WESTON, Martha 1947-

PERSONAL: Born January 16, 1947, in Asheville, NC; daughter of Nelson George (a professor of zoology) and Martha (a homemaker; maiden name, Patton) Hairston; married Richard Weston (a hospital consultant); children: Dory, Charley. Education: Attended University of North Carolina—Greensboro, 1965-66; University of Michigan, B.F.A., 1969.

ADDRESSES: Home—P.O. Box 2544, San Anselmo, CA 94960. Agent—Dilys Evans, 1123 Broadway, Room 313, New York, NY 10010. E-mail—martha@ marthaweston.com.

CAREER: Freelance illustrator and author, 1970—. Worked in a design studio in New York, NY, and as an animator for the television show Sesame Street in San Francisco, CA. Work exhibited at Eagle Gallery, New York, NY, 1980 and 1986.

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

AWARDS, HONORS: The Book of Think was selected for the Children's Book Showcase in 1977; Children's Science Book Award from New York Academy of Sciences, 1981, for Bet You Can't!; The Hanukkah Book was named a Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies by National Council for the Social Studies-Children's Book Council Joint Committee, 1982; Child Study Association named Word Power a children's book of the year in 1986, and selected What Big Teeth You Have in 1987; New York Academy of Sciences Children's Science Book Award, younger category, 1989, for The Sierra Club Wayfinding Book.

WRITINGS:

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

Peony's Rainbow, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1981, reprinted as If I Only Had a Rainbow, Xerox, 1982.

Bea's Four Bears, Clarion (New York, NY), 1992.

Apple Juice Tea, Clarion (New York, NY), 1994.

Tuck in the Pool, Clarion (New York, NY), 1995.

Bad Baby Brother, Clarion (New York, NY), 1997.

Cats Are Like That, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1999.

Space Guys, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2000.

Jack and Jill and Big Dog Bill, Random House (New York, NY), 2001.

Tuck's Haunted House, Clarion (New York, NY), 2002.

The Dinosaurs Meet Dr. Clock, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2002.

Act One, Act Two, Act Normal, Roaring Brook Press (Brookfield, CT), 2003.

ILLUSTRATOR

(With James Robertson) Good Cents: Every Kid's Guide to Making Money, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1974.

Jamie Jobb, My Garden Companion: A Complete Guide for the Beginner, Scribner (New York, NY), 1977.

Em Riggs and Barbara Darpinian, I Am a Cookbook, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1977.

Marne Wilkins, The Long Ago Lake: A Child's Book of Nature Lore and Crafts, Sierra Books (San Francisco, CA), 1978, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 1989.

Vicki Cobb and Kathy Darling, Bet You Can't! Science Impossibilities to Fool You (Junior Literary Guild selection), Lothrop (New York, NY), 1980.

Miriam Schlein, Lucky Porcupine!, Four Winds Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Stephen Manes, The Hoople's Haunted House, Delacorte (New York, NY), 1981.

Dean Hughes, Honestly, Myron, Atheneum (New York, NY), 1982.

Carl M. Wallace, Should You Shut Your Eyes When You Kiss? or, How to Survive "The Best Years of Your Life," Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1983.

Pat Sharp, Brain Power! Secrets of a Winning Team, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1984.

Catherine B. Kaye, Word Works: Why the Alphabet Is a Kid's Best Friend, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1985.

Elizabeth Winthrop, Lizzie and Harold, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1985.

Esther Hautzig, Make It Special: Cards, Decorations, and Party Favors for Holiday and Other Celebrations, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1986.

Patricia Lauber, What Big Teeth You Have!, Harper (New York, NY), 1986.

Norma Jean Sawicki, Something for Mom, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1987.

Susan Fulop Kepner, Somebody's Mother, Strawberry Hill Press (San Francisco, CA), 1987.

Jerry Booth, The Big Beast Book; or, Dinosaurs and How They Got That Way, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1988.

Carol Barkin and Elizabeth James, Happy Valentine's Day!, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1988.

Anna Fairbank, Lucky Me!: An Adoption Story, Mariah Press (Millbrae, CA), 1988.

Elizabeth Winthrop, The Best Friends Club, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1989.

Vicki McVey, The Sierra Club Wayfinding Book, Sierra Books/Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1989.

Elizabeth Wilkinson, Making Cents: Every Kid's Guide to Money, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1989.

Jean Cushman, Do You Wanna Bet?: Your Chance to Find Out about Probability, Clarion (New York, NY), 1991.

Lynne Foster, Take a Hike!: The Sierra Club Kid's Guide to Hiking and Backpacking, Sierra Books (San Francisco, CA), 1991.

Vicki McVey, The Sierra Club Book of Weatherwisdom, Sierra Books (San Francisco, CA), 1991.

Harvey Hirsch and Audrey Hirsch, The Creche of Krakow: A Christmas Story, Momentum Books (Ann Arbor, MI), 1992.

Vicki McVey, The Sierra Club Kid's Guide to Planet Care and Repair, Sierra Books (San Francisco, CA), 1993.

Carol Barkin and Elizabeth James, The New Complete Babysitter's Handbook, Clarion (New York, NY), 1995.

Lissa Rovetch, Cora and the Elephants, Viking (New York, NY), 1995.

Carol Barkin and Elizabeth James, Social Smarts: Manners for Today's Kids, Clarion (New York, NY), 1996.

Kate Winters, Did You See What I Saw?: Poems about School, Viking (New York, NY), 1996.

Stephanie Green, Owen Foote, Soccer Star, Clarion (New York, NY), 1998.

Stephanie Greene, Owen Foote, Frontiersman, Clarion (New York, NY), 1999.

Marjorie Weinman Sharmat, Nate the Great and the Monster Mess, Delacorte (New York, NY), 1999.

Kate Winters, How Will the Easter Bunny Know?, Yearling (New York, NY), 1999.

Elizabeth Partridge, Pig's Eggs, Golden Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Stephanie Greene, Owen Foote, Money Man, Clarion (New York, NY), 2000.

Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and Mitchell Sharmat, Nate the Great: San Francisco Detective, Delacorte (New York, NY), 2000.

Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and Mitchell Sharmat, Nate the Great and the Big Sniff, Delacorte (New York, NY), 2001.

Stephanie Greene, Owen Foote, Super Spy, Clarion (New York, NY), 2001.

Elizabeth Partridge, Annie and Bo and the Big Surprise, Dutton (New York, NY), 2001. Margret Rey, Curious George in the Big City, Houghton (Boston, MA), 2001.

Margret Rey, Curious George Takes a Train, Houghton (Boston, MA), 2002.

Margret Rey, Curious George Visits a Toy Store, Houghton (Boston, MA), 2002.

Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and Mitchell Sharmat, Nate the Great on the Owl Express, Delacorte (New York, NY), 2003.

ILLUSTRATOR OF BOOKS BY MARILYN BURNS

The I Hate Mathematics! Book, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1975.

The Book of Think; or, How to Solve a Problem Twice Your Size, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1976.

I Am Not a Short Adult! Getting Good at Being a Kid, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1977.

This Book Is about Time, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1978.

The Hanukkah Book, Four Winds Press (New York, NY), 1981.

The Hink Pink Book; or, What Do You Call a Magician's Extra Bunny? (riddles), Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1981.

Math for Smarty Pants; or, Who Says Mathematicians Have Little Pig Eyes?, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1982.
The One Dollar World Riddle Book, Math Solutions Publications (White Plains, NY), 1990.

ILLUSTRATOR OF BOOKS BY LINDA ALLISON

Eenie Meenie Miney Math! Math Play for You and Your Preschooler, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1993.

Wordsaroni: Word Play for You and Your Preschooler, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1993.

Pint-Size Science: Finding-Out Fun for You and Your Young Child, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1994.

Razzle Dazzle Doodle Art: Creative Play for You and Your Young Child, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1994.

Howdy Do Me and You: Getting-Along Activities for You and Your Child, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1996.

SIDELIGHTS: Martha Weston's career began in the 1970s, and since that time her work has adorned dozens of books with pen-and-ink, pencil, and watercolor illustrations. The prolific Weston has provided illustrations for nonfiction and fictional children's titles by many different authors. She has written and self-illustrated nearly a dozen of her own titles. Additionally, she has taken the challenge of drawing well-known literary characters after the style of others—most notably Curious George in the manner of H. A. Rey and Nate the Great in the style of Marc Simont. Particularly noted for her ability to capture facial expressions, Weston creates pictures with "a cheerful look that will appeal to young children," according to Carolyn Phelan in Booklist.

Weston once commented: "From the time I was very young I knew that I would be an artist when I grew up. I simply couldn't imagine another life." Born in North Carolina and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, she attended college at the University in Michigan and earned a degree in fine arts. Over the following years she worked in New York City and San Francisco, learning layout design and painting animation cells for segments on Sesame Street. A fruitful collaboration began in 1972 when she met writer Marilyn Burns. Together—in a closer than usual author-illustrator relationship—they produced books about math, riddles, and magic for mid-level readers. As the 1980s began Weston found herself in demand as an illustrator for nonfiction nature and science titles as well as for novels and picture books.

Weston's own books present common family situations, sometimes using animals as substitutes for human characters. In Bea's Four Bears, the title character loses and re-discovers her four favorite teddy bears. Bad Baby Brother tells of the introduction of a new sibling through the eyes of a dissatisfied older sister. A youngster named Dot must deal with the quirks of her cat, Fuzzy, in Cats Are Like That, and a pig named Tuck overcomes fear of the water in Tuck in the Pool.

More recent Weston titles range farther afield in imagination. In The Dinosaurs Meet Dr. Clock, an eccentric but plausible scientist travels back in time to see dinosaurs. Horn Book reviewer Danielle J. Ford praised the "real science beneath the surface" of an easy-to-read book that encourages youngsters to make close observations. In Space Guys, a boy who cannot convince his parents that aliens have landed winds up spending the night enjoying the aliens' company—and then poses for polaroid pictures with them. Gillian Engberg, in Booklist, found the title to be "high-spirited fun for developing readers."

One challenge that Weston has faced is drawing characters that are already familiar to readers worldwide. Early in the twenty-first century she began drawing Curious George for his newer adventures, including Curious George in the Big City and Curious George Takes a Train. Weston has also taken over the duties of supplying illustrations to the "Nate the Great" series, originally illustrated by Marc Simont. Lauren Peterson, writing in Booklist, felt that Weston's drawings for Nate the Great: San Francisco Detective "manage to have a somewhat modern-day look while retaining the flavor of the 1970s," when the series made its debut.

On her Internet Home Page, Weston wrote: "For me, the best part of writing and illustrating is creating a world of my own—generally a goofy one—and feeling like I'm stepping into it." She once commented: "One of the best things about being an illustrator is that you have a tangible record of your work. I can look at a book I did and remember all kinds of things that were happening in my life while I worked on it. My bookshelves hold more than just books, they hold my life."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 15, 1992, Carolyn Phelan, review of Bea's Four Bears, p. 168; November 1, 1994, Ilene Cooper, review of Apple Juice Tea, p. 511; January 15, 1995, Ilene Cooper, review of Cora and the Elephants, p. 938; November 15, 1995, Hazel Rochman, review of Tuck in the Pool, p. 566; April 15, 1997, Carolyn Phelan, review of Bad Baby Brother, p. 1437; March 15, 1999, Carolyn Phelan, review of How Will the Easter Bunny Know?, p. 1339; March 15, 1999, Kay Weisman, review of Cats Are Like That, p. 1339; April 15, 2000, Gillian Engberg, review of Space Guys, p. 1556; July, 2000, Lauren Peterson, review of Nate the Great: San Francisco Detective, p. 2045; April 15, 2002, Carolyn Phelan, review of Jack and Jill and Big Dog Bill: A Phonics Reader, p. 1410; September 1, 2002, Hazel Rochman, review of Tuck's Haunted House, p. 141.

Horn Book, September, 2000, review of Owen Foote, Money Man, p. 569; May-June, 2002, Danielle J. Ford, review of The Dinosaurs Meet Dr. Clock, p. 337.

Kirkus Reviews, September 15, 1981, review of Peony's Rainbow, p. 1158; February 15, 1992, review of Bea's Four Bears, p. 261; April 1, 1997, review of Bad Baby Brother, p. 562.

Marin Review, summer, 1987.

Pacific Sun, March, 1988.

Publishers Weekly, August 7, 1981, review of Peony's Rainbow, p. 78; January 17, 2000, review of Pig's Eggs, p. 56.

School Library Journal, September, 1994, Elizabeth Hanson, review of Apple Juice Tea, p. 201; February, 1996, Marcia Hupp, review of Tuck in the Pool, p. 91; June, 1997, Lisa Marie Gangemi, review of Bad Baby Brother, p. 103; June, 1999, Nancy A. Gifford, review of Cats Are Like That, p. 108; May, 2000, Nancy J. Fuster, review of Space Guys, p. 158; June, 2002, Mary Ann Carcich, review of The Dinosaurs Meet Dr. Clock, p. 115; October, 2002, Piper L. Nyman, review of Tuck's Haunted House, p. 134.

ONLINE

Martha Weston Home Page, http://www.marthaweston.com (November 25, 2002).*