A Wordful Child (Meet the Author Collection)

The author describes how her love of words and her personal experiences evolved into a career as a writer

Grade 2-4?Two brief autobiographies by children's book authors. Heller relates the basic facts of her life, but does not communicate her love for her craft. The writing is thin and does little to reveal the author's personality or influences on her work. Lyon, on the other hand, speaks eloquently about her love of words. One of her most important memories is of her extended family telling stories around the dinner table. Some of these stories later became books, such as A Regular Rolling Noah (S & S, 1991). Lyon recounts the years of hard work it took to become a published author. She tells children that just as their teachers require revision, so her editor requires many revisions. Both books have excellent-quality full-color photographs and reproductions. However, the illustrations for A Wordful Child are not quite as effective as those in Fine Lines, which feature reproductions of Heller's striking artwork. Much of the information here can be found in Something About the Author (Gale, 1986), but these titles are on an easier reading level and are far more visually appealing.?Anne Parker, Milton Public Library, MA
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