Geraldine and Mrs. Duffy

Keller, Holly

ISBN 10: 0688168884 ISBN 13: 9780688168889

Publisher: Greenwillow, 2000

Synopsis

Geraldine and her little brother Willy try to pull pranks on their new babysitter, Mrs. Duffy, but she saves the day when she rescues Jerome, their pet iguana, from atop the living room drapes. 20,000 first printing.

About this title

About the Author

Holly Keller, author-artist of That's Mine, Horace, has written more than twenty books and illustrated as many written by other people. Among the most popular of her picture books are two previous books about Horace, Horace and Brave Horace, and several books about the feisty pig Geraldine. She is the mother of two grown children and lives with her pediatrician husband in Connecticut.

In Her Own Words...

"Although I didn't realize that I was launching a wonderful career that would develop many years later, I wrote my first book for children when I was a senior at Hunter High School in New York City. Accepting the offer of my Latin teacher for me to do an extra translation to improve my grade, I produced a fully illustrated dummy of Little Red Riding Hood-in Latin, and set in the appropriate period of history. I also didn't know that it would be a long time before my artistic and intellectual interests would work together side by side quite so neatly again.

"I went to Sarah Lawrence College planning to study art, and ended up with a concentration in American history. I earned a Master's degree in history at Columbia University but never gave up my longing to draw and paint. Some years later I took a class in printmaking at Manhattanville College, and it was there that everything started to come together. I was working on a series of etchings illustrating a tale by Rudyard Kipling, and my very wise teacher, John Ross, suggested children's books.

"By then I was the mother of two small children and lived with my pediatrician husband in a rural town in Connecticut. I used whatever quiet hours I could find to put together a portfolio, and what little energy remained to take a course in illustration at the Parsons School of Design. I arrived at Greenwillow in 1981 with a pile of drawings for stories that existed somewhere in my head. Susan Hirschman pulled one out and told me to go home and write the story-in a week, no less! Well, somehow I did it, and the sense of unity I had felt back in Latin class was mine again.

"Since that first book, which was called Cromwell's Glasses, there have been many, many stories. Some come from my own childhood (frequently changed just enough to make them turn out more to my liking!), some come from the experiences of my children, and, more recently, some have come from the places to which I have traveled.

"In all the years that I have been writing and illustrating children's books, it has never felt like work. Each new book brings me to a place I have never been before, and I am always excited and happy to be there."

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-The little pig is growing up and dealing with a new problem in true "Geraldine" style. Here, she must face a new baby-sitter, Mrs. Duffy. The night is off to a bad start when her younger brother cries and hides in the closet. The feisty little heroine takes matters into her own hands and convinces Willy to unleash the family's pet iguana and put it in the bath with them. Even when it gets loose, Mrs. Duffy gets onlya little flustered, and her patience and quiet forgiveness finally win the siblings over. Like floral wallpaper in a warm kitchen, soft reoccurring patterns throughout the pages give the story a cozy feeling. Most children will relate to the anxiety associated with being left in the care of someone new, and who better to help them ease the transition than this hilarious, endearing piglet who, in the end, always does the right thing. Another gem from an author/artist who truly understands children.
Holly T. Sneeringer, St. Mark School, Baltimore, MD
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Greenwillow
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0688168884
• ISBN 13: 9780688168889
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 24