Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: George Ancona
In 2002, George Ancona received the Washington Post-Children's Book Guild Nonfiction Award for work that "has contributed significantly to the quality of nonfiction for children." In this video interview, George Ancona talks about his...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Grace Lin
Grace Lin is the author and illustrator of more than 20 books - from picture books to young adult novels - for kids. Most of Lin's books are about the Asian-American experience. She believes that "books erase bias, they make the uncommon...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Katherine Paterson
Katherine Paterson is the Newbery Medal-winning author of Jacob Have I Loved and Bridge to Terabithia. In this interview, she talks about her childhood, raising a family, the challenges and joy of writing historical fiction, the...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Kate Di Camillo
Kate DiCamillo's books have won numerous awards. Well-known titles include Because of Winn-Dixie (which became a Hollywood film), The Tale of Despereaux, and Flora and Ulysses. But her success did not happen overnight. Before the public...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Kadir Nelson
Before turning 30, Kadir Nelson had already illustrated children's books, sold paintings to celebrities, and worked on a movie directed by Steven Spielberg. He has won awards for his writing and illustrations, including his artwork in...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton
Julie Andrews's legendary career encompasses the Broadway and London stages, blockbuster films, television shows, album releases, concert tours, and the world of children's publishing. Together with her daughter and co-author Emma Walton...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson writes picture books as well as books for middle graders and young adults. She tackles tough issues such as race relations, foster care, and incarceration. Watch the interview to learn more about her and read a short...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver
Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver are the co-authors of the popular Hank Zipzer series about a young boy with learning differences who is funny, resourceful, and smart. They have also created a series for younger kids called Here's Hank, and...
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Author Interviews: Jack Gantos
Jack Gantos' interesting life has provided the raw material for many of his books. Rotten Ralph, for example, was inspired by an aggressive red cat that he once owned. The Jack Henry middle-grade fiction series was based on Gantos' own...
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,...