A collection of night-time poems, with lovely ink drawings by Demi, this book went out of print almost as soon as it was published because Methuen in the USA went out of business with that list. However, the book was published in England as well. And most of the poems have seen multiple
Spider Jane on the Move
This sequel to “Spider Jane” is another little easy reading chapter book and was similarly lost. That is, it had nice reviews and few sales. I never quite knew why. It is about a house-proud spider and her friend, Bluebottle Burt who helps her keep her web clean. In this book, Spider Jane moves house.
How Beastly!
This is a book of nonsense poems, about made up animals. Like the Shirk–a lazy shark. Or the Dinosore whose pounding poundage makes him weak. I wrote many of these on walks by the Connecticut River, telling the poems into my little tape recorder. As I am an incorrigible punster, I had a ball
Robot and Rebecca: The Mystery of the Code-Carrying Kids
This science fictional mystery was meant to be the beginning of a series. First publication was in a short-lived Random House book club edition illustrated by Deeter, then simultaneous hard/soft from Knopf with illustrator Obrist. I know that’s confusing. At least it confused me!
Giants Go Camping, The
The 1970’s was a time of a great upsurge in children’s publishing, and everyone was trying easy readers. This little book–and its prequel THE GIANTS FARM–were both my entry into that particular genre. The five giants live on Fe-Fi-Fo-Farm which is what I wanted to call our farm when
All in the Woodland Early: An ABC Book
This rhymed ABC book was inspired by an old folksong that begins “One morning, one morning, one morning in May, I saw a young couple a-making their way.” The song is actually one of those love-gone-awry ballads. Originally published by Philomel Books, this was a companion to
Dream Weaver
A collection of my original stories, set within a framework in which an old blind weaver weaves “dreams” or tales for individuals who pay her. The final story is one she weaves for herself. Included among others are “The Pot Child” (which was a metaphoric answer to one critic who called my stories
No Bath Tonight
My son Adam was accident prone as a child, his brother Jason hated to take baths. I combined the two of them into Jeremy the star of this picture book. When Grandma comes and manages to get Jeremy into the tub by reading his “kid leaves” I realized that here was the grandmother I wanted to be
Mermaid’s Three Wisdoms, The
A deaf girl angry with having to wear a hearing aid and refusing to use signing meets a young mermaid thrust out of her community for disobeying their laws. Merfolk sign under the sea, so mergirl (who now has legs) and deaf girl can communicate. Together they rescue a beached dolphin, and
Spider Jane
This gentle little easy reading chapter book is one of my books that simply got lost. That is, it had nice reviews and few sales. I never understood why. The story is about a house-proud spider and her friend, Bluebottle Burt who helps her keep her web clean. There is a nosy, loud-mouthed bird, and as a bonus, a song at the end.