Cartwheel to the Moon

Caldecott Nomination 2003


Celebrated Wisconsin artist Kitty Dyble Thompson nominated by Cricket Books for her illustrations in Cartwheel to the Moon: My Sicilian Childhood, written by Emanuel di Pasquale. Kitty Dyble Thompson is the acclaimed illustrator of Emanuel di Pasquale’s book of poetry, Cartwheel to the Moon: My Sicilian Childhood ( ISBN 0-8126-2679-6; Cricket Books 2003).


Publishers Weekly describes her Cartwheel art as pen-and-ink drawings that “bring a gentle, shimmering light to the wistful verse,”


The School Library Journal declares her softly washed blue-and-white watercolor images to be “like picture postcards, amplifying the scenic words as they trace the seasons in Sicily.”

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Hazel Rochman, writing for Booklist, states that “Immigrant kids will recognize parents' and grandparents' stories of a faraway home, but there are also universals in the daily adventures on the island through the seasons; the special excursion and religious celebrations; and the achingly physical memories of the father who died when the boy was very young. The plain words capture what the boy sees, and Thompson's black-and-white illustrations show the sweep of the ocean as well as close-ups of the town and the child's playful enduring bond with his mother. From the exuberance of the title poem to the sorrow of childhood loss, there's much here to read aloud and to encourage children to write about themselves.”

A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Thompson traveled to Ragusa, Sicily, to research the illustrations for Cartwheel to the Moon. She has also illustrated stories in children’s literary magazines as well as several books, including My Name is Maria Isabel, by Alma Flor Ada.