Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (And What the Neighbors Thought)

Krull, Kathleen

ISBN 10: 081725739X ISBN 13: 9780817257392

Publisher: Heinemann/Raintree, 1998

Synopsis

Shakespeare wrote with a feather quill and ink; Emily Dickinson wrote with a fountain pen; Isaac Bashevis Singer wrote on a Yiddish typewriter. But what did such writers do when they weren't writing? What did Jane Austen eat for breakfast? What could make Mark Twain throw his shirts out the window? Why would Zora Neale Hurston punch a fellow elevator passenger? Lives of the Writers tells all that and more.

About this title

About the Author

Kathleen Krull is well known for her innovative, award-winning nonfiction for young people, including Lives of the Explorers, Lives of the Musicians, and all other books in this popular series illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt. She is also the author of Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez, illustrated by Yuyi Morales, as well as The Beatles Were Fab (and They Were Funny) and Lincoln Tells a Joke: How Laughter Saved the President (and the Country), both co-written with Paul Brewer and illustrated by Stacy Innerst. She lives in San Diego, California. Visit her online at kathleenkrull.com. 

Kathryn Hewitt's caricatures of famous figures led kids to dub the Lives of . . . series the "Big Head" books. She has illustrated many books for young readers, some of which she also wrote. She lives in Santa Monica, California. Visit her website at www.kathrynhewitt.com.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4 Up-Employing the lively format that worked so well in Lives of the Musicians (Harcourt, 1993), Krull and Hewitt present the brief histories of 20 classic writers-warts and all. Most are novelists and poets whose names, and possibly whose works, will be familiar to the intended audience. A wide variety of cultures and a generous proportion of women are represented. Krull organizes her biographical sketches chronologically, moving from Japan (Murasaki Shikibu, author of Tale of the Genji) through the centuries with Shakespeare, Cervantes, the Brontes, Twain, Poe, Zora Neale Hurston, and ending with Isaac Bashevis Singer. The glimpses she provides are respectful of their times and influences without being dull. The dry essentials are dealt with in the headings of each chapter. The rest is the juicy stuff-what the writers ate, the pets they kept, what they wore (with a healthy interest in underwear), their writing habits, eccentricities and scandals, and what people thought of them. Brief sections entitled "Bookmarks" highlight a few of their works. A one-page glossary of literary terms, a short index, and a child-focused bibliography complete the book. Hewitt maintains a light touch in her full-page caricatures by balancing fully realized facial portraits on small bodies surrounded by representative objects. The handsomely mounted text is larded with small pictorial reminders of the content. There's enough substance here for a quick report or to enliven a longer one. Let's hope this team continues through all the arts. An irresistible package.
Sally Margolis, Deerfield Public Library, IL
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Heinemann/Raintree
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 081725739X
• ISBN 13: 9780817257392
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 96
• Illustrator: Hewitt Kathryn