A few months ago, I fell in love with New York Times Visual Columnist Maira Kalman’s  Pursuit of Happiness blog. What did me in, oddly enough, was a post on Benjamin Franklin. Not normally one of my hot-button topics, Kalman transforms Franklin (and pretty much anything else she sets her pen to) into a whimsical, captivating journey.

From author, illustrator and designer Maira Kalman's January Pursuit of Happiness blog post on Benjamin Franklin.

Though Kalman has just posted the last installment on the blog, an ode to George Washington , it turns out there’s so much more for her fans to love.

Kalman's illustrations are just sweet enough. This one is from ‘I Lift My Lamp Beside the Golden Door’ a piece on how we all got to America.

I will definitely be buying her  children’s books (twelve in all) for all of my new-parent friends.

From Kalan's Roarr Calder's Circus.

And I’m just dying (birthday coming up, people) for the illustrated version of a V+P favorite, Strunk and White’s Elements of Style.

Strunk, White and Kalman.

If you’re interested, And The Pursuit of Happiness is now available in book form.