Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire

The aesthetic of artist Mary Blair has had an outsize impact on the children’s book world, and now her life story gets its own book. Throughout, Guglielmo (the Touch the Art series) and Tourville (Albie’s First Word) emphasize the sexism and artistic pushback Blair faced and her unabashed love of color: “On her first day of work [at Walt Disney Studios], the men in charge didn’t want to talk about cerulean or celadon or cerise.” Barrager (Uni the Unicorn) laces her vibrant images with visual references to Blair’s memorable work for such films as Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan. An effervescent tribute that doesn’t sugarcoat Blair’s path to success. Ages 4–8. [em]Author’s agent: (for Guglielmo) Stephen Barbara, Inkwell Management; (for Tourville) Brianne Johnson, Writers House. Illustrator’s agent: Kirsten Hall, Catbird Agency. (Aug.) [/em]