Anastasia was born in 1979, at the age of ten.She's been around ever since, and she's only thirteen now. I never get tired of writing about her and her family. Katherine Krupnik, her mother, reminds me of myself.
Sam was born when Anastasia was ten, and for a long time he existed only in the books about her. But kids liked him. Maybe he reminded them of their own little brothers. So at the request of young readers, I gave Sam his own series.
Caroline and J.P. Tate are so much like real kids in real families: a bickering sister-and-brother pair, with a long-suffering single mom. They live in New York City, but in one book they spend a summer with their dad in Iowa. In truth, the Tates could exist anywhere.
Mrs. Pidgeon's second grade has one student who is, shall we say, somewhat unusual. New to the school in October, by Thanksgiving she has completely entranced the entire class. And there's a whole school year yet to come
Each of these is an all-by-itself book, not part of a series. They take you from Denmark to West Virginia to Boston, - and many other places - and three of them come from my own life. (See if you can figure out which three!)
In Boston's famous Public Garden, fourteen-year-old Enid and her four-year-old pal, Tom Terrific, learn lots about life from new friendships with a bag lady and a saxophone player.
Eleven-year-old Louise Cunningham watches with wonder as a visit from her unusual uncle gives her ordinary small town a glow of something mysterious and magical.
Twelve-year-old Rabble Starkey's mother is hired by Mrs. Bigelow to look after her children while she's in the hospital. Living in that huge house, Rabble feels she's finally found a home. But soon she and her mother must question what's really best for them.
This is the story of a dog who tells his own tale. As a pup he is separated from his mother and siblings. Through it all, Keeper can't forget his long lost little sister. If only they could be together again, life would be perfect. But an old enemy is watching and waiting to make his move.
Ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen often think about life before the war. But it's now 1943 and their life in Copenhagen is filled with school, food shortages, and the Nazi soldiers marching in their town.
It is a rare album memoir for both children and adults; it's straightforward text is accompanied by beautiful and sometimes heartbreaking black-and-white photographs.
When their mother starts to date the mystery man on the fifth floor, who has been instructed by his agent to "eliminate the children" by the first of May, eleven-year-old Caroline and her older brother figure they're targeted to be the victims of a savage crime.
Forced to spend a summer with their father and his "new" family, Caroline, age eleven, and J.P., age thirteen, are given unpleasant responsibilities for which they are determined to get revenge.