Paterson, Diane 1946-

(Diane Mannion)

Personal

Born July 23, 1946, in Brooklyn, NY; daughter of A.R. and T.E. Cole; married (divorced, 1978); married John Mannion (a craftsman and gallery owner); children: (first marriage) Elizabeth, Jana. Education: Attended Pratt Institute, 1966-68; State University of New York, B.A. (English). Hobbies and other interests: Gardening, yoga, painting, sailing, kayaking.

Addresses

Home—Southwest FL. Office—Mannion Gallery, 3502 N. Access Rd., Englewood, FL 34224. E-mail—diane@dianepaterson.com.

Career

Writer, illustrator, and fine artist under name Diane Mannion. State University of New York, former instructor in English; lecturer at Vassar College.

Member

Authors Guild, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrator.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

The Biggest Snowstorm Ever, Dial (New York, NY), 1974.

Eat!, Dial (New York, NY), 1975.

Smile for Auntie, Dial (New York, NY), 1976, published as I'll Give You Kisses, 2003.

If I Were a Toad, Dial (New York, NY), 1977.

Wretched Rachel, Dial (New York, NY), 1978.

The Bathtub Ocean, Dial (New York, NY), 1979.

Hey Cowboy, Knopf (New York, NY), 1983.

Soap and Suds, Knopf (New York, NY), 1984.

Someday, Bradbury Press (New York, NY), 1993.

Hurricane Wolf, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 2006.

ILLUSTRATOR

Beverly Keller, Fiona's Bee, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan (New York, NY), 1975.

Roger Caras, Skunk for a Day, Windmill Books (New York, NY), 1975.

Robert Kraus, Kittens for Nothing, Windmill Books (New York, NY), 1976.

Barbara Greenberg, The Bravest Babysitter, Dial Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Roger Caras, Coyote for a Day, Windmill Books (New York, NY), 1977.

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, The Golden Goose, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1981.

Beverly Keller, Fiona's Flea, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan (New York, NY), 1981.

Robie H. Harris, I Hate Kisses, Knopf (New York, NY), 1981.

Stone Soup, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1981.

David Cutts, Pinocchio and the Great Whale, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1982.

David Cutts, Pinocchio and the Puppet Show, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1982.

David Cutts, Pinocchio Goes to School, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1982.

David Cutts, Pinocchio Meets the Cat and Fox, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1982.

Beverly Keller, The Bee Sneeze, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan (New York, NY), 1982.

Judith Graham Collins, Josh's Scary Dad, Abingdon (Nashville, TN), 1983.

Maureen Brett Hooper, The Christmas Drum, Boyds Mills Press (Honesdale, PA), 1984.

Caroline Feller Bauer, Too Many Books!, F. Arne (New York, NY), 1984.

Ski Michaels, The Big Surprise, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Michael J. Pellowski, The Duck Who Loved Puddles, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Robyn Supraner, Kitty: A Cat's Diary, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Michael J. Pellowski, Fun in the Sun, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Michael J. Pellowski, The Messy Monster, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Erica Frost, The Littlest Pig, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1986.

Laura Damon, Fun in the Snow, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1988.

Kira Daniel, Teacher, Troll Communications (Mahwah, NJ), 1989.

Gale Clifford, Night Animals, Celebration Press, 1989.

David A. Adler, You Breathe In, You Breathe Out: All about Your Lungs, F. Watts (New York, NY), 1991.

Deborah Gould, Camping in the Temple of the Sun, Bradbury Press (New York, NY), 1992.

Carmen Santiago Nodar, Abuelita's Paradise, Albert Whtiman (Morton Grove, IL), 1992.

Carolina Ortega, Keep the Beat, Scott Foresman (Glenview, IL), 1993.

Janice Gibala-Broxholm, Let Me Do It!, Bradbury Press (New York, NY), 1993.

Maria Testa, Thumbs up, Rico!, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1994.

Joan Hoffman, The Last Game, School Zone Publishing (Grand Haven, MI), 1994.

Lila McGinnis, If Daddy Only Knew, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1995.

Michelle Markel, Gracias, Rosa, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1995.

Fay Robinson, Sara's Lovely Songs, Modern Curriculum Press (Parsippany, NJ), 1996.

Bobbi Katz, The Story of Passover, Random House (New York, NY), 1996.

Dorothy Corey, You Go Away, new edition, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1999.

Norma Simon, All Kinds of Children, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1999.

Kelli Kyle Dominguez, The Perfect Piñata/La piñata perfecta, Spanish translation by Teresa Mlawer, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 2002.

Lisa Tucker McElroy, Love Lizzie: Letters to a Military Mom, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 2005.

Illustrations have appeared in periodicals, including Babybug and Ladybug.

Sidelights

An author and illustrator of books for younger readers, Diane Paterson is primarily noted for the pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations she creates for books by other authors. Noting the "bright and busy" illustrations Paterson contributes to Kelli Kyle Dominguez's bilingual picture book The Perfect Piñata/La piñata perfecta School Library Journal reviewer Ann Welton added that the book's "signature" images of a five-year-old girl celebrating a traditional Latin-American birthday "enhance the story nicely." Similarly, her vibrantly colored illustrations for Janice Gibala-Broxholm's Let Me Do It! add energy to the story of an independent-minded toddler by using vibrant tones of yellow, orange, and pink to "extend the glorious confusion" created by a small child determined to go it alone. Among her many illustration projects has been a new edition of You Go Away, a story by Dorothy Corey that Booklist contributor Carolyn Phelan cited as the "picture book of choice for helping children deal with separation anxiety." Phelan credited Paterson's "bright, clearly defined" illustrations with enhancing the reissued story, while a Horn Book writer commended the artist for providing children with a reassuring and inclusive reading experience by contributing "cozy" images featuring a "multiethnic cast."

Hurricane Wolf, Paterson's original self-illustrated story, is her response to the trauma caused by a hurricane that devastated parts her native Florida in 2004. In the story, she introduces readers to Noah and his family as they wisely prepare for an approaching storm by storing food and water, shuttering windows, and finding a safe location from which to monitor the storm's progress overhead. For Noah, the howling storm sounds like the big bad wolf of Three Little Pigs fame, and reminding himself of the story's upbeat ending gives him reassurance. In framing her story, Paterson also draws on the metaphor of a wild animal as a way to help young children visualize the relative strength of gale-force winds and other meteorological manifestations of hurricanes. In her review for Booklist, Shelle Rosenfeld noted that Hurricane Wolf will "help children get through a scary experience," and School Library Journal contributor Angela J. Reynolds concluded that Paterson's story "presents the facts and the how and why of preparedness" in a way that avoids "being too scary."

Paterson once noted: "Sometimes I draw a character and then another and they carry on their own story which hopefully leads to a humorous situation. I illustrate all of my books and feel a close relationship between image and words. I draw words into the pictures so they are one, trying to get as close to animation as possible. I hope to keep my material humorous and imaginative to appeal to all ages."

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Booklist, January 15, 1994, Hazel Rochman, review of Let Me Do It!, p. 936; April 15, 1994, Carolyn Phelan, review of Thumbs up, Rico!, p. 1536; October 1, 1994, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Christmas Drum, p. 333; September 1, 1999, Carolyn Phelan, review of You Go Away, p. 139; April 15, 2002, Linda Perkins, review of The Perfect Piñata/La piñata perfecta, p. 1407; September 1, 2005, GraceAnne A. DeCandido, review of Love, Lizzie: Letters to a Military Mom, p 145; March 1, 2006, Shelle Rosenfeld, review of Hurricane Wolf, p. 101.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, April, 2006, Deborah Stevenson, review of Hurricane Wolf, p. 368.

Horn Book, January, 2000, review of You Go Away, p. 60.

Kirkus Reviews, February 15, 2002, review of The Perfect Piñata, p. 254; September 1, 2005, review of Love, Lizzie, p. 978; February 15, 2006, review of Hurricane Wolf, p. 189.

Publishers Weekly, September 7, 1992, review of Abuelita's Paradise, p. 96; September 19, 1994, review of The Christmas Drum, p. 30.

School Library Journal, June, 2002, Ann Welton, review of The Perfect Piñata, p. 128; October, 2005, Pamela K. Bomboy, review of Love, Lizzie, p. 120; March, 2006, Angela J. Reynolds, review of Hurricane Wolf, p. 200.

ONLINE

Diane Paterson Home Page,http://www.dianepaterson.com (March 8, 2007).