SCHANZER, Rosalyn (Good) 1942-

(Ros Schanzer, Roz Schanzer)

PERSONAL: Born November 26, 1942, in Knoxville, TN; daughter of Sam Good (an architectural engineer) and Bess (Mark) Hazelwood (a homemaker); married Steven Terry Schanzer (a business manager), July 24, 1966; children: Adam, Kimberly. Education: University of Cincinnati, B.F.A. and B.S., 1964. Religion: Jewish. Hobbies and other interests: "Swimming (nationally ranked Masters swimmer), worldwide adventure travel, photography."

ADDRESSES: Home and office—11630 Havenner Rd., Fairfax Station, VA 22039. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Author and illustrator of trade books for children, 1993—. Hallmark Cards, Kansas City, MO, designer, 1964-71; freelance illustrator of books, magazines, posters, and filmstrips, 1971-96. George Washington University, assistant professorial lecturer in art, 1982-88.

MEMBER: Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Children's Book Guild of Washington.

AWARDS, HONORS: The Golden Happy Birthday Book was listed as one of the twenty-five best picture books of the year by Saturday Review of Books, 1976; Best in Show and Dukane Gold Camera Award, International Film Festival, 1980, for Comparing Sizes (filmstrip); All about Hanukkah was voted one of the three best Jewish picture books of the year by the Jewish Book Council, 1989; Notable Children's Book of Jewish Content, Association of Jewish Libraries, 2000, and a Sydney Taylor Notable Book, both for Escaping to America: A True Story; American Library Association (ALA) "Books for Youth" Editor's Choice, 2001, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio-Platinum, 2002, and Children's Choice Award, International Reading Association/Childern's Book Council, 2002, all for Davy Crockett Saves the World; Silver Award in Folklore, Poetry, and Song, National Parenting Publications Association, 2001, for The Old Chisholm Trail: A Cowboy Song; Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies, National Council of Social Studies/Children's Book Council, for How We Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark.

WRITINGS:

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

The Beggar's Treasure, Holt (New York, NY), 1973.

(Under name Roz Schanzer) My First Jewish Word Book, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1992.

Ezra in Pursuit: The Great Maze Chase, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1993.

Ezra's Quest: Follow That Dog, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1994.

How We Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark, National Geographic Society (Washington, DC), 1997.

Gold Fever: Tales from the California Gold Rush, National Geographic Society (Washington, DC), 1999.

Escaping to America: A True Story, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2000.

Davy Crockett Saves the World, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2001.

The Old Chisholm Trail: A Cowboy Song, National Geographic Society (Washington, DC), 2001.

How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

ILLUSTRATOR

Dean Walley, Puck's Peculiar Pet Shop: A Tongue Twister Story, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1970.

Gail Mahan Peterson, A Day on the Farm, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1970.

Dean Walley, The Zany Zoo, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1970.

Barbara Bartocci, Jungle Jumble, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1971.

Peter S. Seymour, compiler, The Pop-Goes-the-Joke Book: A Hallmark Pop-up Book, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1971.

Peter S. Seymour, Mr. Backer's Amazing Marching Band, Hallmark Children's Editions (Kansas City, MO), 1971.

Barbara Shook Hazen, The Golden Happy Birthday Book, Western Golden Press (New York, NY), 1976.

Barbara Kunz Loots, The Lost-and-Found Town: A Picture Story with Hidden Objects to Find on Every Page, Hallmark (Kansas City, MO), 1978.

Ranger's Rick's Surprise Book, National Wildlife Federation (Washington, DC), 1979.

Animal Architects, National Geographic Society Books for Young Readers (Washington, DC), 1987.

Wendy Lewison, When an Elephant Goes Shopping, Marvel Monkey Tales, 1988.

Harriet K. Feder, It Happened in Shushan, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1988.

Jean Waricha, Ben's Three Wishes, Marvel Monkey Tales, 1988.

Judyth Groner and Madeline Wikler, All about Hanukkah, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1988.

Ann Eisenberg, I Can Celebrate, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1988.

Lawrence Balter, Sue Lee's New Neighborhood, Barron's (New York, NY), 1989.

Lawrence Balter, What's the Matter with A. J.?: Understanding Jealousy, Barron's (New York, NY), 1989.

Lawrence Balter, The Wedding: Adjusting to a Parent's Remarriage, Barron's (New York, NY), 1989.

Lawrence Balter, Linda Saves the Day: Understanding Fear, Barron's (New York, NY), 1989.

Judyth Saypol Groner and Madeline Wikler, Where Is the Afikomen?, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1989.

Judy Nayer, The Happy Little Engine, McClanahan Books (New York, NY), 1990.

Ann Eisenberg, Bible Heroes I Can Be, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1990.

Lawrence Balter, Alfred Goes to the Hospital: Understanding a Medical Emergency, Barron's (New York, NY), 1990.

Lawrence Balter, A. J.'s Mom Gets a New Job: Adjusting to a Two-Career Family, Barron's (New York, NY), 1990.

Arlene Block, Phonics, Consonants, McClanahan Books (New York, NY), 1991.

Lawrence Balter, A Funeral for Whiskers: Understanding Death, Barron's (New York, NY), 1991.

Lawrence Balter, Sue Lee Starts School: Adjusting to School, Barron's (New York, NY), 1991.

Susan Remick Topek, Ten Good Rules, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1991.

Madeline Wikler and Judyth Saypol Groner, In the Synagogue, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1991.

Judy Nayer, compiler, My First Picture Dictionary, McClanahan Book Co. (New York, NY), 1992.

Deborah Shine, Where's the Puppy?, Newbridge Communications (New York, NY), 1993.

Muff Singer, Puppy Says 1, 2, 3, Joshua Morris (Westport, CT), 1993.

Muff Singer, Hello Piglet, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1993.

Muff Singer, Little Lost Lamb, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1993.

Muff Singer, What Does Kitty See?, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1993.

Muff Singer, Bunny's Hungry, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1994.

Muff Singer, Little Duck's Friends, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1994.

Muff Singer, All Year round with Little Frog, Reader's Digest Association (Pleasantville, NY), 1995.

Judy Nayer, Little Fish, Little Fish, Willowisp Press (St. Petersburg, FL), 1995.

Alice Cary, Panda Band, Open Court (Chicago, IL), 1995.

Patricia Lauber, The True-or-False Book of Cats, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1998.

Cheri Holland, Maccabee Jamboree: A Hanukkah Countdown, Kar-Ben (Rockville, MD), 1998.

Patricia Lauber, The True-or-False Book of Horses, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2000.

Patricia Lauber, The True-or-False Book of Dogs, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

Also illustrator, sometimes under name Roz Schanzer, of several hundred books, posters, magazine articles, games, and filmstrips for children, including the filmstrip Comparing Sizes, Harcourt, 1980, and a series of eight books by Dr. Lawrence Balter, "Dr. Balter's Stepping Stone Stories," Barron's, 1989 and 1990.

SIDELIGHTS: Rosalyn Schanzer is a prolific author and illustrator of children's books. Beginning her career as an illustrator of books and greeting cards for Hallmark Cards, Schanzer has branched off into writing and illustrating her own books for children, as well as creating the pictures for scores of books written by others. In Gold Fever, a self-illustrated work, she provides a detailed account of the California gold rush, complete with original materials from the period, including journal entries, letters, and other documents, providing a "uniquely exciting introduction to a fascinating period," according to Steven Engelfried in School Library Journal. Similar to Gold Fever is Schanzer's How We Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark. As the title indicates, the book recounts the adventures of explorers Lewis and Clark as they set out across the United States in their famous journey. Once again, Schanzer combines her illustrations with anecdotes, original documents, and journal entries to create an "exuberant picture book," enthused a reviewer for Publishers Weekly.

In Escaping to America: A True Story, Schanzer presents an account of her own father's escape from war-torn Poland in 1921, and his exciting journey to the United States. Although based on a personal account, critics have noted that Schanzer's subject matter is relevant to the immigrant experience even today, making this work a "timeless" contribution to the genre, said School Library Journal contributor Diane S. Marton. In Davy Crockett Saves the World Schanzer returns to her retelling of American history in a "thundering good choice for reading aloud," wrote Carolyn Phelan in her Booklist assessment. Told in the tradition of the tall tale, the book recreates the legend of this American folk hero in a work that "frame[s] this zesty slice of Americana admirably," noted a reviewer for Publishers Weekly.

Schanzer told CA, "I made my debut on Thanksgiving Day, 1942, with a paintbrush in one fist and a Crayola in the other, and I have been coloring ever since. So far, I have colored hundreds of books for kids and an untold number of magazine illustrations, filmstrips, posters, and other items too numerous and sundry to mention.

"Here are some interesting things I have done when I was not chained to my desk watching words and pictures fall out of my fingers: I have helped sail a very famous sailboat over eight hundred miles from Bermuda to Boston with five men. I have had my dislocated ankle repaired in the jungles of Ecuador by an illiterate peasant who wielded a five-foot machete and told me not to dance for a week. I have flown in a tiny plane through a storm over the ruins of Tikal in Guatemala, swum with sharks in the reefs of Belize, explored ancient Incan ruins in Peru, and kayaked with whales in Alaska. I have been married to my husband, Steve, since 1966, and we have two adult children, Adam and Kim. We also have a dog named Jones.

"For years I illustrated literally hundreds of books, magazine articles, posters, and games for children. Finally, I decided that if I wanted to do books my own way, I would have to write them myself. So in 1993 I began writing and illustrating books about adventurers I would like to have met and exotic places I would like to have visited. The first two of these books, Ezra in Pursuit and Ezra's Quest, represent a real breakthrough for me. They introduced me to writing stories in a historical context for the first time. The idea was to tell about the past in an exciting, unusual way that would appeal strongly to a young audience. The complex picture mazes in those two books virtually allowed readers to step directly into the landscapes and adventures depicted on each page, sort of like Alice in Through the Looking Glass. The text and art are funny, historically accurate, and full of outrageous characters, authentic detail, and surprising twists and turns.

"Ever since that time, I have tried to think up as many new ways as possible to shake the cobwebs out of history and to make the characters from our past spring to life. I have written entire books using quotes from history's real heroes. I've used an authentic cowboy song to tell the story of a cattle drive, have written some stories entirely in rhyme, and have practically drowned in a sea of research material in order to insure that everything I write and paint is absolutely accurate down to the last tiny detail. What a hoot, and besides, history is never boring. By writing and illustrating these books, I've learned about some of the greatest adventures of all time."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 5, 1997, Carolyn Phelan, review of How We Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark, p. 233; November 15, 2001, Carolyn Phelan, review of Davy Crockett Saves the World, p. 573.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, November, 1997, Elizabeth Bush, review of How We Crossed the West, p. 100.

Kirkus Reviews, March 15, 1999, review of Gold Fever: Tales from the California Gold Rush, p. 456.

Publishers Weekly, September 29, 1997, review of How We Crossed the West, p. 89; July 31, 2000, review of Escaping to America: A True Story,p. 95; July 23, 2001, review of Davy Crockett Saves the World, p. 77.

School Library Journal, April, 1999, Steven Engelfried, review of Gold Fever: Tales from the California Gold Rush, p. 123; September, 2000, Diane S. Marton, review of Escaping to America: A True Story, p. 222; August, 2001, Barbara Buckley, review of Davy Crockett Saves the World, p. 161.

OTHER

Children's Book Guild Web site,http://www.childrensbookguild.org/ (May 7, 2003).