Rachel Isadora

Rachel Isadora (born 1953) is an American illustrator, children's book author, specializing in picture books, and painter. She is most famous for the book Ben's Trumpet, runner-up for the 1980 Caldecott Medal, or Caldecott Honor Book, and winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book honor. Ben's Trumpet was adapted to video and also translated into a ballet by the Boston ballet company BalletRox in 2009. The more than 150 children's books Isadora has written and illustrated span a wide variety of topics, including ballet and dance, American urban culture and family life, life in Africa, and traditional fairy tales. Several of Isadora’s books have been selected by Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Isadora was a professional ballet dancer before an injury led to a change of careers. In addition to freelance writing and illustration, Isadora shows and sells oil paintings, many of which reflect her love of dance, as well as her experiences living in Africa and New York City.

Biography Isadora started dancing as a young girl and went on to study at the School of American Ballet on a scholarship from the Ford Foundation. She studied under New York City Ballet founder and artistic director, George Balanchine, and costume and scenic designer, Rouben Ter-Arutunion. She briefly danced with the Boston Ballet Company, until a foot injury caused her to seek work as a visual artist instead. She has continued to exhibit in multiple shows; in 2019 at ArtNY, The Reveal Art Show in Saratoga Springs, NY and ArtMiami.

Works Writer and illustrator Max, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1976 The Potters' Kitchen, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1977 Willaby, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1977 Backstage, with Robert Maiorano, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1978 Ben's Trumpet, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1979 My Ballet Class, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1980 No, Agatha!, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1980 Jesse and Abe, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1981 The Nutcracker, (Retold) Macmillan (New York, NY), 1981 City Seen from A to Z, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1983 Opening Night, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1984 I Hear, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1985 I See, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1985 I Touch, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1985 The Pirates of Bedford Street, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1988 The Princess and the Frog (based on The Frog King and Iron Heinrich by Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm), Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1989 Swan Lake: A Ballet Story (based on the ballet Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilich Tchaikovsky), Putnam (New York, NY), 1989 Friends, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1990 Babies, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1990 At the Crossroads, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1991 Over the Green Hills, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1992 Lili at Ballet, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1993 Firebird (based on the ballet by Stravinsky), Putnam (New York, NY), 1994 My Ballet Diary, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1995 Lili on Stage, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1995 The Steadfast Tin Soldier (based on the story by Hans Christian Andersen), Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1996 The Little Match Girl (based on the story by Hans Christian Andersen), Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1996 Lili Backstage, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1997 Young Mozart, Penguin (New York, NY), 1997. The Little Mermaid (based on the story by Hans Christian Andersen), Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1998. Isadora Dances, Viking Penguin (New York, NY), 1998 A South African Night, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1998 Caribbean Dreams, Putnam (New York, NY), 1998 Listen to the City, Putnam (New York, NY), 1999 ABC Pop!, Viking Penguin (New York, NY), 1999 Sophie Skates, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 1999 123 Pop!, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 2000 Nick Plays Baseball, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 2001 Bring on That Beat, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 2002 Peekaboo Morning, Penguin Putnam (New York, NY), 2002 Mr. Moon, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 2002 On Your Toes: A Ballet ABC, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 2003 Not Just Tutus, Putnam (New York, NY), 2003 In the Beginning, Putnam (New York, NY), 2003 What a Family, Putnam (New York, NY), 2005 Luke Goes to Bat, Putnam (New York, NY), 2005 Yo, Jo!, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2007 The Princess and the Pea (based on the story by the Brothers Grimm), Putnam Juvenile (2007) Rapunzel, (based on the story by the Brothers Grimm), Putnam Juvenile (2008) The Fisherman and His Wife, (based on the story by the Brothers Grimm), Putnam Juvenile (2008) The Twelve Dancing Princesses (based on the story by the Brothers Grimm), Putnam Juvenile (2008) Hanzel and Gretel (based on the story by the Brothers Grimm), Putnam Juvenile (2009) The Night before Christmas, Putnam Juvenile (2009) The Twelve Days of Christmas, Putnam Juvenile (2010) Say Hello, Putnam Juvenile, (2010) There Was a Tree (adapted from the folk song "And the Green Grass Grew All Around"), Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (2012) Bea at the Ballet, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House (2012) Old Mikamba Had a Farm, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (2013) Jake at Gymnastics, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (2014) Bea in the Nutcracker, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (2015) I Hear a Pickle, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (2016) I Just Want to Say Goodnight, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (Pub Date, Fall, 2016) My Dog Laughs, Nancy Paulsen Books, Division of Penguin Random House, (Pub Date, Spring, 2017)

Illustrator Robert Maiorano, Francisco, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1978 Elizabeth Shub, Seeing Is Believing, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1979 Robert Maiorano, A Little Interlude, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan (New York, NY), 1980 Elizabeth Shub, The White Stallion, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1982 Elizabeth Shub, Cutlass in the Snow, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 1986 Patricia C. McKissack, Flossie & the Fox, Dial (New York, NY), 1986 Ruth Young, Golden Bear, Viking (New York, NY), 1990 Sandol Stoddard, editor, Prayers, Praises, and Thanksgivings, Dial (New York, NY), 1992 Reeve Lindbergh, Grandfather's Lovesong, Viking (New York, NY), 1993 Jane Kurtz, In the Small, Small Night, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 2005 Deborah Hopkinson, Saving Strawberry Farm, Greenwillow (New York, NY), 2005 Carolyn Vaughan, "Invitation to Ballet: A Celebration of Dance and Degas", The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Abrams Books (2012)

Painter

To view Isadora’s paintings, refer to this link to her Official website, rachelisadora.com.

Awards and honors Max received the 1976 Child Study Association Children's Book of the Year award; Children's Choice award, International Reading Association/Children's Book Council (CBC), 1976; Children's Book Showcase award, CBC, 1977; American Library Association (ALA) notable book citation, and was designated a Reading Rainbow selection 1979 ALA Notable Book citation, for Seeing Is Believing, written by Elizabeth Shub Ben's Trumpet received a Boston Globe/Horn Book honor book for illustration citation in 1979; Best Book for Spring designation, School Library Journal, 1979; and the Caldecott Honor Book award, 1980 1982 Best Book award, School Library Journal, and ALA notable book citation for The White Stallion, by Elizabeth Shub 1982 Children's Book award, New York Public Library, for City Seen from A to Z 1985 Child Study Association Children's Book of the Year award for I Hear and I See 1986 Child Study Association Children's Book of the Year awards for Flossie and the Fox, by Patricia C. McKissack (which also received a 1987 Horn Book honor list citation) and Cutlass in the Snow, by Elizabeth Shub 1991 ALA Notable Book citation for At the Crossroads 2008 Parent's Choice award for "The Fisherman and His Wife" 2011 Virginia Reader's Choice award for "Hansel and Gretel" 2012 Horn Book award for "Bea at Ballet" 2013 ALA Notable Book award for "Old Mikamba Had a Farm" 2013 100 top Children's Books of the Last 100 Years - New York Public Library includes "Ben's Trumpet" 2015 Kirkus Review - 3 Star Reviews for "I Hear a Pickle" 2016 School Library Journal, Amazon Featured Best Book of Month for January - "I Hear a Pickle"

Legacy Ben's Trumpet was adapted into a jazz ballet choreographed by Tony Williams and debuted by BalletRox in 2009.