Yoshikawa, Sachiko

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Yoshikawa, Sachiko

Personal

Born in Japan; married; husband's name Wayne; children: Kinu. Education: Studied art.

Addresses

Home and office—Seattle, WA. Agent—HK Portfolio, 10 E. 29th St., Ste. 40G, New York, NY 10016.

Career

Illustrator.

Awards, Honors

Finalist for Excellence in Science Books Award, Science Books & Films, 2007, for What Is Science? by Rebecca Kai Dotlich.

Illustrator

L.B. Manz, Noshi's Special Gift, All About Kids Publishing (San Jose, CA), 2003.

Steve Tomecek, Stars, National Geographic (Washington, DC), 2003.

Pat Brisson, Beach Is to Fun: A Book of Relationships, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2004.

Virgina Kroll, Boy, You're Amazing!, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 2004.

Linda Walvoord, Razzamadaddy, Marshall Cavendish (New York, NY), 2004.

Dayle Ann Dodds, Hello, Sun!, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2005.

Rebecca Kai Dotlich, What Is Science?, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2006.

Toni Buzzeo, Our Librarian Won't Tell Us Anything!, Upstart Books, 2006.

Brod Bagert, Shout!: Little Poems That Roar, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2007.

Elizabeth Wojtusik, Kitty Up!, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2008.

Sidelights

Sachiko Yoshikawa grew up in Tokyo, Japan, then came to the United States to study art in San Francisco. Originally interested in designing jewelry, she developed a knack for graphic design that would eventually lead to narrative illustration. As an artist, Yoshikawa enjoys combining several media in her images, among them collage and acrylics. A seasoned traveler, she incorporates into her works the inspirations and experiences she gleans from those travels. Yoshikawa has contributed illustrations to a variety of children's titles, among them Beach Is to Fun: A Book of Relationships by Pat Brisson, Hello, Sun! by Dale Ann Dodds, and What Is Science? by Rebecca Kai Dotlich. Praising Hello, Sun!, Booklist contributor Carolyn Phelan noted that Yoshikawa's "cheerful" images "amplify the energy and comic spirit" of Dodds' text, while a Kirkus Reviews writer dubbed her work for Beach Is to Fun as "brightly colored as a beach ball." Also reviewing Brisson's book, Phelan highlighted a characteristic of Yoshikawa's art, writing that the illustrator's "jaunty" images "are energized by bold color combinations."

What Is Science? presents an introduction to the sciences geared for young readers, introducing such fields as geology, oceanography, meteorology, and zoology. Dotlich's text, written in verse, is balanced by Yoshikawa's colorful and engaging illustrations. A Kirkus Reviews critic remarked of the work that "Yoshikawa's artwork truly makes science come alive for young readers" by integrating "books, tools, maps and notebooks" so that readers can learn more about the topics under discussion. The illustrator also adds humorous details to her work, keeping young readers engaged. Carolyn Phelan, writing in Booklist, acknowledged What Is Science? as a "vividly illustrated" work and noted that Yoshikawa's "well-composed" images effectively utilize repetition "to create a sense of visual rhythm that suits the rhyming text well."

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 15, 2004, Terry Glover, review of Boy, You're Amazing!, p. 1446; August, 2004, Carolyn Phelan, review of Beach Is to Fun: A Book of Relationships, p. 1940; June 1, 2005, Carolyn Phelan, review of Hello Sun!, p. 1820; September 15, 2006, Carolyn Phelan, review of What Is Science?, p. 63; February 1, 2007, Hazel Rochman, review of Shout!: Little Poems That Roar, p. 48.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, July-August, 2004, Elizabeth Bush, review of Beach Is to Fun, p. 456.

Kirkus Reviews, February 15, 2004, review of Boy, You're Amazing!, p. 181; May 15, 2004, review of Beach Is to Fun, p. 488; August 15, 2006, review of What Is Science?, p. 839.

School Library Journal, May, 2003, Dona Ratterree, review of Stars, p. 143; May, 2004, Terry Glover, review of Boy, You're Amazing!, p. 116; July, 2004, Linda L. Walkins, review of Beach Is to Fun, p. 68, Sheilah Kosco, review of Razzamadaddy, p. 89; June, 2005, Kathleen Simonetta, review of Hello Sun!, p. 108; November, 2006, Lynda Ritterman, review of What Is Science?, p. 119; February, 2007, Gloria Koster, review of Our Librarian Won't Tell Us Anything!, p. 85, and Sally R. Dow, review of Shout!, p. 99.