The Life and Works of Ezra Jack Keats Essay example -- Literary Analys

After a four week survey of a multitude of children’s book authors and illustrators, and learning to analyze their works and the methods used to make them effective literary pieces for children, it is certainly appropriate to apply these new skills to evaluate a single author’s works. Specifically, this paper focuses on the life and works of Ezra Jack Keats, a writer and illustrator of books for children who single handedly expanded the point of view of the genre to include the experiences of multicultural children with his Caldecott Award winning book â€Å"Snowy Day.† The creation of Peter as a character is ground breaking in and of itself, but after reading the text the reader is driven to wonder why â€Å"Peter† was created. Was he a vehicle for political commentary as some might suggest or was he simply another â€Å"childhood† that had; until that time, been ignored? If so, what inspired him to move in this direction? Born in March of 1916 as Jacob (Jack) Ezra Katz, he was the third child to Benjamin and Augusta Katz. His parents were both Polish immigrants of Jewish descent and they raised him in East New York, the predominantly Jewish section of Brooklyn. As immigrants they were plagued with financial difficulties and this was further aggravated when they struggled through the Depression. Despite all of these hardships, Keats had already begun to showcase his artistic abilities. At the age of eight he was hired to paint the sign of a local store. Naturally, his father was quite proud of him when he earned twenty-five cents for his work and hoped that this might endeavor might lead to a steady career as a sign pa ¬inter. Unfortunately for him, Keats was smitten with Fine Arts and won his first award in Junior High School: a medal for ... ...undeniable. Works Cited Gerard J.Keats, Ezra Jack. Goggles! New York: Puffin Books, 1969. Keats, Ezra Jack, and Cherr, Pat. My Dog is Lost! New York: Crowell, 1960. Keats, Ezra Jack. Peter’s Chair. New York: Viking, 1967. Keats, Ezra Jack. Skates! New York: Watts, 1973 Keats, Ezra Jack. The Snowy Day. New York: Viking, 1962. Senick, Gerard J., and Hedblad, Alan. Children’s Literature Review: Excerpts from Reviews, and Commentary on Books for Children and Young People (Volumes 14, 34, 35). Detroit, Michigan: Gale Research, 1995.. Ezra Jack Keats: A Virtual Exhibit. The University of Southern Mississippi De Grummond Children's Literature Collection. Web. 19 July 2010. . Http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/. Ezra Jack Keats Foundation. Web. 19 July 2010. .