Charles and his younger sisters take daily trips to a creek that runs behind their house; The Branch as they call it. This place is magical to them because after each rain they discover something new in the waters. One day after the rain they stumble upon something they’ve never seen before. This something creates a new purpose for their visits. The Children and George is an endearing tale of a boy and his sisters and the many treasures they find at their special place, The Branch.
Charles Criner was born in 1945 and raised in Athens, a small town in East Texas. He attended Texas Southern University in Houston between 1964 and 1968, studying under the guidance of the renowned late artist, Dr. John T. Biggers. Criner is noted for his cartoons including the Johnny Jones series created while in the Army and later adapted for The Houston Post, The Job Crowd , The Dogs and a few others. He also collaborated with his longtime friend, newspaper columnist and sportswriter William Henry Hygh on the Johnny Jones cartoon carried in The Houston Post with Hygh providing the narrative for Criner’s art. Criner’s art, ads, and cartoons have been featured in Ebony Magazine, Houston Business Journal, the Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and in advertising for the Houston Oilers.
Since 1997, Criner has been the Artist-in-Residence at the Museum of Printing History in Houston, where he operates a studio, further
Criner’s artwork is included in numerous prestigious private collections throughout the United States, and has been exhibited at or is in the permanent collections of several museums. Additionally, several of Criner’s student works completed during his time at Texas Southern University are published in the 1978 book Black Art in Houston by John Biggers, Carroll Simms, and John Edward Weems published by Texas A&M University Press.
The Children and George is Mr. Criner’s first children’s book. It is the first of a planned series.
