiction? Check out these fat-free fiction stories. Children love stories with a twist and each one of these stories has one. These books are easy to read and feature both boy and girl protagonists. Some of the stories are about contemporary characters and situations and others take place in another time or place. These stories are a great way to get non-fiction readers to try some reading some fiction.

By Mike Artell. An illustrated tour of the sky introduces young readers systematically to stars, galaxies, and constellations; the solar system's planets and moons; asteroids, meteors, and comets; and finally black holes. Color photographs and cartoon renderings illustrate one- and two-page articles that emphasize the amazing. The book ends with pictures readers can cut out to make a mobile of the solar system. Grades 4–8. 8½" x 11". Good Year Books. 96 pages. Second Edition. ©2007. GDY443.

You can draw the coolest jets, the most amazing helicopters and prop planes. Even a drone. And while you're learning to draw each of these military aircraft you can read about its specs - speed, length, mission. Check out the photo and three-axis drawing of each aircraft too. And when you're done with all of that, click on the QR code to see awesome video of each aircraft in action. It's a drawing book and an informational book and a book with video links. Amazing!

This entertaining collection invites sharp-eyed young sleuths to ferret out a host of hidden objects, letters, numbers, and words in 48 seemingly normal illustrations. Look a little closer and you'll find all sorts of things tucked away where they don't belong: a coffee cup in a ten-gallon hat, a tennis racket in headlights, as well as carrots, golf clubs, saws, canoes, fishhooks, rocket ships, and more — all in places you’d never expect. So look sharp, keep your eyes peeled and discover a slew of surprises in these perplexing pictorial puzzles. They’re great for coloring, too!

Other guides to cartooning only help kids draw—this one also shows them how to think funny! That’s because a good cartoon always makes the reader smile...and that requires a clever idea and an understanding of what elements make a picture witty. Cartoon master Mike Artell presents an entertaining lesson, with plenty of laugh-out-loud images to demonstrate his every point. As children try out a series of imaginative exercises, they’ll learn why exaggeration adds humor, why simplifying details makes a character “cartoony,” and why doing the opposite of what’s expected can be so effective, and why having animals do “human” things is so amusing. Best of all, there really are no hard and fast rules—so budding cartoonists can have fun getting creative.

You will see what you look for - that's the message in this delightful book about the really weird animals on the really weird planet. Author/illustrator Mike Artell keeps kids laughing with hilarious rhyming verse and crazy cartoon illustrations. The words seem contradictory at first ("This planet is square, except where it's round. And there's water all over, except where there's ground."), but the reader soon discovers that, "You can see ANY creature or all if you choose. You will see what you look for, and that's the big news." No heavy, pedantic moralizing...just a sweet, subtle message that every child needs to hear. Author/Illustrator Mike Artell has written more than 35 books for children and has illustrated most of those books. His book, PETITE ROUGE - A CAJUN RED RIDING HOOD was named 2009 Read Aloud Book of the Year by the National Association of Elementary School Principals. He has also written/illustrated other award-winning science books, joke/riddle books, cartooning books, picture books and professional books for educators. Each year, Mike visits more than 50 schools across the U.S. and abroad and he speaks at a dozen major educational conferences. Complete info about Mike's books, videos, school visits and conference presentations can be found on his web site: www.mikeartell.com .