54th Annual Convention North Central:
Minneapolis Author–Teacher Partnerships

Brian P. Cleary, Lerner Publishing Group

Brian P. Cleary is the author of the Math Is CATegorical® series, the Adventures in Memory™ series, and the best-selling Words Are CATegorical® series. He is also the author of Rainbow Soup: Adventures in Poetry, Rhyme and PUNishment: Adventures in Wordplay, Peanut Butter and Jellyfishes: A Very Silly Alphabet Book, and The Laugh Stand: Adventures in Humor. In addition to his work as a children's author, Mr. Cleary has served as a tutor in an adult literacy program.

Julie Danneberg, Charlesbridge Publishing

With an imagination like that, it's hard to believe that Colorado native Julie Danneberg never considered a career as a writer. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Boulder, Julie became a teacher. In her classroom, she read many children's books, and witnessed the profound impact a good book can have on a child. Julie earned great success with First Day Jitters—the funny and engaging story of Sarah Jane Hartwell's first day at a new school. The surprise ending charms and delights readers time and again. Teachers and students alike love these stories and they are perennial favorites for back-to-school. Julie lives with her husband and two children in Denver. She teaches at a local middle school where she garners ideas for her books. When she's not writing, Julie enjoys reading, quilting, gardening, and spending time with her family.

Peggy Gifford, Random House Children's Books

Peggy Gifford's original plan was to become a famous (but really nice) actress. But after touring Ohio as Winnie-the-Pooh, she decided to become a writer instead. She holds an MFA from the Iowa Writer's Workshop, and her work has appeared in the Iowa Review, the Antioch Review, and women's magazines like Redbook. This is her first novel for children. She lives in New York, New York and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Gena Gorrell, Tundra Books

Gena K. Gorrell is a book editor and an award-winning writer of nonfiction for young people. Her third book, Heart and Soul: The Story of Florence Nightingale, won the Norma Fleck Award for Nonfiction. In her spare time she is a first-aid instructor and a volunteer officer in the Toronto Police Marine Unit. She lives in Toronto with her husband and her dog

Robie Harris, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Robie H. Harris is an award-winning author of picture books for young children and non-fiction books for teens. She is fascinated by the powerful emotions young children experience and how they make sense of the world. Her books treat children’s emotional lives honestly and vigorously. She is particularly talented in guiding children (and their parents) through difficult feelings, such as anger. Ms. Harris’s most recent books with Little, Brown Books for Young readers are Mail Harry to the Moon (about a young boy not quite ready for a sibling), praised by Publishers Weekly for its energy and humor and The Day Leo Said I Hate You!, which received three starred reviews. Ms. Harris lives with her family in Massachusetts.

William Low, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers

If you were to observe William Low as he walks down a crowded Manhattan street, you would never suspect him of being a native New Yorker. In fact, he was born in the Bronx, in the back seat of a taxicab, but you would guess that he is a tourist. His camera is ready, his head is thrown back, his mouth is open and his eyes are scanning the tall buildings. He is observing the shimmering sunlight on a building. He takes a photograph, makes a mental note of the color of the light and then, most importantly, he remembers the feeling that he got when he saw that light. With that information stored in his mind, he will use it when the time is right--in a painting for a book cover, newspaper article or calendar. William has built a successful career as a commercial illustrator and painter over the last 22 years. In that time he has won numerous awards including four Silver medals from the Society of Illustrators, and has illustrated several children's books, including Lily, by Abigail Thomas (a Parent's Choice Honor Award winner in 1994). His work has been featured in Print Magazine, the Adobe Photoshop Wow! Book, by Linnea Dayton and Paul Davis, The Illustrator in America 1860-2000 by Walt Reed. His latest books include Chinatown (which he also wrote), The Days of Summer by Eve Bunting and Henry and the Kite Dragon by Bruce Edward Hall, which arrived in bookstores in June 2004.

Megan McDonald, Candlewick Press

"Sometimes I think I am Judy Moody," says Megan McDonald, author of the Judy Moody series, the Stink series, and ANT & HONEY BEE: WHAT A PAIR!. "I'm certainly moody, like she is. Judy has a strong voice and always speaks up for herself. I like that." Megan McDonald and her husband live in Sebastopol, California, with two dogs, two adopted horses, and fifteen wild turkeys that like to hang out on their back porch.

Kate and Jim McMullan, HarperCollins Children's Books

Kate and Jim McMullan have worked together to produce nine picture books, including I'm Bad!, the story of a T. rex who's really big, really bad, and really hungry; I'm Dirty!, a Child Magazine Best Book; I'm Mighty!, the story of a hard-working tugboat; and I Stink!, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book and recipient of a Boston Globe–Horn Book Award Honor. Kate and Jim McMullan live in Sag Harbor, New York, and are the proud parents of a grown daughter, Leigh.

Marilyn Nelson, Boyds Mills Press

Marilyn Nelson (aka Marilyn Nelson Waniek) was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and comes from a long line of teachers on her mother's side. Her father was a career Air Force officer who wrote poetry and plays. Marilyn grew up on air bases all over the country and wrote her first poem at age 11. She earned her BA from the University of California, Davis, and holds postgraduate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (MA, 1970) and the University of Minnesota (Ph.D., 1979) and honorary doctorates from Kutztown University in Pennsylvania and Simpson College in Iowa. Her many poetry books include two published by Front Street: Fortune's Bones: The Manumission Requiem (2004) a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, and Carver: A Life in Poems (2001) a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, a National Book Award finalist, and a Newbery Honor Book. Ms. Nelson was Poet Laureate of Connecticut from June 2001-2006. Other honors include two Pushcart prizes, two creative writing fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Fulbright Teaching Fellowship, the 1990 Connecticut Arts Award, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. She was professor of English at the University of Connecticut in Storrs from 1978 to 2002, and professor of English at the University of Delaware from 2002 to 2004. She is now Professor Emerita at the University of Connecticut and director of Soul Mountain Retreat, a writers' colony.

Jan Reynolds , Lee & Low Books, Inc.

Jan Reynolds is an award-winning author and photographer whose work has appeared in numerous publications, including National Geographic, The New York Times, and Outside magazine. All seven books in her Vanishing Cultures series of photo-essays for children were recognized as Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People. Reynolds is also an avid skier, mountain climber, and adventurer. She holds the world record for women's high altitude skiing, was part of the first expedition to circumnavigate Mount Everest, and performed a solo crossing of the Himalayas. Reynolds lives with her husband and their two sons in Stowe, Vermont.

Judy Schachner, Penguin Young Readers Group

Judy Schachner has received many letters and e-mails from parents and teachers confessing their love for Skippyjon Jones. Her beloved kitty boy is the irrepressible hero of Skippyjon Jones, Skippyjon Jones in the Doghouse, Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble, Skippyjon Jones and The Big Bones and the forthcoming Skippyjon Jones Lost in Space (Fall 2009). In addition to being the mamalita behind the New York Times bestselling Skippjon, Judy Schachner has also written several other books for children, including The Grannyman and Yo, Vikings! Judy lives in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania with her family.

Joyce Sidman, Houghton Mifflin

Joyce Sidman is the author of many award-winning children's poetry books, including the Caldecott Honor book, Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems (also a Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award winner). She teaches poetry writing to school children and participates in many national poetry events, including the annual "Poetry Blast" at the American Library Association meeting. Her recent book, This Is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness, won the Claudia Lewis Poetry Award from the Banks Street College of New York. Joyce lives with her husband near a large woodland in Wayzata, Minnesota.

Jordan Sonnenblick, Feiwel & Friends

Jordan Sonnenblick is the author of the acclaimed teen novels Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie, Notes from the Midnight Driver, and Zen and the Art of Faking It. In addition to being a writer, he's a middle-school English teacher, and would never penalize one of his students for bringing an imaginary friend to school. Jordan lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, with his wife and their two children. If he's ever had an imaginary friend, he's not telling!