Jamin Hoyle
Jamin Hoyle is an art director specializing in branding for the arts
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Amtrak

Amtrak needed to update the activity book they give out to kids on long distance trips.

I worked with a world-class illustrator to develop 32 pages of entertaining and educational activities, meanwhile weaving a subtle and rewarding storyline about the fictional Amtrak Junior Conductors club, the passengers on a train voyage and their nemeses — the sneaky raccoons!

The activity book includes a fulfillment component that has been wildly successful. Youngsters who fill out a series of questions on the last page and mail them to Amtrak receive an official Junior Conductors certificate as well as a handsome JC patch. At this point, I think the kids book is in its third or fourth printing. 

Illustrations by Kali Ciesmier

 
 

I had so much fun working on the Amtrak Kids’ Activity book – we concepted, wrote, and illustrated it to be a Junior Conductor’s Guide to riding the rails, with puzzles, games, educational info, and a fulfillment opportunity to receive a genuine Junior Conductor embroidered patch

 
 
 
 

My favorite part was seeding the recurring characters and themes, the hidden connections between spreads that get more rewarding the more time you spend with the book – recurring characters include a cool archaeologist, a bodybuilder, a musician, kids, and a pack of wily raccoons!