I have always been a storyteller. Even before I could write my name, I could tell a good tale. And I told them all the time. As a preschooler, I told my neighbors all about my three-legged cat named Spot. In kindergarten, I told my classmates about the ghost that lived in my attic. And in first grade I told my teacher, Miss Harbart, all about my family’s trip to Paris, France.
I told such a good story that people always thought I was telling the truth. But I wasn’t. I didn’t have a three-legged cat or a ghost in my attic, and I’d certainly never been to Paris, France. I simply enjoyed telling a good story… and seeing my listener’s reaction.
Books in order of publication:
Picture Books
Professor Ferguson Fahrenheit and his Wonderful Weather Machine (1994)
Women of the Lights (1995), illustrated by James Watling
Madame LaGrande and Her So High, to the Sky, Uproarious Pompadour (1996), illustrated by S.D. Schindler
Gabriella’s Song (1997), illustrated by Giselle Potter
Westward Ho, Carlotta! (1997), illustrated by David Catrow
The Hatmaker’s Sign (1998), illustrated by Robert A. Parker
When Agnes Caws (1999), illustrated by Giselle Potter
A Big Cheese for the White House: The True Tale of a Tremendous Cheddar (1999), illustrated by S.D. Schindler
Who Invited You? (2001), illustrated by George Booth
Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! (2002), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Boxes for Katje (2003), illustrated by Stacey Dressen-McQueen
Smile, Lily! (2004), illustrated by Yumi Heo
Gator Gumbo: A Spicy-Hot Tale (2004), illustrated by Sally Anne Lambert
This Is the Baby (2004), illustrated by Maggie Smith
Sunny Boy!: The Life and Times of a Tortoise (2005), illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Hide! (2007), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Splash! (2014), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Imogene’s Last Stand (2009), illustrated by Nancy Carpenter
Seven Hungry Babies (2010), illustrated by Eugene Yelchin
Clever Jack Takes the Cake (2010), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Oh, No! (2012), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Papa’s Mechanical Fish (2013), illustrated by Boris Kolikov
Bulldozer
Bulldozer’s Big Day (2015), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Bulldozer Helps Out (2017), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Go Sleep In Your Own Bed! (2017), illustrated by Lori Nichols
Emma’s Circus (2017), illustrated by Christine Davenier
The Amazing Collection of Joey Cornell (2018), illustrated by Gérard DuBois
Fiction
Aesop Elementary
The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary School (2005)
The Fabled Fifth Graders of Aesop Elementary School (2010)
Lowji Discovers America (2005)
On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave (2010)
History Pals
Ben Franklin’s in My Bathroom! (2017), illustrated by Marc Fearing
Eleanor Roosevelt’s in My Garage! (2018), illustrated by Marc Fearing
Strongheart: Wonder Dog of the Silver Screen (2018), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Non-fiction
Ben Franklin’s Almanac: Being a True Account of the Good Gentleman’s Life (2003)
Our Eleanor: A Scrapbook Look at Eleanor Roosevelt’s Remarkable Life (2005)
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary (2008)
The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P. T. Barnum (2009)
Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart (2011)
The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia (2014)
Presenting Buffalo Bill: The Man Who Invented the Wild West (2016)
Giant Squid(2016), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Anthologies
Guys Read True Stories (2014) edited by Jon Scieszka. Contributed “A Jumbo Story” about Jumbo the elephant.
Our Story Begins: your favorite authors and illustrators share fun, inspiring, and occasionally ridiculous things they wrote and drew as kids (2017) edited by Elissa Brent Weissman.
Oak Lawn Library Friends 