DeFelice, Cynthia 1951-

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DEFELICE, Cynthia 1951-

(Cynthia C. DeFelice)

PERSONAL: Born December 28, 1951, in Philadelphia, PA; daughter of William (a psychiatrist) and Ann (an English teacher and homemaker; maiden name, Baldwin) Carter; married Ralph DeFelice (a dentist), February 16, 1974; stepchildren: Michelle, Ralph. Education: William Smith College, B.A., 1973; Syracuse University, M.L.S., 1980. Hobbies and other interests: Quilt making, dulcimer playing, hiking, backpacking, bird watching, fishing, reading, watching films.

ADDRESSES: Home—Geneva, NY. Office—c/o Author Mail, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Inc., 19 Union Square W., New York, NY 10003.

CAREER: Storyteller and writer. Worked variously as a barn painter, day-care provider, and advertising layout artist; Newark public schools, Newark, NY, elementary school media specialist, 1980–87. Cofounder of Wild Washerwomen Storytellers, beginning 1980.

MEMBER: Authors Guild, Authors League of America, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, National Storytelling Association, Audubon Society, Nature Conservancy, Wilderness Society, Seneca Lake Pure Waters Association.

AWARDS, HONORS: Notable Children's Trade Book for Language Arts, National Council of Teachers of English, and Teacher's Choice Award, International Reading Association, both 1989, both for The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter; Best Children's Books of the Year, Library of Congress, Best Illustrated Children's Books of the Year, New York Times, and Reading Magic Award, Parenting, all 1989, all for The Dancing Skeleton; Best Books designation, School Library Journal, Notable Children's Book designation, American Library Association, Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies, National Council for the Social Studies-Children's Book Council, and International Reading Association and Children's Book Council Young Adult Choice Award, all 1990, Hodge-Podger Society Award for Fiction, 1992, and Sequoyah and South Carolina children's book awards, all for Weasel; Best Book of 1994, New York Public Library, for Mule Eggs; listed among Books for the Teen Age, New York Public Library, 1995, for Lostman's River; Best Book designation, New York Public Library, 1995, and Anne Izard Storytellers' Choice Award, 1996, for Three Perfect Peaches; South Dakota Prairie Pasque Children's Book Award and Sunshine State Young Reader's Award, both 1995, both for Devil's Bridge; Best Book designation, School Library Journal, 1996, and Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies designation, 1997, Notable Children's Book designation, American Library Association, Judy Lopez Memorial Award, International Honor Book, Society of School Librarians, and Books for the Teen Age selection, New York Public Library, all for The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker; New York State Knickerbocker Award, 1998, for body of work; Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for best picture book, 2001, for Cold Feet; Texas Bluebonnet Award, for The Ghost of Fossil Glen; Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies, National Council for the Social Studies-Children's Book Council, for Nowhere to Call Home.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS; FOR YOUNG READERS

Weasel, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1990.

Devil's Bridge (sequel to Weasel), Macmillan (New York, NY), 1992.

The Light on Hogback Hill, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1993.

Lostman's River, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1994.

The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 1996.

The Ghost of Fossil Glen, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 1998.

Nowhere to Call Home, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 1999.

Death at Devil's Bridge (sequel to Devil's Bridge), Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2000.

The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs (sequel to The Ghost of Fossil Glenn), Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2001.

Under the Same Sky, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2003.

The Ghost of Cutler Creek (sequel to The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs), Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2004.

The Missing Manatee, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2005.

Bringing Ezra Back (sequel to Weasel), Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2006.

PICTURE BOOKS

The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter, calligraphy by Leah Palmer Preiss, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1988.

The Dancing Skeleton, illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1989.

When Grampa Kissed His Elbow, illustrated by Karl Swanson, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1992.

Mule Eggs, illustrated by Mike Shenon, Orchard (New York, NY) 1994.

(Reteller, with Mary DeMarsh and others) Three Perfect Peaches: A French Folktale, illustrated by Irene Trivas, Orchard (New York, NY) 1995.

Casey in the Bath, illustrated by Chris L. Demarest, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 1996.

Willy's Silly Grandma, illustrated by Shelley Jackson, Orchard (New York, NY) 1997.

Clever Crow, illustrated by S. D. Schindler, Atheneum (New York, NY), 1998.

Cold Feet, illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker, DK Ink (New York, NY), 2000.

The Real, True Dulcie Campbell, illustrated by R.W. Alley, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2002.

Old Granny and the Bean Thief, illustrated by Cat Bowman, Farrar, Straus (New York, NY), 2003.

One Potato, Two Potato, illustrated by Andrea U'Ren, Farrar Straus (New York, NY), 2006.

ADAPTATIONS: Several of the author's books have been made into audio books, including Nowhere to Call Home, Recorded Books, 2000, and The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, Recorded Books, 2002.

SIDELIGHTS: Cynthia DeFelice combines the oral skills of a storyteller with the technical skills of a writer to create children's stories drawn from folk traditions, American history, and contemporary society. Her books feature young people thrust into situations that require them to make vital decisions for themselves and to assume responsibilities far beyond their years. In both her picture books and novels, DeFelice mixes the elements of suspense, drama, and humor. Whether exploring the plight of Native Americans, as in the award-winning Weasel, making a past way of life seem vivid and real to twenty-first-century readers, or highlighting the endangered ecosystem as she does in Lostman's River and Devil's Bridge, DeFelice's primary concern is in telling a compelling story, creating the "then-what-happened?" curiosity that keeps readers turning the page. "DeFelice knows how to make history come alive by providing characters who readers will find both realistic and sympathetic," maintained Voice of Youth Advocates contributor Cindy Lombardo, who especially recommended titles by DeFelice that showcase epochs from nineteenth-and early twentieth-century American history.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1951, DeFelice credits her mother for instilling a strong storytelling tradition in her, as her mother often read to DeFelice and her siblings. In 1980, DeFelice got a job as a school librarian in Newark, New York. It would be this job that sparked her interest in both storytelling and writing children's books. The author teamed up with music teacher Mary DeMarsh in a storytelling partnership they called the Wild Washerwomen. DeFelice and her partner began telling stories in schools throughout upstate New York; after the sessions, intrigued members of their young audience would invariably ask her if those stories were written down somewhere so they could read them. It did not take many such requests to prompt DeFelice to put pen to paper, resulting in a series of entertaining popular picture books and, later, novels for young readers.

Her first book was The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter, which was published in 1988. In DeFelice's story, a calligrapher named Jessie likes to write out all the important notices for her small town. Suddenly she discovers that she has the ability to foretell the future through her writing—even her own death. Before she dies, however, she is able to pass on the art of calligraphy and the gift of her strength and love to a young girl named Callie, who has become her apprentice. The book quickly became a critical success. "A simple, loving story," a reviewer in the Voice of Youth Advocates called it, and a Publishers Weekly contributor offered a similar opinion, stating, "DeFelice's novella has a wistful mood and a gently unwinding pace…. Thoughtful readers … will revel in its poetic language." Roger Sutton, writing in the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, dubbed the story "sentimental in the best sense."

Encouraged by the success of her first book, DeFelice left library work and embarked on a career as a full-time writer. Her second picture book, The Dancing Skeleton, focuses on the difficulties a widow faces when her deceased husband refuses to stay dead; he comes back to dance about when the widow's new suitor—a fiddler—comes courting. Like several of her picture books, The Dancing Skeleton is a retelling of a traditional folk tale. The book gained special praise for its author's technical skills. Ellen D. Warwick, for instance, wrote in the School Library Journal that DeFelice's "rhythmic prose captures the vocabulary, tone, the very cadences of the oral tradition."

With two books in as many years to her credit, DeFelice began to branch out as a writer. Coupling her continued writing with hours of research, she set her next story, Weasel, in Ohio during the 1830s. Nathan, a member of a pioneering family, wakes one night to learn that a man named Weasel has wounded his father. A former Indian-hunter whose life of hunting and killing has driven him half mad, Weasel now is quick to raise a gun or knife against his own kind. Vowing to avenge his father's attack, young Nathan hunts down Weasel, but when the opportunity to strike arises, the boy realizes that such violence would make him no better than the assailant that he has been hunting. Calling DeFelice's rendering of her young protagonist's character "unforgettable," School Library Journal contributor Yvonne Frey praised the novel for addressing race relations in a new way, by "turn[ing] the results of hate back on the white race itself." Weasel "makes a positive contribution to a world caught up with killing and revenge," reviewer Kathryn Hackler wrote in her Voice of Youth Advocates article, while a contributor to Publishers Weekly pronounced the novel a "fast-paced" work that "effectively conveys the battle between good and evil."

Pleased with the critical praise for Weasel, DeFelice was encouraged to continue writing novels as well as picture books. Her next effort was 1992's Devil's Bridge, a tale that takes place off the East Coast in Martha's Vineyard. Twelve-year-old Ben Daggett hears two men scheming to cheat their way to the ten thousand dollar prize in the annual striped bass fishing derby by injecting an illegally caught fish with mercury to increase its weight. Before he perished in a hurricane the year before, Ben's fisherman father had set the record for the largest bass ever caught, and Ben does not want his father's accomplishments overshadowed by anyone's dishonest efforts. Since no one will listen to him when he attempts to divulge the men's scheme, Ben determines to catch the biggest fish himself. While he manages to hook the winning fish, Ben lets the creature go free at the last minute because he is unwilling to take its life.

In Devil's Bridge, DeFelice touches upon Ben's confusion and hurt over the death of his father, as well as several wildlife management and environmental issues, particularly as they relate to the nation's overtaxed fisheries. However, her story never becomes pedantic, noted several critics. School Library Journal contributor Louise L. Sherman further commented that Devil's Bridge is a "fast paced and involving" adventure yarn featuring what Booklist contributor Janice Del Negro called "an appealing main character" in Ben. A Publishers Weekly reviewer wrote that the novel is "more than a straightforward adventure; it is a multi-layered book with feeling." Devil's Bridge would later find a sequel in Death at Devil's Bridge, which was published in 2000. In this story Ben—now thirteen—takes a job as first-mate on a fishing boat only to find himself enmeshed in the illegal drug trade and possibly even murder.

The Light on Hogback Hill, published in 1993, features young protagonists investigating a supposedly haunted house, but instead they find an elderly woman whom they befriend. The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, published in 1996, concerns a young boy who goes to work for a local physician after his entire family dies of tuberculosis. Once commonly known as "consumption," tuberculosis was one of the main causes of death prior to the turn of the twentieth century, and it was believed by some that the sickness was passed along by the dead, who acted like vampires in spreading the disease through entire households. DeFelice's historical novel takes place in Connecticut during the mid-1800s; it introduces readers to Lucas, a twelve-year-old who feels responsible for the death of his parents. Working alongside the town doctor allows Lucas to understand that the folk remedy he had failed to perform—digging up the body of the first member of the family to die of consumption, removing the heart, and burning it—could not have saved his family.

Praising DeFelice for her compelling main characters and for illustrating the harsh realities of life in New England farming communities in the nineteenth century, School Library Journal contributor Jane Gardner Connor noted, "Readers will experience a period when even a doctor's knowledge was very limited, and … will come to realize how fear and desperation can make people willing to try almost anything." In her Horn Book review of The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, Elizabeth S. Watson wrote, "The pace of this fine piece of historical fiction is brisk in spite of a wealth of detail [about] health, hygiene, and witchcraft."

As it was in The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, the loss of both parents is a motivating factor in the life of twelve-year-old Frances Barrow in DeFelice's 1999 novel, Nowhere to Call Home. When her father loses his Philadelphia-based business—as well as everything else—during the stock market crash of 1929, he commits suicide, leaving his daughter an orphan. Left with nothing, Frances decides to cut her hair, disguise herself as a boy, and strike out for herself by "riding the rails" westward as a train-jumping hobo, rather than going to live with an aunt she has never met. Noting that "the dialogue rings true," Voice of Youth Advocates critic Cindy Lombardo added that the story's "fast pace … will keep readers turning pages until the poignant resolution." While the story takes place in the past century, Margaret A. Bush noted in Horn Book that DeFelice bridges the gap between her young protagonist and modern-day readers. "The story is a good adventure," Bush maintained, "presenting readers with insights into homelessness quite relevant to our own time."

DeFelice returned to the here-and-now, but with a supernatural twist, in her 1998 novel, The Ghost of Fossil Glen. Readers are introduced to Allie Nichols, an eleven-year-old who enjoys roaming remote areas near her home in search of fossils. One day she hears a ghostly whisper, and she soon becomes haunted by the voice of a girl who was murdered in that area four years earlier. Even though her friends question her sanity, Allie is determined to help the spirit, and ultimately helps bring justice to the now-departed Lucy. Praising The Ghost of Fossil Glen as a "beautifully crafted thriller," Booklist contributor Lauren Peterson added that DeFelice has skillfully crafted an "expertly paced, dynamic page-turner that never gives readers the chance to become distracted or lose interest."

The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs is a sequel to The Ghost of Fossil Glenn and features the spirit of John Walker. The handsome young ghost gets young Allie to help him obtain justice for his death in a fire, which he blames on the school's cafeteria head, the scary Mrs. Hobbs. Eventually, however, Allie discovers that being a ghost magnet is not all good. The new ghost in her life is causing many problems, including outbreaks of fires at school and difficulties with her job as a dog sitter. Sharon McNeil, writing in the School Library Journal, noted, "There's more than enough suspense in this well-told story." In a review in Booklist, Ilene Cooper commented that the book "has real kid appeal." Kitty Flynn concluded in Horn Book magazine that the author provides "a diverting and suspenseful ghost story offering a likable protagonist and a thrilling romantic spark."

The author once again features her eleven-year-old, ghost-friendly protagonist named Allie in The Ghost of Cutler Creek. This time Allie is in touch with the ghost of a dog as she becomes distraught over the kidnapping of a dog named Hoover that she is taking care of for her teacher. Allie is also concerned about the prospects of a local puppy mill that may be run by a new boy named L.J. Cutler and his father, and she tries to convince her parents and the authorities about the illegal operation. "DeFelice has created a suspenseful tale that will leave readers rapidly turning pages," wrote Linda Zeilstra Sawyer in the School Library Journal. Kitty Flynn noted in Horn Book magazine, "As always, DeFelice tells a gripping, suspenseful story, keeping readers engaged with realistically depicted human as well as animal characters."

While continuing to entertain young adult readers with her novels, DeFelice has been adding picture books to her bibliography. Mule Eggs, DeFelice's 1994 effort, is the story of a city slicker named Patrick. Deciding to become a farmer, he buys some land and, in addition to the challenges posed by life in the country, has to contend with a local practical joker. In her retelling of the French folktale Three Perfect Peaches, three brothers compete among themselves to deliver the most perfect peaches and thus win the hand of the king's daughter. In 1997's Willy's Silly Grandma a grandmother's folk cures prove not to be as silly as people thought. An earlier similar book featuring Grampa, titled When Grampa Kissed His Elbow, was called an "unusual but charming inter-generational story," by Booklist contributor Karen Hutt. Still another picture book, 1998's Clever Crow, features a battle of wits involving a young girl named Emma, who becomes frustrated when a crow begins to steal small, shiny objects from around her home. When even the house keys find their way into Crow's nest, Emma hatches a plan to trick the feathered thief, until Crow outsmarts her. Praising the story as a "sprightly takeoff on Aesop's fable 'The Fox and the Grapes,'" a Publishers Weekly contributor commended DeFelice for her "jaunty tone" and energetic rhymes.

In her picture book Cold Feet, DeFelice retells a Scottish folktale in the story of Willie McPhee, a bagpiper who has fallen on hard times. One day, Willie finds a man frozen to death and tries to take his shoes, only to find that he cannot remove them. Eventually, however, the frozen appendages fall off and Willie begins traveling with the boots tied around his neck and still inhabited by the dead man's frozen feet. His discovery will lead to a macabre trick that Willie plays on an old, mean farmer and to a meeting with a ghostly stranger without feet. Alicia Eames, writing in the School Library Journal, noted, "DeFelice's language, tone, and pacing capture the essence of the oral tradition." Booklist contributor Connie Fletcher commented, "The eerie ending is a fine twist." In an article in Horn Book announcing the book as the winner of the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for best picture book for 2001, a contributor wrote that "the book provides readers with the sensation less of reading a book and more of listening to a story being told. DeFelice has somehow shaken words loose from their fixed dictionary definitions and charged them with something like the atmosphere and energy of a live performance: a happening inside our heads."

In her picture book The Real, True Dulcie Campbell the author reveals young Dulcie's fantasy of being the daughter of a queen instead of farmers in Hollyhock, Iowa, where she rises early each morning to do farm chores. But upon further reading about princesses and their trials and tribulations, Dulcie ultimately decides that life on the farm is not so bad after all. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly commented that the author "hits the mark with this tale of wishful identity." In a review in Booklist, Carolyn Phelan remarked on "the wit and humanity of the text."

More recently, the picture book Old Granny and the Bean Thief takes an old folktale and sets it in the American Southwest. When Granny heads off to inform the local sheriff that someone is stealing her beans from her garden, she meets characters ranging from a water snake to a prickly pear. These new friends ultimately help her set a trap for the thief in the sheriff's absence. In a review in Booklist, GraceAnne A. DeCandido wrote that she enjoyed "the sassy tone of DeFelice's folksy telling." A Kirkus Reviews contributor called the book a "fresh take on a reliable crowd-pleaser."

DeFelice continues to take on some serious issues in her young adult novels, such as Under the Same Sky. Here, the soon to be fourteen-year-old Joe wants a motorcycle for his birthday but learns from his father that he must work for it by helping Mexican laborers on the farm. The hard, exhausting farm work teaches the self-centered boy about the difficulties of farming, and the experience also introduces him to the lives of the migrant workers and the anti-Mexican sentiments in his town. Meanwhile, he has become enamored with young Louisa, an illegal immigrant whom Joe protects from immigration officers. "With sensitivity and self-deprecating humor and reflection," noted Gerry Larson in the School Library Journal, "Joe narrates a well-paced story that illuminates the need for understanding, tolerance, and discussion of the role and rights of migrant." In a review in Kliatt, Paula Rohrlick described the story as "a moving tale, with a valuable message."

The Missing Manatee addresses environmentalism in the same way as early books such as Devil's Bridge have. This time, the story is set in the Gulf Coast of Florida and features young Skeet Waters, who is on spring break from school when he discovers a dead manatee shot through the head. When he brings the sheriff back to investigate, the manatee is gone. Nevertheless, Skeet decides to seek justice and find the killer of a member of an endangered species. At the same time, Skeet is dealing with his own trauma as he lives with his mother and grandmother after his father has moved out. In a review in Booklist, Todd Morning noted that the author "delivers a fast-paced mystery with a strong sense of place." School Library Journal contributor Allison Grant concluded, "The characters are multifaceted and well developed."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, March 15, 1992, Karen Hutt, review of When Grampa Kissed His Elbow, pp. 1386-1387; December 1, 1992, Janice Del Negro, review of Devil's Bridge, p. 669; May 15, 1994, Deborah Abbott, review of Lostman's River, p. 1679; January 15, 1995, Mary Harris Veeder, review of Three Perfect Peaches, p. 931; October 1, 1996, Dove Lempke, review of The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, p. 348; March 15, 1998, Lauren Peterson, review of The Ghost of Fossil Glen, p. 1243; May 1, 1998, Hazel Rochman, review of Clever Crow, p. 1520; April 1, 1999, Susan Dove, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 1425; August, 2000, Gillian Engberg, review of Death at Devil's Bridge, p. 2131; September 1, 2000, Connie Fletcher, review of Cold Feet, p. 112; September 1, 2001, Ilene Cooper, review of The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, p. 103; August, 2002, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Real, True Dulcie Campbell, p. 1969; June 1, 2003, Hazel Rochman, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 1759; July, 2003, GraceAnne A. DeCandido, review of Old Granny and the Bean Thief, p. 1896; July, 2004, Gillian Engberg, review of The Ghost of Cutler Creek, p. 1844; March 1, 2005, Todd Morning, review of The Missing Manatee, p. 1193.

Book Report, September-October, 1999, Catherine M. Andronik, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 59.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, September, 1988, Roger Sutton, review of The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter, p. 5.

Children's Digest, January-February, 1995, Jane Raver, review of The Light on Hogback Hill, p. 23.

Horn Book, January-February, 1990, Elizabeth S. Watson, review of The Dancing Skeleton, pp. 75-76; March-April, 1994, Elizabeth S. Watson, review of The Light on Hogback Hill, p. 198; September-October, 1994, Elizabeth S. Watson, review of Lostman's River, p. 586; November-December, 1994, Martha V. Parravano, review of Mule Eggs, p. 717; January-February, 1997, Elizabeth S. Watson, review of The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, p. 55; May-June, 1997, Nancy Vasilaki, review of Willy's Silly Grandma, p. 304; November-December, 1997, Kristi Beavin, review of The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, p. 701; September-October, 1998, Elizabeth S. Watson, review of The Ghost of Fossil Glen, p. 606; March-April, 1999, Margaret A. Bush, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 207; September, 2000, Roger Sutton, review of Cold Feet, p. 585; November-December, 2001, Kitty Flynn, review of The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, p. 744; January-February, 2002, "Cold Feet. (Picture Book Award Winner)," p. 27; September-October, 2003, Betty Carter, review of Old Granny and the Bean Thief, p. 594; March-April, 2004, Kitty Flynn, review of The Ghost of Cutler Creek, p. 179.

Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, May, 2000, Barbara Powell, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 778; March, 2004, Alisha Carpenter, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 520.

Kirkus Reviews, July 1, 2002, review of The Real, True Dulcie Campbell, p. 952; March 15, 2003, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 464; July 1, 2003, review of Old Granny and The Bean Thief, p. 908; February 1, 2004, review of The Ghost of Cutler Creek, p. 131; April 15, 2005, review of The Missing Manatee, p. 471.

Kliatt, July, 2002, Paula Rohrlick, review of Death at Devil's Bridge, p. 16; September, 2002, Carol Kellerman, review of The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, p. 53; March, 2003, Paula Rohrlick, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 9; March, 2005, Janis Flint-Ferguson, review of The Missing Manatee, p. 9; May, 2005, Paula Rohrlick, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 22.

Publishers Weekly, August 12, 1988, review of The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter, pp. 460-461; April 27, 1990, review of Weasel, p. 62; September 7, 1992, review of Devil's Bridge, pp. 96-97; October 25, 1993, review of The Light on Hogback Hill, p. 62; August 22, 1994, review of Mule Eggs, p. 55; January 9. 1995, review of Three Perfect Peaches, p. 63; March 4, 1996, review of Casey in the Bath, p. 65; February 24, 1997, review of Willy's Silly Grandma, p. 89; March 2, 1998, review of The Ghost of Fossil Glen, p. 69; May 4, 1998, review of Clever Crow, p. 211; April 26, 1999, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 84; September 4, 2000, review of Cold Feet, p. 108; July 16, 2001, review of The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, p. 183; July 15, 2002, review of The Real, True Dulcie Campbell, p. 73; March 10, 2003, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 72; August 11, 2003, review of Old Granny and the Bean Thief, p. 279; March 15, 2004, review of The Ghost of Cutler Creek, p. 76.

School Library Journal, September, 1989, Ellen D. Warwick, review of The Dancing Skeleton, p. 239; May, 1990, Yvonne Frey, review of Weasel, pp. 103-104; August, 1992, p. 134; November, 1992, Louise L. Sherman, review of Devil's Bridge, pp. 88-89; August, 1996, Jane Gardner Connor, review of The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, p. 142; July, 2000, Cynthia Schulz, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 54; September, 2000, Alicia Eames, review of Cold Feet, p. 193, Renee Steinberg, review of Death at Devil's Bridge, p. 228; October, 2000, Bonnie Bolton, review of The Ghost of Fossil Glen, p. 93; August, 2001, Sharon McNeil, review of The Ghost and Mrs. Hobbs, p. 177; September, 2002, Ruth Semrau, review of The Real, True Dulcie Campbell, p. 183; March, 2003, Gerry Larson, review of Under the Same Sky, p. 232; August, 2003, Kathy Piehl, review of Lostman's River, p. 115; September, 2003, Eve Ortega, review of Old Granny and the Bean Thief, p. 176; March, 2004, Linda Zeilstra Sawyer, review of The Ghost of Cutler Creek, p. 208; June, 2005, Allison Grant, review of The Missing Manatee, p. 154.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 1989, review of The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter, p. 26; June, 1990, Kathryn Hackler, review of Weasel, pp. 101-102; October, 1999, Cindy Lombardo, review of Nowhere to Call Home, p. 256.