John Prater (1947-) Biography

Born 1947, in Reading, Berkshire, England; Education: Brighton College of Art, B.A., 1969; Reading University, art teacher's diploma, 1972. Hobbies and other interests: Collecting rock and pop memorabilia.

Office—27 Keydell Ave., Horndean, Waterlooville, Hants, P08 9TA, England.

Writer and illustrator. Worked in advertising and taught for twelve years.

Mother Goose Award runner-up, 1983, for On Friday Something Funny Happened.

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

On Friday Something Funny Happened, Bodley Head (London, England), 1982.

The Party, Bodley Head (London, England), 1983.

You Can't Catch Me!, Bodley Head (London, England), 1984, published as Can't Catch Me, Puffin (London, England), 1984.

The Gift, Bodley Head (London, England), 1985, Viking (New York, NY), 1986.

John Prater

The Perfect Day, Bodley Head (London, England), 1986, Dutton (New York, NY), 1987.

Gilbert, Bodley Head (London, England), 1987, Random House (New York, NY), 1988.

Along Came Tom, Bodley Head (London, England), 1990.

Bear's Bad Mood, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 1990.

Lots to Do, Ideals Children's Books (Nashville, TN), 1991.

"No!," Said Joe, Candlewick (Cambridge, MA), 1992.

Bear's Den, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 1992.

Timid Tim and the Cuggy-Thief, Bodley Head (London, England), 1993, published as Tim and the Blanket Thief, Atheneum (New York, NY), 1993.

The Greatest Show on Earth, Candlewick (Cambridge, MA), 1995.

Oh Where, Oh Where?, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 1998.

Walking Round the Garden, Bodley Head (London, England), 1998, published as Walking around the Garden, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 1998.

On Top of the World, Mondo (Greenvale, NY), 1998.

Number One, Tickle Your Tum, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 1999.

The Bear Went over the Mountain, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 1999.

Really Brave Tim, Bodley Head (London, England), 1999.

Again!, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 2000.

The Big Baby Bear Book, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 2001.

I'm Coming to Get You!, Red Fox (London, England), 2001.

Clap Your Hands, Red Fox (London, England), 2001.

Hold Tight!, Bodley Head (London, England), 2002, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 2003.

Is It Christmas?, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 2003.

"BECOMING A READER" SERIES

Billy's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Dan's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Lucy's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Nishal's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Sophie's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Tom's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Vicky's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Wayne's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

Yasmin's Box, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, England), 1996.

ILLUSTRATOR

Hazel Hutchins, Anastasia Morningstar, Annick (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 1985, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 1987.

Paul Rogers, Lily's Picnic, Bodley Head (London, England), 1988.

Paul Rogers, Me and Alice Go to the Gallery, Bodley Head (London, England), 1989.

Paul Rogers, Me and Alice Go to the Museum, Bodley Head (London, England), 1989.

Tony Bradman, Gary and the Magic Cat, Hodder & Stoughton (London, England), 1989.

Gilli Wright, Green Fingers, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 1989.

Catherine Storr, The Spy before Yesterday, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 1990.

Paul Bette, Unlucky Lucky, Hodder & Stoughton (London, England), 1991.

E. Nesbit, The Railway Children, Walker (London, England), 1992.

Vivian French, Once upon a Time, Candlewick (Cambridge, MA), 1993.

Vivian French, Little Ghost, Candlewick (Cambridge, MA), 1994, Walker (London, England), 2001.

Paul Rogers, A Letter to Granny, Bodley Head (London, England), 1994, published as A Letter to Grandma, Atheneum (New York, NY), 1994.

Vivian French, Once upon a Picnic, Candlewick (Cambridge, MA), 1996.

Carolyn Bear, Scrapman, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 1996.

Roger McGough, The Kite and Caitlin, Bodley Head (London, England), 1996.

Paul Rogers, Nearly but Not Quite, Bodley Head (London, England), 1997.

Hannah Cole, The Best Day of the Week, Walker (London, England), 1997.

Susan Gates, Jellyfish Shoes, Oxford University Press, 1998.

Carolyn Bear, Scrapman and Scrapcat, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 1999.

Vivian French, The Gingerbread Boy, Walker (London, England), 2000.

Chloë Rayban, Tiger Boy, Red Fox (London, England), 2000.

Carolyn Bear, Scrapman and the Incredible Flying Machine, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 2000.

Pat Thomson, An Adventure for Robo-Dog, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 2002.

British author-illustrator John Prater has created for picture-book audiences a jubilant mini-universe full of reluctant bath-takers, cozy bears, mischievous children on outings to the park, dreamland birthday parties, and a very peculiar circus family. Known for his tongue-in-cheek wit as well as colorful illustrations, Prater was a self-described failure as a graphics illustrator and school teacher. "Third time lucky," he once told SATA, "I became a not-so-far-failed children's book illustrator and writer."

Born in Reading, Berkshire, in England, he attended the Brighton College of Art, earning his B.A. in 1969. After a difficult stint freelancing as an illustrator in London, he returned to school and received his teacher's diploma in art from Reading University in 1972, subsequently teaching for a dozen years. "My own daughters and their mischievous ways were the source of my early books," Prater once told SATA. "When they grew bigger than me I began sifting through my own childhood experiences."

Prater's first self-illustrated title was On Friday Something Funny Happened, a book that was a runner-up for a Mother Goose Award in 1983. The story of a week in the life of "two horribly active children," as a reviewer in Junior Bookshelf described it, Prater's first picture book uses a spare fifty-four words to describe activities such as shopping, visiting the park, helping with home decorating, and entertaining friends. Prater relied heavily on "bold keenly-observed pictures" to make "his hilarious point," according to the reviewer in Junior Bookshelf. Kicki Moxon Browne, reviewing the title in Times Literary Supplement, observed that the text is paired with "frenzied drawings, capturing wonderfully the built-in slapstick quality of early childhood." Gabrielle Maunder noted in School Librarian that where "John Prater is so clever is in the way he has messages for both the adult reader and the listening child," with children loving the rambunctious girl and boy, and parents "wincing alongside the adults in the story who clearly spend each day clearing up after the day before."

Tessa Rose Chester, writing in Times Educational Supplement, described Prater's next picture book, The Party, as "a boisterous romp in comic-strip style." Dialogue here was inserted in balloons, and the story involves the fantasies young Lauren creates when she is bored at her parents' party. She fancifully turns relatives into animals and her parents into clowns, reminiscent, as several reviewers noted, of Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are. "The transition from polite conversation and staid respectability to pirates, pigs, goats and lions mingling in glorious uproar is effectively done," concluded Chester. A Junior Bookshelf critic commented that "the basis of the story is an adult joke which children can share. . . . A clever book."

Bath-time was the inspiration for Prater's third picture book, You Can't Catch Me!, in which Jack is peeved that his playtime should be interrupted for reasons of hygiene. He leads his parents on a merry chase with the taunt, "You can't catch me!" Of course, they finally do, but only after Jack falls into a pigsty and is badly in need of a bath. A Junior Bookshelf reviewer called this book an "attractive and amusing picture book," and Growing Point's Margery Fisher commented that the repeated taunt "sweeps one through near-natural pictures with a strong sense of movement in them; two or four vertical images to a page add to the narrative excitement." Denise L. Moll noted in School Library Journal that the brief text "is just enough to complement the pictures, which really tell the story."

Spare text is a Prater trademark. "Writing is so difficult," Prater once told SATA. "I really admire those who can apparently do it with ease. I overcame this problem once when I produced a picture book with no words at all, The Gift. Perversely, it was turned into an hour-long radio play by the BBC." The Gift portrays a brother and sister who receive two child-size chairs as a present. They soon tire of the chairs but become enthralled with the large carton in which the gift arrived. Climbing into the box, they fly away from civilization and over a jungle where they make friends with the animals and then have an adventure which makes them wish they were safe back home. "The radiant watercolors and good natured, down-to-earth children give the book immediate appeal," observed Booklist's Carolyn Phelan, who called The Gift "a well-crafted yet unpretentious picture book with more than a little charm." A Junior Bookshelf reviewer had high praise for Prater's wordless picture book, dubbing it "brilliant, original, drawn with a highly individual style and with infectious gusto." The same reviewer concluded that "John Prater gets better all the time."

The theme of mischievous children is further explored in The Perfect Day, Along Came Tom, and "No!" Said Joe. In the first of these titles, young Kevin is the fly in the ointment at a family's seaside outing. He refuses to have a good time, instead whining all the while about the seaweed and a lost flipper. It is only when the rain comes to spoil this perfect day that Kevin perks up. Joe refuses to go shopping with his parents, and even tongue-in-cheek alternatives such as visiting a wicked witch don't change his mind in "No!" Said Joe, written and illustrated by Prater. "Readers of all ages will recognize a familiar theme in the words of this small grouch," noted a reviewer for Publishers Weekly.

A rambunctious toddler keeps his sisters hopping in Along Came Tom, in which "Prater's expressive water-color illustrations tell the real story," according to Kay Weisman in Booklist. Once again, a Junior Bookshelf reviewer had high praise for Prater, noting that "we all know how a small child can wreck the best party or picnic, but Mr. Prater brings these painful experiences vividly before us with his swift unsentimental washes."

Yet another uncooperative child is present in "No!" Said Joe, in which Joe does not want to get ready to go shopping. Threats of witches and ghosts and giants will not budge him, but finally the bribe of a treat does the job and suddenly Joe is cooperative. "Prater wrings every drop of visual humor from his juxtaposition of the parents' (tongue-in-cheek) threats," observed a reviewer for Publishers Weekly. Chris Sherman, writing in Booklist, noted that "Prater's rhyming text is accompanied by bold, colorful watercolor illustrations that are not scary at all."

Fantasy comes into play in Lots to Do, when Tom and Jemma make housework less tedious with daydreams and imaginary games. These action-filled daydreams "are shown in bright, lively strip-cartoon form crammed with amusing detail," according to a Junior Bookshelf reviewer. The two transform washing dishes into a circus juggling act, and loading the washing machine becomes a deep-sea diving adventure.

In Vivian French's Once upon a Time and its sequel, Once upon a Picnic, a bored little boy encounters fairy tale characters such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, and Humpty Dumpty, all of whom amuse the boy and make him forget his boredom. Kristina Lindsay, reviewing the first title in Magpies, thought that children would like the "simple and rhythmic text (which is perfect for reading aloud) and the bright, colourful pictures which are a visual treat." Of the second title, Once upon a Picnic, Booklist's Susan Dove Lempke noted that kids would "enjoy following the familiar tales as they spin out in softly dappled watercolor landscapes that abound in funny vignettes." A Kirkus Reviews critic felt that the second title was not "as much fun as the original," but that it still "affords droll, amusing moments for fans."

A book that employs both imagination and a very independent child is Prater's The Greatest Show on Earth, in which little Harry presents the members of his traveling-circus family. Where his family are skilled at their jobs, Harry has no talent. His parents fly high on the trapeze, yet he can barely manage the low bar; his juggling sister keeps six objects going at once while Harry can barely toss two. Thus Harry is relegated to looking after the family's tight-rope walking dog, Wellington. One night Harry discovers his true function in the circus: dragged around by the leashed Wellington, Harry becomes a natural clown. Booklist's Phelan commented on the "deep hues of the pencil-andwatercolor artwork" which "provide an effective backdrop for the characters' personalities and emotions, so brilliantly portrayed through their bodies and faces." Lempke noted in Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books that "Prater makes the most of his circus setting . . . capturing motion and personality." Once more, a Junior Bookshelf reviewer offered good words for Prater, ones that could equally well be used to sum up much of his achievement in picture books. Noting that Prater's pictures for his circus book were "more exuberant than usual," this reviewer concluded that "John Prater has been one of the exciting arrivals on the picture-book scene in recent years."

Again!, the story of an exuberant Little Bear who nearly wears Grandpa Bear out, is "a sweet offering of inter-generational love," thought School Library Journal reviewer Maryann H. Owen. Over and over the two build towers of blocks and castles of sand, just to knock them down and begin again. Then it is on to watering the garden, filling up the watering can and pouring it out dozens of times. Finally, Grandpa Bear convinces Little Bear to try something a little less strenuous: reading while lying in their hammock, which soon leads to a much-needed nap. Owen went on to declare the "softly hued" watercolors "endearing."

"Illustrating comes easier to me [than writing]," Prater once summed up for SATA. "It is a strange occupation because often the best results come when you least expect them. A casual doodle can capture a moment, mood, or expression that can never be repeated."