2008 Woodie Awards
Video related to this article is available below.Issue date: 12/4/06 Section: News
Librarian lends 'magic' to children's book art
Kojo Minta
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Come March, that style will be showcased in the Penn Rare Book and Manuscript Library employee's illustrated children's book, The Magic Raincoat.
Helen Robinson, art director for publisher Front Street, compared the "three-dimensional quality" of Benatova's work to that of Eric Carle - author and illustrator of such children's books as The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
The plot centers around "a little girl that is given a raincoat and discovers it has magical powers," Benatova said. "She starts wishing for things and they come true, but not exactly as she imagined they would."
The Magic Raincoat is scheduled to be released in March 2007.
Benatova said she has been an art lover all her life.
She spends her days at the Library and her nights painting in the Philadelphia home she shares with her husband.
Benatova moved to the United States about seven years ago from Bulgaria, where she worked closely with renowned Bulgarian writers.
Having put on several art shows in the area over the last few years, Benatova is no stranger to the Philadelphia area.
"I really love the environment; I feel comfortable here," she said.
The process of illustrating The Magic Raincoat - written by New York-based author Ryan David - began two and a half years ago when the two met and exchanged ideas for a potential children's book.
But even with the text written and the illustrations drawn, the book might have remained a dream if one of Benatova's co-workers had not taken an interest.
Daniel Traister, curator of Research Services at Penn's Rare Book and Manuscript Library, helped Benatova in her search for a publisher by contacting Stephen Roxburgh - an old acquaintance - for publishing advice.
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