No!
I mean… yes?
Picture books can be for everyone.
Mine are!
Children are a part of everyone, so yes. It’s for children.
But it’s for you too. It’s for old people and young people.
Adults, teenagers, parents, people without children, people who haven’t picked up a picture book since they were eight years old. Everyone.
A picture book is not automatically a children’s book. It doesn’t mean it’s NOT for children either. That’s the distinction we seem to have completely lost.
As soon as children are included under the umbrella of a medium, somehow they swallow the whole thing. Suddenly it becomes CHILDREN’S ENTERTAINMENT and then come the questions.
What ages is this for?
What grade level?
Developmentally, who is this appropriate for?
Is this good for children with…
Can a seven-year-old understand it?
Will a twelve-year-old think they’re too old for it?
Oh my God! It’s ART!?
This isn't how we process art. I used to be a museum tour guide and most of my groups had children in them... GUESS WHAT? The tours didn't change! They were for EVERYONE!
Why? Because it's ART!
ART!! And it’s not going to hurt you. Or your kid.
We have become so obsessed with sorting, categorizing and pre-approving everything children encounter that sometimes I think we forget how experiencing art actually works.
A book is not a bicycle. They’re not going to fall off of it. It’s not a swimming pool. They’re not going to drown in it. You do not need to hover beside them holding the back of the seat while they read.
Sure! Maybe your kid won’t understand every joke.
OK! Maybe they won’t understand every word.
MAYBE... maybe something will scare them a little. Maybe something will confuse them. Maybe they’ll ask you a question.
THAT'S GOOD! That's what growing up is! Experiencing new things ALL the time. And picture books... this is a GREAT way to experience those feelings. And we ALL NEED to learn how to process those BIG feelings.
They're not ready for it? Great! Read it with them! That's where the adult gets to engage with the same material. A communal experience.
And then there’s the opposite question: Is my child too old for this? No. They aren’t. Because YOU AREN’T. There is no age at which pictures stop being beautiful. There is no age at which rhyme stops being funny. There is no age at which a strange little story stops being worth hearing. There is no birthday where someone comes to your house, confiscates your picture books and hands you a 400-page novel about a failing marriage.
Picture books are a medium. That’s it. Words and pictures working together to tell a story. Sometimes stories are made primarily with children in mind.
Mine aren't.
Because a six-year-old and a sixty-year-old will love the same story for completely different reasons. That isn’t a problem. That’s the magic trick.
So when I say I make picture books for everyone, I mean exactly that. I’m not secretly saying “children’s books that adults can tolerate.” I’m not saying “adult books disguised as children’s books.” I’m saying: here is a story, here is some art, come look at it. You’re invited.