Raschka, Chris (1959-…), is an American illustrator and author of children’s books. He won the 2006 Caldecott Medal for his illustrations for The Hello, Goodbye Window (2005), written by Norton Juster, an American architect and author. Raschka also won the 2012 Caldecott Medal as illustrator and author of A Ball for Daisy (2011). The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the illustrator of the best picture book by an American. The Hello, Goodbye Window describes a little girl’s visit to her grandparents and the magical things she sees through their kitchen window. Raschka decorated the warm-hearted story with richly colored illustrations that suggest lively pictures a child would draw. A Ball for Daisy is a wordless story about a dog who loses a red ball, her favorite toy.
Raschka has been praised for his daring choice of subject matter and his imaginative illustrations. His first book as an author and illustrator was R and R: A Story About Two Alphabets (1990). It deals with tolerance and overcoming cultural differences. Charlie Parker Played Be Bop (1992) captures the rhythms of modern jazz through a creative blend of text and illustrations. Yo! Yes? (1993) portrays a potential racial confrontation that ends in friendship. Elizabeth Imagined an Iceberg (1994) is about how a child copes with a frightening stranger. The Purple Balloon (2007) introduces children to the difficult subject of death.
In 2000, Raschka published a series of eight picture books called “Thingy Things.” They included such titles as Whaley Whale, Moosey Moose, Sluggy Slug, and Wormy Worm. He added several more titles to the series in 2014. Raschka also wrote Hip Hop Dog (2010). He wrote and illustrated Little Black Crow (2010), Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle (2013), The Cosmobiography of Sun Ra: The Sound of Joy Is Enlightening and Give and Take (both 2014), and The Doorman’s Repose (2017). Side by Side: A Celebration of Dads and Mother Goose of Pudding Lane were both published in 2019, and In the City was published in 2020. Seriously, Norman! (2011) is for older readers.
In 2008, Raschka adapted the symphonic fairy tale Peter and the Wolf by the Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev into an illustrated verse story. In 2019, he also adapted and illustrated the story of The Magic Flute, an opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Raschka has illustrated a number of books by other authors. Among them are The Genie in the Jar (1996) by Nikki Giovanni; Another Important Book (1999) by Margaret Wise Brown; Fishing in the Air (2000) and Granny Torrelli Makes Soup (2003) by Sharon Creech; Good Sports (2007) by Jack Prelutsky; Fortune Cookies (2011) by Albert Bitterman; Home at Last, written and co-illustrated by Vera B. Williams (2016, after her death); Old Dog Baby Baby (2016) by Julie Fogliano; and Yellow Dog Blues (2022) by Alice Faye Duncan. Raschka also illustrated four collections of poems edited by Paul B. Janeczko.
Christopher Raschka was born on March 6, 1959, in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. He received a B.A. degree from St. Olaf College in 1981.
