Eric Carle (1929-...) is an American illustrator and author known for his creative picture books for young children. Carle typically works in collage, a technique of making pictures by pasting scraps of paper and other materials on a background.

Carle has expanded the style of picture books. For example, in The Grouchy Ladybug (1977), some of the pages grow larger as bigger and bigger animals appear. Some of Carle’s books resemble toys. The Very Quiet Cricket (1990) includes a battery-powered computer chip that produces blinking lights and a sound like a cricket chirping. Carle has received many children’s literature awards, including the Regina Medal in 1999 and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award (now called the Children's Literature Legacy Award) in 2003. He has illustrated more than 70 books.

In most cases, Carle writes his own stories. He first gained recognition with The Very Hungry Caterpillar (1969). The book includes brightly colored shapes and holes in the pages that follow the growth of a caterpillar from egg to cocoon to butterfly. In 1974, Carle developed the "My Very First Library" series, in which children can match familiar objects with colors, numbers, and words.

Carle was born in Syracuse, New York, on June 25, 1929. At the age of 6, he moved with his family to Stuttgart, Germany, his father’s birthplace. Carle returned to the United States in 1952. He was a graphic designer for The New York Times in the mid 1950’s and an art director for an advertising agency from 1956 to 1963, when he became a full-time book illustrator. Carle’s first published work as author and illustrator was The Say-with-Me ABC Book (1967).

Carle, Eric. (2020). In World Book Kids. Retrieved from

   https://www.worldbookonline.com/kids/article?id=ar845029

Photo Credit:

https://www.gpb.org/blogs/education-matters/2016/05/23/the-high-museum-presents-i-see-story-the-art-of-eric-carle