Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jack Prelutsky
Jack Prelutsky writes wonderfully wacky poems that children find irresistible. In this interview, he explains why he used to equate reading poetry with eating liver and considered writing poetry a hazard to his health. Watch the...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Herman Parish
Herman Parish has been writing fresh Amelia Bedelia stories since 1995, inventing new adventures for the character his aunt, Peggy Parish, created all those years ago. Amelia Bedelia knows how to "dress" a chicken (in tiny clothes), and...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Helen Oxenbury
Helen Oxenbury's books have received numerous awards and continue to resound with readers from babies to adults. Her seemingly simple illustrations capture humor, drama, and more in an appealing and memorable way.Watch the interview to...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: J. Patrick Lewis
J. Patrick Lewis authored more than 80 books of poetry for children, on every topic under the sun - from celebrations of Civil Rights heroes (and she-roes) to riddle-filled math puzzlers to poems about amazing animals and iconic...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jarrett Krosoczka
Jarrett Krosoczka has been passionate about storytelling through words and pictures since he was a young kid. He has written lively, colorful books about everything from farm animals who rock (Punk Farm) to a purple elephant living in...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jeff Kinney
Jeff Kinney is perhaps best known as the creator of Greg Heffley, the wry adolescent hero of Kinney's best-selling Wimpy Kid series. Watch the interview to learn more about him and read a short biography about his life. Includes an...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Janet Wong
When Wong left her job as Director of Labor Relations at Universal Studios in Hollywood, she dreamed of becoming a children's book author. Over the next two years, she took a writing class, submitted manuscripts, and piled up more than...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jennifer Holm
Jennifer Holm has always loved reading. She recalls this: "One of our neighbors said that his clearest memory of me as a child was watching me rake the lawn one-handed while I read a book with the other!" Holm has co-authored a series of...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
Since the 1990s, Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan have been researching and writing books about art and artists for young readers - filling the "hole in the bookshelf." They have published books about painters, potters, installation...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Joanna Cole
Joanna Cole created everyone's favorite science teacher when she wrote her first Magic School Bus book starring Ms. Frizzle. In this interview, she talks about her writing, Ms. Frizzle's appeal, and her collaboration with illustrator...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jewell Parker Rhodes
Jewell Parker Rhodes is the author of books for middle-grade readersIn this interview, Jewell talks about writing stories that explore tough topics like racism and violence, finding an authentic voice for her characters, how her books...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Joseph Bruchac
For over 30 years, Joseph Bruchac written poetry, short stories, novels, anthologies, and music that reflect his Abenaki Indian heritage and Native American traditions. He has written over 120 books for children and adults, including the...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: John Bemelmans Marciano
John Bemelmans Marciano was born in 1970 and never met his famous grandfather, Ludwig Bemelmans. But he has carried on the legacy of Madeline in a new series of picture books based on the beloved character his grandfather created in...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jules Feiffer and Kate Feiffer
Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist dad, Jules, is well-known for his social commentary, but also writes and illustrates books for young readers. So does his daughter, Kate. Whether working alone or in collaboration, Jules and Kate...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Judy Blume
Judy Blume writes stories about things like sibling rivalry, freckles, friends, and school. In this interview, Blume shares how books can be a gateway to talking about difficult subjects, what led her to write about the topic of puberty,...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: John J Muth
Jon J Muth begins each day doing giant brush drawings on the floor of his studio to loosen up his arm and generate a sense of "still-pointedness". He then moves to the more specific tasks of painting the pages in his books. For his 2006...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Julianne Moore
The Freckleface Strawberry series written by actor and author Julianne Moore tells the story of a feisty young girl who learns that what makes you different makes you who you are - and that's something to celebrate. Watch the interview...
Penguin Publishing
Penguin Random House: Rh Kids: Thumb Love by Elise Primavera: Book Trailer
This video [1:56] is a book trailer for the children's book entitled Thumb Love by Elise Primavera. Lulu was a thumb sucker. She and her thumb were very happy together "in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad," Lulu and her...