The author wants to write a book and has chosen a friend to illustrate it. But the illustrator wants to add his own touches to the story and the author doesn't like it. And so a battle ensues. But it wasn't what I expected. From the description it sounded like the author and the illustrator thought they could tell a better story without the other so I expected to see words on a page with no pictures and drawings with no words. I was, therefore, a bit disappointed in the execution. The story did do a good job, however, of showing how it takes both to make a good story and teaches kids the value of cooperation. And in the end it was a satisfying read. Three stars.. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Author vs Illustrator is an adorable children’s book showing how a good picture book can come together in pieces, especially when the author and illustrator work together. It’s cute and well-written, and I immensely enjoyed the short, fun read. The pictures were also on-point and matched the tone and plot of the story perfectly.
I also feel like the story has excellent teaching points for kids, which is always a plus.
I would read this or other books by the author or illustrator to my niece and nephews anytime!

Thank you NetGalley, Donald Lemke, and Capstone for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book is a joy from start to finish. The illustrations are eye-catching and cute, the story is endearing and funny, and it teaches children about an industry and a process that many will be unfamiliar with.
The book touches on the topic of both illustrators and writers having to collaborate to make a story come to life, and how they might not see eye to eye at every step of the way.
I think this is a great, short story for children, fun and entertaining, encouraging them to follow their dreams and learn to work in a team.

Dueling narrators try to one-up each other in this hilarious war on words vs. drawings in this laugh-out-loud picture book. Can a book be entertaining with just words or just pictures? This book provides humorous lessons on teamwork and respect toward others. This is a book that will be read over and over and can be used at home or in the library or classroom. One to buy!

This story mean for children is the perfect read about the relationship between an author and illustrator. I really enjoyed the way the story was written and laughed a few times at the humor.

This is a great book with a meaning in it - how to work together. It’s a clever idea and the execution was very interesting. I loved the drawings and multiple storylines in this.

I could definitely see this being the perfect book for a school’s library or young reader!

📕🖊️📕🖊️📕🖊️📕🖊️📕🖊️📕🖊️📕

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with access to read this book!

Author vs. Illustrator is a fun book that young children will relate to. In the book, the Author and the Illustrator argue about which of them is making up the story. The Author has ideas for a story, but the Illustrator won't draw the characters as they are in the Author's mind. The argument builds until the two decide to do a story on their own, which does not work well. So finally, COMPROMISE! Children will delight in the book's silliness, and parents will love that it teaches a lesson. The book is very nicely done, with good contributions from both Author and Illustrator.
Thank you to Capstone Editions and NetGalley. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book provided by Capstone Editions via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

It is an adorable picture book that does an excellent job of showing students the role of the author and illustrator in a picture book.

I plan to use this next year when teaching young students about authors and illustrators and their roles. I also think this would go well with some other books.

Thank you to Capstone and Net Galley for the eARC.

This was so charming. My 7yo son who wants to be both an author AND an illustrator read this together, and we had a blast with it. It was fun to ask him what he thought would happen next, and he had a lot of good giggles at the constantly changing illustrations. I think this will be one to add to our library!

Cute book about how collaborating works with authors and illustrators, and it’s not always easy. Kids will find lots of laughs in their silly antics. I enjoyed how they compared book-making to food! Good lessons and fun to read. Book written with speech bubbles so you might need to make sure you get readers understand the flow of page, but a great teaching opportunity! I received an advance ebook from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book is going to make teaching about authors and illustrators so much more fun and relatable than the current options! Not only do they include a hero that is super relatable to kids (although I’ll have to change my magic move word), the problem they solve together is something these kids deal with. This book is also a great example of group/partner work which so many elementary school kids have little experience with in since Covid!

The illustrations were cute and I like seeing the dynamics authors and illustrators have while doing graphic novels and illustrated stories like this.

Super cute and fun story about collaboration and friendship. Enjoyed the graphic novel feel and design with all the speech bubbles, etc. Think kids will love it.

I received this ARC from Capstone in exchange for an honest review

5/5 Stars - get it now

This was a cute story! There is a humor element which students would really enjoy and would help keep them engaged. As an Elementary Librarian, I could see reading this book to kick off our lessons in Authors and Illustrators. If you need a book to introduce what Authors and Illustrators do, this is a great option

"Author vs. Illustrator", written by Don Lemke and illustrated by Bob Lentz, is a children's picture book. This is a clever and humorous book that will appeal to many children. It teaches how both people are needed in a partnership. Each person brings their strongest skill to the team. In this book, when the artist tries to make the book without the writer, it doesn't work. When the writer tries to create the book without pictures, that isn't as much fun either. Together, they create the best stories.

The drawings by Bob Lentz are cartoonlike and amusing. The two storylines, one of the story they are writing about the beast and the other about making their book, are both well written.

This is a great book for a family with two children, as well as for classrooms and school libraries. It is scheduled to publish August 1, 2024.

Thank you to Netgalley, Capstone Editions, and Don Lemke and Bob Lentz for providing this e-book ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Demonstrating, rather than just telling, how an author and illustrator work together to create a picture book is no easy feat. Navigating conflict and differences in opinions isn't easy either. This book manages to do both and to do both well!

Thank you Donald Lemke and NetGalley for allowing me an ARC to review prior to release.

Need a book that is fun, humorous, but has a lesson of friendship built in? No need to look any further! Author vs. Illustrator is a humorous book that shows the relationship between an illustrator and author, and what happens when they decide not to work together. This is a great book to teach students how to work together, as well as the importance of both an illustrator and author. Are they able to set aside their differences to finish the book? Well, you will just have to read it to find out yourself!

What a fun concept! An author and illustrator team up to make a book and show that both job are important to tell the story! I thought this was so fun, and it's a great one to read aloud or for early readers. The illustrations were colorful and well-down. The speech bubbles were easy to follow along with, and I think kids will enjoy the humor of this one!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was almost like a beginner graphic-novel style book. It explains the making of a book and the job of an author and an illustrator. It shows that both are important and make the book better when they work together.

Not normally my style of read, but I think kids will love it.

The idea of an illustrator and an author coming up with a story together and then duking it out over their divergent ideas was a neat concept for a graphic novel or illustrated book. I'm just not 100% sure on the execution. I think I expected something a bit more fun to be honest, like they actually do duke it out. But a large part of the story was them working collaboratively together. The divergence was a very small part of the whole, and maybe that's where I kind of felt led astray. I wanted there to be some lead in and then the whole vs. to take over for a good portion of the middle until they realized how to work together. That is definitely covered in the book, but the actual conflict is the smallest part of the whole.

The artwork is fun, and I love the idea of this being a lesson in working together as much in the fiction as it is in the collaboration space. There is a good lesson here, and I do think that it is told fairly well. Just a bit better pacing would make this an awesome product.

This was really fun! Is the story more important, or the illustrations? Two friends are collaborating and can't agree on how the story should go.
The friends argue but decide they enjoy the stories they make together.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this