Taback, Simms (1932-2011), an American author and illustrator of children’s books, won the 2000 Caldecott Medal for Joseph Had a Little Overcoat (1999). The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the best picture book by an American.
Taback adapted Joseph Had a Little Overcoat from his earlier version published in 1977. He based his story on a Yiddish folk song about a tailor named Joseph, whose overcoat gets more and more worn. The reader follows the story partly through cutout holes in the pages that show Joseph altering his overcoat to smaller and smaller garments until only a button, and then nothing, is left. Taback typically created his illustrations in water colors and pen and ink. For this book, he also used collage, pencil, and a type of water color called gouache.
Taback also used the cutout technique in There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (1997). The reader looks through holes in the pages to observe what happens in an old woman’s stomach each time she swallows something. Taback collaborated with the American author Harriet Ziefert on the book. Taback and Ziefert also produced several other children’s books, including Zoo Parade! (1990). On his own, Taback wrote and illustrated a collection of stories called Kibitzers and Fools: Tales My Zayda Told Me (2005) and I Miss You Every Day (2007), the story of a little girl who wraps herself in paper and mails herself to the person she loves.
Taback illustrated children’s books by several other American authors, including Please Share That Peanut! A Preposterous Pageant in Fourteen Acts (1965) by Sesyle Joslin and There’s Motion Everywhere (1970) by John Travers Moore. He also collaborated with Katy Hall and Lisa Eisenberg on several picture books of riddles, such as Spacey Riddles (1992). In addition, Taback illustrated Laughing Together: Giggles and Grins from Around the World (1977), a collection of jokes compiled by Barbara K. Walker. The book was reissued in 1992 as Laughing Together: Giggles and Grins from Around the Globe.
Taback was born on Feb. 13, 1932, in New York City. He graduated from Cooper Union with a B.F.A. degree in 1953. He was an advertising designer and graphic artist before turning to illustrating children’s books, beginning with Jabberwocky and Other Frabjous Nonsense (1964) by the English author Lewis Carroll. In addition to children’s books, Taback created posters, calendars, and greeting cards. Taback died on Dec. 25, 2011.
