Petr Horácek Biography

Born 0027;s name Claire; Education: Prague Academy of Fine Art, graduate. Hobbies and other interests: Drawing, walking, skiing, tennis, music.

Addresses

Agent—c/o Author Mail, Walker Books, 87 Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5HJ, England.

Career

Author and illustrator.

Honors Awards

Books for Children Newcomer Award, 2001, for Strawberries Are Red and What Is Black and White?

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

Strawberries Are Red, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2001.

What Is Black and White?, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2001.

Flip's Day, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2002.

Flip's Snowman, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2002.

When the Moon Smiled, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2004.

Run, Mouse, Run!, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2005.

Bird, Fly High, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2005.

A New House for Mouse, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2005.

Sidelights

Czech-born author and illustrator Petr Horácek studied for six years at the Academy of Fine Art in Prague before turning to a career in children's books. Living and working in England, he is the author of the self-illustrated picture books When the Moon Smiled, Bird, Fly High, and A New House for Mouse. In 2001 he won the Books for Children Newcomer Award for Strawberries Are Red and What Is Black and White?

When the Moon Smiled is a bedtime counting book featuring ever-increasing quantities of animals to illustrate basic number. Each spread features a different set of creatures that either go to sleep at night or become active in the darkness. A Kirkus Reviews critic commented that Horácek's book "should provide quick bedtime quietude, as intended," while Gillian Engberg wrote in Booklist that When the Moon Smiled will serve as a "satisfying bedtime book" that "offers a cozy, appealing counting exercise from a talented artist."

In A New House for Mouse Horácek once again offers children a clever storyline. In this book, a tiny mouse happens upon a large apple outside her small dwelling. Excited by her find, she sets out to find a home that is large enough to accomodate both her and her gigantic meal. When every suitably sized hole she comes across is already occupied by one critter or another, the little mouse must find a more imaginative solution to her problem. Kitty Flynn, writing in Horn Book, commented that Horácek's "color-rich, heavily textured watercolor and cut-paper collages add much to the simple story," making A New House for Mouse a book that will "quickly satisfy story-hour cravings."