StoryMakers: Tish Rabe

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StoryMakers: Tish Rabe

You can’t be a writer, if you’re not a reader.
– Tish Rabe’s message for children

Tish Rabe is the author behind the latest generation of Dr. Seuss books. When the beloved author of classics including The Cat In the Hat and What Pet Should I Get? passed away, Rabe was tasked with keeping his legacy alive through his rhyming picture books. Rabe has been writing Cat in the Hat books for 20 years!

Tish Rabe is a masterful rhymer which is evident as she makes learning about subjects including space, health, and biology seem beyond fun! She writes the spin-off books based on the daily PBS Kids series, “The Cat In the Hat Knows A Lot About That!” It takes over two years for Rabe and her team — including illustrators Aristides Ruiz and Joe Mathieu — to create each book. The silly rhyming facts are vetted by scientists; down to the color of planets!

Stay tuned to find out Tish Rabe’s Three Rs, how she writes her rhymes, where she got her break in children’s television, and to learn more about how the books and television series go hand-in-hand. Also, Rabe has some great advice for your little authors!

We’re giving away three (3) bundles of books for this episode of StoryMakers. Each bundle includes a of copy of Tish Rabe’s picture books, LOVE YOU, HUG YOU, READ TO YOU; ¡TE AMO, TE ABRAZO, LEO CONTIGO!; OH, BABY, THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!; CLAM-I-AM; THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE SPACE; and THE I BELIEVE BUNNY. The giveaway ends at 11:59 PM on June 14, 2016. ENTER NOW!

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Click the image below to enter PBS’ The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That website. Play games, download printables, and get literacy tips for parents.

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ABOUT THE BOOKS

Love You, Hug You, Read to You!
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Frank Enderby
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers, Board Books

There are three things I’ll always do … love you, hug you, read to you. The simple promise of togetherness offered in this board book is enhanced by interactive prompts throughout, encouraging parents to engage with their child while reading. Studies show that asking questions, like the ones in this book, helps children learn to read faster than if they just listen to a story. Love and literacy are gifts we can give to our children every day Also available as bilingual (Spanish and English) edition entitled ¡Te amo, te abrazo, leo contigo!

Te amo, te Abrazo, leo contigo!/Love You, Hug You, Read to You!
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Frank Enderby
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers, Board Books

¡Te amo, te Abrazo, Leo Contigo!/Love You, Hug You, Read to You! is a bi-lingual book written in both Spanish and English. Studies have shown that asking children’s questions about what’s happening in a book helps them learn to read faster than if they just sit and listen to a story so this book features interactive questions in both languages. It also offers the opportunity for Spanish speakers to learn English and English speakers to learn Spanish!

Oh, Baby, the Places You’ll Go!
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Dr. Seuss
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers, Board Books

Artfully adapted almost entirely from Ted Geisel’s work, this introduction to the world of Dr. Seuss is a must for expectant parents and new babies In simple rhymed verse, author Tish Rabe extolls the joys awaiting newborns when they meet the Cat in the Hat, Horton the Elephant, Yertle the Turtle, the Great Birthday Bird, the Grinch, and twenty-five other beloved Seuss characters. Written to be read aloud to babies and babies-to-be (“yes,” babies in utero ), the book includes a brief introduction by “Mrs.” Dr. Seuss Audrey Geisel revealing how she and Ted were fascinated by the idea that babies could hear sounds while still in the womb and might actually respond to the voices of their parents. A perfect gift for baby showers and newborns, Oh, Baby, the Places You’ll Go is the ideal way to nurture a love of reading and Dr. Seuss in the very youngest children.

The I Believe Bunny
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Frank Enderby
Published by Thomas Nelson

Introducing the I Believe Bunny—a delightful new series that helps kids learn about believing, sharing, and putting their faith into action.

Children will identify with Bunny and learn along with him that God is always there to help. Prayer works! Little Mouse is in trouble and Bunny is the only one nearby to help her. But, Bunny is too small. He has to set aside his own fear and trust in God. By putting his faith into action, Bunny is able to help Little Mouse and save the day.

Not only does this precious book teach the importance of calling on God for our every need, it helps children remember to be thankful for God’s work in their lives.

Clam-I-Am
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Aristides Ruiz and Joe Mathieu
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Normal the Fish is hosting a seaside talkshow for the Fish Channel and the Cat in the Hat and Thing One and Thing Two are cameracat and crew. Among Norval’s special guests are his old friend Clam-I-Am (a shy gal who lives in the sand and likes to spit), along with horseshoe and hermit crabs, jellyfish, sand fleas, starfish, seagulls, and miscellaneous mollusks. Seaweed, seaglass, tides, tidal pools, dunes, driftwood, and waves make cameo appearances, too. “Warning: Beginning readers are apt to be swept away.”

There’s No Place Like Space: All About Our Solar System
Written by Tish Rabe, illustrated by Dr. Seuss and Aristides Ruiz
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

“Au revoir,” Pluto In this newly revised, bestselling backlist title, beginning readers and budding astronomers are launched on a wild trip to visit the now “eight “planets in our solar system (per the International Astronomical Union’s 2006 decision to downgrade Pluto from a planet to a dwarf planet), along with the Cat in the Hat, Thing One, Thing Two, Dick, and Sally. It’s a reading adventure that’s out of this world.

ABOUT TISH RABE

Wish Rabe has written over 160 children’s books for Sesame Street, Disney, Blue’s Clues, Curious George, Huff and Puff and many others. In 1996 — five years after the death of Dr. Seuss — she was selected by Dr. Seuss Enterprises to create The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library, a new line of rhyming science books for early readers. A television series based on these books, The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, airs daily on PBS Kids.

Ms. Rabe also wrote the popular Dr. Seuss book for parents-to-be Oh the Places You’ll Go to be read in Utero! and created her own character, The I Believe Bunny, which won a Mom’s Choice Award for Best Picture Book – Gold. She also wrote scripts for children’s television series including “Clifford”, “Clifford’s Puppy Days” and was the Head Writer for “I Spy!” for Scholastic Entertainment and HBO family.

In 1982, she traveled to China with Jim Henson’s Muppets to produce “Big Bird in China”, which won the Emmy for Best Children’s Special for NBC. Later that year, she became Senior Producer of a new science series for kids on PBS called “3-2-1 Contact”. During the five seasons of the show, Ms. Rabe wrote scripts as well as lyrics for songs including “What Does Your Garbage Say?”, “Electricity is the Power” and “People are Mammals Too”.