Jon Agee

Jon Agee (born 1960) is a children's book writer and illustrator whose work centers around wordplay. Since 1981, he has published more than 31 books. ^[1]

Early life and education

Agee was born in Nyack, New York in 1960. He attended Cooper Union School of Art and graduated with a BFA degree. ^[2]

Career

Agee's art style is known for its "trademark blocky ink-and-watercolor illustrations," according to The New York Times . ^[3]

In the 1990s, he wrote two musicals for children for the Tada! theater company, ^[4] one of which was titled B.O.T.C.H, short for Bureau of Turmoil, Chaos and Headaches, a fictional New York City agency in charge of disrupting city functioning. ^[5]

He has written cartoons for The New Yorker . ^[6]

Agee has published several books of palindromes and word play such as anagrams and oxymorons. ^[4] He became interested in them after a friend started writing them. "I liked the way absurdity and logic were intertwined," Agee said. ^[4] In its review of Agee's book of 60 illustrated oxymorons called Who Ordered the Jumbo Shrimp? ^[7] The New York Times wrote that "it would be a near miss, if not a minor catastrophe, not to take the calculated risk of treating the whole family to this instant classic." ^[7]

His books include the 1996 picture book Dmitri the Astronaut , Smart Feller Fart Smeller , and many more. ^{[8] [9]}

At the first annual Symmys palindrome awards, he won in the short palindrome category for "An igloo costs a lot, Ed! Amen. One made to last! So cool, Gina!". ^[10] He also won in 2021. ^[4]

Personal life

Agee lives in San Francisco with his wife, Audrey. ^[2] He enjoys crossword puzzles. In 2003, New York Times puzzle editor Will Shortz wrote that Agee had thanked him for including his name in a Friday crossword and joked that "he would not be satisfied until his name appeared in a Monday puzzle, the easiest of the week, where every answer is supposed to be familiar to most solvers. Only then would he know that he had truly arrived." ^[11]

List of works

Picture books

• If Snow Falls (1982) ^[12]
• Ellsworth (1983) ^{[8] [12]}
• Ludlow Laughs (1985) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Incredible Painting of Felix Clousseau (1988) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Return of Freddy LeGrand (1992) ^[12]
• Flapstick (1993) ^[12]
• Dmitri the Astronaut (1996) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Return of Freddy Legrand (1999) ^{[8] [12]}
• Milo's Hat Trick (2001) ^{[8] [12]}
• When Z Goes Home (2003) ^{[8] [12]}
• Terrific (2005) ^{[8] [12]}
• Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road? (2006) ^{[8] [12]}
• Nothing (2007) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Retired Kid (2008) ^{[8] [12]}
• My Rhinoceros (2011) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Other Side of Town (2012) ^{[8] [12]}
• Little Santa (2013) ^{[8] [12]}
• It's Only Stanley (2015) ^{[8] [12]}
• Lion Lessons (2016) ^{[8] [12]}
• Life on Mars (2017) ^{[8] [12]}
• The Wall in the Middle of the Book (2018) ^{[8] [12]}
• I Want a Dog (2019) ^{[8] [12]}
• My Dad Is a Tree (2023) ^{[8] [12]}

Collections of word play

• Go Hang a Salami! I'm a Lasagna Hog!: And Other Palindromes (1991) ^{[8] [9]}
• So Many Dynamos!: And Other Palindromes (1994) ^{[8] [9]}
• Who Ordered the Jumbo Shrimp?: And Other Oxymorons (1998) ^{[8] [9]}
• Sit on a Potato Pan, Otis!: More Palindromes (1999) ^{[8] [9]}
• Elvis Lives!: And Other Anagrams (2000) ^{[8] [9]}
• Palindromania! (2002) ^{[8] [9]}
• Smart Feller Fart Smeller: And Other Spoonerisms (2006) ^{[8] [9]}
• Orangutan Tongs: Poems to Tangle Your Tongue (2009) ^[9]
• Mr. Putney's Quacking Dog (2010) ^{[8] [9]}
• Otto: A Palindrama (2021) ^{[8] [9]}

As illustrator

• Natalie Babbitt and others, The Big Book for Peace (1990) ^[13]
• Dee Lillegard, Sitting in My Box (1989) ^{[8] [12]}
• Tor Seidler, Mean Margaret (1997) ^[12]
• Erica Silverman, The Halloween House (1998) ^[12]
• William Steig, Potch & Polly (2002) ^[12]

References

1. Saxon |, Antonia. "Q & A with Jon Agee". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
2. "About". www.jonagee.com. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
3. Paul, Pamela (September 14, 2011). "Boys at Play". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
4. Hill, Angela (2021-11-17). "SF author Jon Agee's whimsical word play yields a book of palindromes". The Mercury News . Retrieved 2024-01-26.
5. Graeber, Laurel (January 2, 1998). "Family Fare". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
6. Smith, Sarah Harrison (December 18, 2013). "Christmas for Keeps". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
7. Combes, Abbott (November 15, 1998). "Who Ordered the Jumbo Shrimp?". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
8. "Books by Jon Agee and Complete Book Reviews". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
9. "Word Play Books". JonAgee.com. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
10. Williams, John (March 11, 2013). "Palindrome Prize Winners Announced in Oregon". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
11. Shortz, Will (March 3, 2003). "Crossword Memo: What's in a Name? Five Letters or Less". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024.
12. "Picture Books". JonAgee.com. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
13. Durell, Ann; Sachs, Marilyn (1990). The Big Book for Peace. New York: Dutton children's books. ISBN   0525446052.