Author of over 400 Books for Children and Adults
Based on a short story of the same name written for Jessica Amanda Salmonson’s anthology “Heroic Visions,” Sister Light and its companion White Jenna comprise one single book. Published in 1988, the two would be put together in the late ’90s as The Books of Great Alta. (My husband always
This gentle tone poem about a father taking his daughter (yes–it’s a girl!) out owling one cold wintry night is arguably my best book. Certainly it’s my best known book. The 1988 Caldecott Medal winner for John Schoenherr’s beautiful, frosty, tender, exacting pictures, the book has been translated into nine languages, been
Original stories by a variety of authors, including the first publication of my “The King’s Dragon.” Though the Introduction is signed by all three authors, I wrote it. And I chose all the stories and edited them. Marty did the business end of things.
I began the COMMANDER TOAD books because I saw an article in the local newspaper about a boy and his frog who had just won a jumping-frog contest. The frog’s name was “Star Warts.” I thought it would be funnier if the frog had been a toad, since the old superstition is that toads gives you
The third of the Pit Dragon trilogy, (first is Dragon’s Blood, second is Heart’s Blood) this science fiction novel takes place on another planet–Austar IV–where great dragons are fought in pits. This is the story of a young bond boy Jakkin and his girl/friend Akki who have been in hiding in the mountains
The first Piggins book to be published. I wrote the books about Piggins because I love mystery stories and am also a great fan of the Masterpiece Theater series called “Upstairs, Downstairs.” I also wrote them especially for Jane Dyer who showed me her amazing drawings and won me over with
When I first saw Jane Dyer’s wonderful artwork–in a portfolio at a workshop I was running–I fell in love with her animals in clothing. I wrote “Piggins” esepcially for her, but I always remembered a picture from her portfolio of the three bears eating breakfast. When I started writing the
I began the COMMANDER TOAD books because I saw an article in the local newspaper about a boy and his frog who had just won a jumping-frog contest. The frog’s name was “Star Warts.” I thought it would be funnier if the frog had been a toad, since the old superstition is that toads gives you
I was invited to do this book by Wendy Wolf who was the great editor of the Pantheon Folklore series. It turned out to be a wonderful start to my serious study of folk tales. The book–with well over 150 stories–has become a core book for storytellers and storytelling courses. The long essay about stories
Original stories by a variety of authors, including the first publication of my “Great-Grandfather Dragon’s Tale.” Though the Introduction is signed by all three authors, I wrote it. And I chose all the stories and edited them. Marty did the business end of things.