|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
Who's Who |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Click on the names below to find out more about your favorite Utah authors and illustrators of book for young readers
Ken BakerKen's love for children's books began as a young child when his parents and older siblings would tell him favorite bedtime stories of Peter Cottontail, Dr. Seuss, Epaminodas, Curious George, and The Three Bears. His love for children's stories grew as Ken read and made up bedtime stories for his own children. Ken loves to spend his time with his family, writing books, playing basketball, coaching youth soccer, windsurfing, scuba diving and reading.
Read our interview with Ken Baker Read our profile on Ken Baker
Anne BowenAnne Bowen wrote her first
story in elementary school. It was about a very tiny family living
inside a very large house and was very similar to THE BORROWERS by Mary
Norton. Some might call this plagiarism, but really it was more about
Anne discovering a mentor-author for the kind of stories she loved to
read and using those stories to guide her own writing. And even though
she didn’t know it at the time, Anne was learning to read as a writer
and learning how to write from other writers. Today, as an elementary
teacher of language arts, she encourages her students to discover those
stories that touch them in some unique way. Anne encourages them to
find authors whose writing takes their breath away and then ask the
questions, “What did this author do in his/her writing that I like so
much? and “What can I learn from this author about the craft of
writing?”
Caralyn BuehnerCaralyn Buehner grew up in
Salt Lake City, the youngest child in a family of bookworms. She
remembers being read to as a child by her mother, and has very fond
memories of some children named Sally, Dick and Jane, and seems to
remember a dog named Spot. By the time she was in 6th grade, she had
perfected the art of undetected nocturnal reading, and had written a
chapter of a romance novel. She won state and national awards for her
writing in her teenage years, but didn’t plan to be an author. www.buehnerbooks.com Read our interview with Caralyn Buehner Read our profile on Caralyn Buehner
Mark BuehnerMark Buehner is the
illustrator of many children’s picture books, including HARVEY POTTER'S
BALLOON FARM, MY MONSTER MAMA LOVES ME SO, and THE ADVENTURES OF TAXI
DOG. His books have garnered state and national awards and have been
featured on Reading Rainbow and Storytime on PBS. He has also
collaborated on several books with his wife Caralyn, who is the author
of FANNY'S DREAM, I DID IT, I'M SORRY, THE ESCAPE OF MARVIN THE APE,
SNOWMEN AT NIGHT, and most recently, SNOWMEN AT CHRISTMAS.
Mark and Caralyn Buehner live in Salt Lake City, and are the parents of
eight children. Read our profile on Mark Buehner
Laurel BradyI grew up in Vermont,
graduated from BYU, work part time as a 911
Kristyn CrowKristyn Crow is the author of three children's picture books: COOL DADDY RAT (Putnam), BEDTIME AT THE SWAMP (HarperCollins) and THE MIDDLE CHILD BLUES (Putnam, coming soon). COOL DADDY RAT, her first book, recently received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal. Her stories use rhythm, rhyme, and repetition to make reading cool, snappy, and fun. Kristyn's language arts lesson plan, "Feel the Swamp Beat!" guides children in finding the rhythm in text, which, besides being fun, can help children with reading delays. Kristyn is the mother of seven children, some with special needs, and she has written hundreds of blog articles on topics like autism, juvenile diabetes, and special education. Many of her articles have been reprinted by national foundations.
Chris CroweChris Crowe, born in Illinois to a father with wanderlust, attended 8 different schools before he graduated from high school in Tempe Arizona. He later taught high school English at his alma mater for 10 years before accepting a teaching position at a university in Japan. From there he bounced to BYU-Hawaii for 4 years, and then to BYU, where he now works in the English department. He loves sports, french fries, diet Dr. Pepper, French-burnt peanuts, hiking in Utah's foothills, watching SportsCenter, teasing his children, traveling, hanging out with his 4 kids---and with his new granddaughter Ella!---and spending time with his beautiful and patient wife, Elizabeth. He hates opera and soap operas, fat-free low-salt creamy peanut butter, burned popcorn, flying in single-engine planes, centipedes, digging ditches, losing his temper, and any sort of physical pain. In the last 10 years, he's had the good fortune to have dinner with 13 Newbery Medal winners---and he knows that's the closest he'll ever get to that prize.
Read our interview with Chris Crowe
Guy FrancisGuy Francis lives in Provo, Utah with his wife Lorien, and four children. He studied illustration at Brigham Young University. For the past ten years he has done a variety of work, including editorial illustration, children’s books, and animation. His most recent book is Mary Had a Little Ham by Margie Palatini. He spends most of his time drawing, painting, and drawing some more. Every now and then he gets out of the house and heads to the mountains with family.
Read our interview with Guy Francis
Jessica Day GeorgeAll I've wanted to do all my life is sit and read. Eventually, about age 11, I started to write my own stories. I did manage to graduate from high school and then BYU, in Humanities/Comparative Literature with a minor in Scandinavian Studies. I've lived in three Idaho towns, Delaware, and New Jersey, in addition to three different places in Salt Lake Valley. I can speak Norwegian and German, read Old Norse, knit my own socks, play the viola and the piano, and spend hours lying down reading or watching TV. In 2007 my genius was realized when my first book, DRAGON SLIPPERS came out from Bloomsbury USA..
Sharlee GlennSharlee Glenn grew up on a farm in northeastern Utah with six brothers and sisters, a throng of cousins, and a whole menagerie of animals. After high school, she moved to the big city of Provo, Utah to attend Brigham Young University where she earned a B.A. and then an M.A. in Humanities with a dual emphasis in English and Art History. She taught at BYU for several years before giving up academia for the writing life. She has published essays, short stories, and poetry for adults, but her true love is writing for children. Sharlee lives in Pleasant Grove, Utah with her lovely husband, James, and their five brilliant children.
Read our interview with Sharlee Glenn Read our profile on Sharlee Glenn
Shannon HaleShannon Hale started writing books at age ten and never stopped, eventually earning an MFA in Creative Writing. After nineteen years of writing and dozens of rejections, she published her first book, The Goose Girl, an ALA Teens’ Top Ten. Enna Burning and River Secrets are companion books to Goose. Her stand alone novels include Book of a Thousand Days, a CYBILS award winner, and Princess Academy, a Newbery Honor Book and New York Times best seller. She and her husband are co-writing a series of graphic novles for kids, beginning with Rapunzel's Revenge (2008). They reside in Salt Lake City with their toddler son, baby daughter, and their pet, a small, plastic pig.
Read our interview with Shannon Hale Read our profile on Shannon Hale
Becky HallBecky Hall grew up in Massachusetts but moved here so long ago that she calls herself a Utahn. During the day she is the Library/Media Specialist at Rowland Hall-St. Mark's School in Salt Lake City. She enjoys hiking and skiing with her family and has always loved to read and write. She went to Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., received her Masters Degree from Lesley University in Boston, MA and her Library/Media certification from Utah State University. Becky is married and has two children. When she is not busy at school or with her family, she sits in her window seat and writes and reads. A is for Arches was her first published book. Her second is Morris and Buddy, The First Seeing Eye Dog. A third book is under contract with Sleeping Bear Press.
Read our interview with Becky Hall Read our profile on Becky Hall
Mette Ivie HarrisonMette Ivie Harrison writes YA fantasy. I love stories where you can find out how people might react if the world was a different way. I write characters who feel as real as your best friend, and make them go through stuff you would never want a friend to go through, but they always make it out in the end.
Read our profile on Mette Ivie Harrison
Kimberley HeustonKimberley Heuston was born in Provo, Utah and grew up in Massachusetts, New York City, and Vermont. She has a BA in History and Science from Harvard and an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College. She teaches English and European history at the Waterford School in Sandy, Utah, when she is not figuring out a way to go on a trip. She loves ice cream, swimming, reading with the sun on her feet, doing anything (well, almost anything) with her four children, bragging about her children (did you know that her daughter Jennifer painted the cover of The Shakeress when she was only seventeen years old?), teaching, babies, Kit Tyler, and traveling almost anywhere at almost any time. She hates grading papers, Dolores Umbridge, painting the living room, and big parties with people she doesn't know. She's also not very good at keeping things clean, although she can do it if she has to.
Read our author profile on Kimberley Heuston Read our interview with Kimberley Heuston
Kim Williams JustesenKim Williams Justesen was born and raised in the Salt Lake valley in Utah. She is married to the man of her dreams and is mother to three of the greatest kids on the planet, along with one funny dog, and one mean cat. After 12 years in public relations and advertising, Kim left the corporate world to pursue her dream of being a writer. Since 1996 she has taught creative writing and writing for children through the University of Utah's Life Long Learning program, and through workshops, conferences and in public schools. She has served in the past as the regional advisor for the Utah/So. Idaho chapter of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. In 2003 she earned her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College.
www.kimwjustesen.com Read our interview with Kim Williams Justesen Read our profile on Kim Williams Justesen
Mike KnudsonMike Knudson is the author
of the humorous RAYMOND AND GRAHAM series of books for middle grade
readers. He lives in North Salt Lake with his wife, Annette, five
children, a turtle and a hamster. Mike writes full-time and visits over
one hundred elementary schools each year around the country. When not
writing, you can find him coaching little league, swimming with his
kids, and annoying his family with his banjo playing.
Sherry MeidellSherry Meidell has spent years researching childhood, first having spent many years as a child followed up by intensive research on the characteristics of boys, five boys to be specific. Her experiences include iguanas in the uppermost reaches of her closet and rosey red feeder fish in the family bath tub. She had the heart of an artist as soon as she could wrap her stubby fingers around a fat crayon. Now she specializes in brushes and watercolor with pencil for detail. She takes great joy in the world of children's book illustration. She is a member of The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and the Utah Watercolor Society.
Read our interview with Sherry Meidell Read our profile on Sherry Meidell
Julie OlsonJulie Olson graduated with a BFA in illustration from Brigham Young University and has been illustrating ever since. Growing up as one of 9 children and now having some of her own, she has a lot of personal experience and memories to draw from. She loves children's books and the joy they bring to all who take the time to read them. Some of her work includes "Hip, Hip Hooray for Annie McRae!" and "Herd of Cows, Flock of Sheep."
www.jujubeeillustrations.com/bio.html Read our interview with Julie Olson
Gloria SkurzynskiGloria Skurzynski is an
author of historical fiction, science fiction,
Dana Kessimakis SmithDana Kessimakis Smith was born and raised in Murray, Utah. She now lives in Northern California with her husband and two children. Aside from spending time with her family, she is happiest when she is surrounded by nature. In fact, much of her writing reflects her love of the outdoors and of animals. You can find out more about Dana and her books at her Web site.
Michael SpoonerA part-time writer for children, Michael is author of LAST CHILD (a novel), DANIEL'S WALK (a novel), A MOON IN YOUR LUNCHBOX (poems), and OLD MESHIKEE AND THE LITTLE CRABS (an Ojibwe folktale)--all published by Henry Holt & Co. DANIEL'S WALK won the Regional Book Award from the Mtns & Plains Booksellers Association and was a finalist for the Mark Twain Award. Michael’s scholarly interests include writing research, response theory, collaboration, and alternate style. You can see more about him on his website http://www.mspooner.net.
Wendy ToliverWendy Toliver lives in Eden, Utah with her you can find her acting, playing sports, skiing and snowboarding, volunteering, and trying to conquer evil laundry piles. She earned her BA in speech communication/broadcast from Colorado State University.
Michael O. TunnellMichael O. Tunnell's book titles include Mailing May (Greenwillow), The Children of Topaz (Holiday House), Brothers in Valor (Holiday House), and The Wishing Moon (Dutton). He teaches children's literature at Brigham Young University, and he has served on the Newbery Award Committee and on the selection committee for the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Tunnell also has published several professional books, including The Story of Ourselves: Teaching History Through Children's Literature (Heinemann) and Children's Literature, Briefly (Prentice Hall), and he has written articles for a variety of educational journals. He and his wife, Glenna, live in Orem, Utah. They have four grown children.
Kevin WadsenKevin Wasden is a freelance artist who has illustrated pretty much everything from dinosaurs to Little Women. He studied illustration at Utah State University and further developed his skills as a figure painter while living in New York City. In addition to creating artwork, Kevin teaches drawing and painting at Unlimited Palette, a school of creative arts located in Clearfield, Utah.
Rick WaltonRick is the author of over fifty books for kids. He loves to read, travel, watch movies, travel, play bossa nova on the guitar, and travel. He lives in Provo with his wife and five kids, except when they're traveling.
Read our interview with Rick Walton Read our profile on Rick Walton
Barbara WilliamsBarbara Williams can probably claim the longest career of any Utah writer. The Salt Lake Tribune bought one of her short stories in 1937 for a whopping $1.50. While that amount may not seem like very much today, it was a fortune to a Depression Era child who babysat for ten cents an hour. Sixty-six years later she is awaiting publication of two juvenile books for which she has received (and spent) the advances. Except for one year at Boston University, she received her education (B.A. and M.A.) at the University of Utah. For twelve years she also taught at that school and wrote two college textbooks which came out a second time in modernized and politically correct editions. She loves good grammar, chocolate covered peanuts, and U of U gymnastics. She dislikes fans who boo opposing teams, people who leave shopping carts loose in parking lots, and cutesy-pie misspellings. With her husband (a retired U of U professor) she reared four adopted children and is great grandmother to the World's Most Beautiful Baby.
Read our profile on Barbara Williams
Carol Lynch WilliamsCarol Lynch Williams is the award-winning author of nearly 20 middle grade and young adult novels. Her books have been on several states' reading lists. She has been speaking about writing, editing writing and writing writing for more than ten years. Carol is a member of SCBWI, a conference organizer and lover of home made eggrolls.
Read our profile on Carol Lynch Williams
Ron WoodsRon Woods is married to the former Zina Peterson, and they are the parents of seven children. Originally from Horseshoe Bend, Idaho (a small town near Boise), he has lived, since 1973, in Provo, Utah, where he works as Budget Controller in the College of Humanities at BYU. A Utah-certified teacher, Ron has taught high school English and LDS Seminary in Ogden, Utah, and Western Samoa. He teaches creative writing part-time at BYU. He attended college at Boise State University and BYU, graduating with a BA in English and German, and a master's degree in education. Ron lived in Germany for 2 ½ years and in Western Samoa for three years. He likes to hike, fish, travel, read, write, and bike. His articles and fiction have appeared in various magazines. He is also the author of seven self-help books and one young adult novel. The self-help books were all written in a five-year period, while the novel took 18 years of off-and-on effort.
|
Background information on the nationally published authors and illustrators that comprise UCWI |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
