Dyer, Jane

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Dyer, Jane

Personal

Daughter of a kindergarten teacher; married; husband's name Tom; children: Brooke, Cecily.

Addresses

Home and office—Northampton, MA.

Career

Illustrator and author of children's books. Taught kindergarten and second grade; Boston Education Research Company, Boston, MA, illustrator; Addison-Wesley Publishers, Boston, illustrator.

Awards, Honors

National Parenting Publications Awards, 1992, for Talking like the Rain, and 1996, for Animal Crackers; Best Books of the Year selection, Parenting magazine, 1997, for Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream; winner of several awards from state reading associations.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

(Compiler) Animal Crackers: A Delectable Collection of Pictures, Poems, and Lullabies for the Very Young, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1996, adapted as boardbook edition published as A Box of Animal Crackers, 2002.

Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 2002.

Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School!, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 2003.

Little Brown Bear and the Bundle of Joy, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 2004.

ILLUSTRATOR

Polly Thompson, Where Is Cuddles?: A Book of Hidden Surprises, Hasbro Bradley (Pawtucket, RI), 1985.

Mary Blount Christian, Penrod's Pants, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1986.

Jane Yolen, The Three Bears Rhyme Book, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1987.

Mary Blount Christian, Penrod Again, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1987.

Jane Yolen, Piggins, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1987.

Jane Yolen, Picnic with Piggins, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1988.

Jane Yolen, Piggins and the Royal Wedding, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1988.

Judy Collins, My Father, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1989.

Jane Yolen, Baby Bear's Bedtime Book, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1990.

Katharine Ross, Cozy in the Woods, Random House (New York, NY), 1990.

Mary K. Whittington, The Patchwork Lady, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1991.

X.J. Kennedy and Dorothy M. Kennedy, editors, Talking like the Rain: A Read-to-Me Book of Poems, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1992.

Nancy White Carlstrom, The Snow Speaks, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1992.

Mem Fox, Time for Bed, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1993.

Mary Jean Hendrick, If Anything Ever Goes Wrong at the Zoo, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1993.

The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories, Random House (New York, NY), 1994.

Jane Yolen, The Girl in the Golden Bower, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1994.

Jane Yolen, The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1995.

Jane Yolen, Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1997.

Nancy Willard, Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream: A Family Almanac, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1997.

Eileen Spinelli, When Mama Comes Home Tonight, Simon and Schuster (New York, NY), 1998.

William Jay Smith, compiler, Here Is My Heart: Love Poems, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1999.

Gary Goss, Blue Moon Soup: A Family Cookbook: Recipes, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1999.

Kathi Appelt, Oh My Baby, Little One, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2000.

Mary Ann Hoberman, Whose Garden Is It?, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2000.

Annie Ingle, Peekaboo Farm, Random House (New York, NY), 2000.

Rose A. Lewis, I Love You like Crazy Cakes, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 2000.

Eileen Spinelli, Sophie's Masterpiece: A Spider's Tale, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2001.

Patricia MacLachlan, The Sick Day, Random House (New York, NY), 2001.

Cynthia Rylant, Good Morning Sweetie Pie, and Other Poems for Little Children, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2001.

Linda Ashman, Babies on the Go, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2003.

Nancy Willard, Cinderella's Dress, Blue Sky Press (New York, NY), 2003.

Ruth Krauss, Goodnight, Goodnight, Sleepyhead, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2004.

Mary Ann Hoberman, Whose Garden Is It?, Gulliver Books/Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2004.

Kathleen Krull, A Woman for President: The Story of Victoria Woodhull, Walker & Co. (New York, NY), 2004.

Karen Beaumont, Move Over, Rover!, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2006.

Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Cookies: Bite-size Life Lessons, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2006.

Linda Ashman, Babies on the Go, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2007.

Ruth Krauss, Goodnight Goodnight Sleepyhead, HarperFestival (New York, NY), 2007.

Rose Lewis, Every Year on Your Birthday, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2007.

Kathleen Abel, A Smile So Big, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2008.

Laura Krauss Melmed, Hurry! Hurry! Have You Heard?, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2008.

Sidelights

Jane Dyer is an award-winning illustrator of children's books whose artwork is most typically described as "charming." Writing in Publishers Weekly, a critic dubbed Dyer's watercolors "country-style pretty," while Victoria contributor Claire Whitcomb praised the "Kate Greenaway quality of her illustrations." Working with authors such as Jane Yolen on the "Piggins" series and other stand-alone titles, as well as with other well-known writers such as X.J. Kennedy, Mary Blount Christian, Nancy White Carlstrom, Karen Beaumont, Cynthia Rylant, and Mem Fox, Dyer has created a body of work that is praised by critics and enjoyed by both children and adults. Additionally, she has also created several original self-illustrated picture books, among them the best-selling Animal Crackers: A Delectable Collection of Pictures, Poems, and Lullabies for the Very Young and her "Little Brown Bear" books.

Dyer grew up in a household full of books and with a desire to follow her mother into teaching. She did just that, teaching both kindergarten and second grade, but then when her husband was pursuing graduate studies in Cambridge, Massachusetts, she found work in illustration and in publishing, eventually illustrating lesson activities for an Addison-Wesley reading program. This led to further trade book work and finally to illustrating children's books.

Working with author Yolen, Dyer helped create the distinctive look of Yolen's "Piggins" books. Piggins introduces the "impeccable porker butler," as Horn Bookcritic Ann A. Flowers described the lead character of these Edwardian mysteries for the younger set. In the first book, Piggins must solve the mystery of who stole his mistress's diamond necklace. The theft takes place during a dinner party given by the Reynards and attended by several animal guests, including Lord and Lady Ratsby and the explorer Pierre Lapin, who all become suspects. Clues are blended into both text and art in this "delightful mystery for young readers," as a Publishers Weekly critic noted, while commending Dyer's "utterly charming pictures." Karen K. Radtke, writing in School Library Journal, also singled out the illustrations, noting that they "complement the text in every way." Similarly, Flowers praised Dyer's artwork that "perfectly depict[s] the pomp and circumstance of the era."

The "Piggins" series continues with Picnic with Piggins and Piggins and the Royal Wedding, both of which featuring the porcine servant in the unlikely role of detective. In Picnic with Piggins one of the Reynard children disappears on a picnic, and the piggy sleuth uncovers the truth of the matter after following a number of well-placed clues. Flowers dubbed this work an "elegantly Edwardian mystery," while a reviewer for Publishers Weekly cited Dyer's "well-designed and brightly colored illustrations." Susan Hepler, reviewing Picnic with Piggins for School Library Journal, also commended Dyer's watercolor illustrations that are "bright and full of tiny details."

A royal wedding ring disappears in Piggins and the Royal Wedding and it is once again Piggins to the rescue. Reviewers also praised this collaborative effort of Dyer and Yolen. Marcia Hupp, writing in School Library Journal, commented that the "weight of the storytelling is carried as much in pictures as in prose." A

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contributor for Publishers Weekly also mentioned Dyer's "richly detailed" and "brightly colored watercolors" which are "as extravagant as a real royal wedding."

Dyer and Yolen collaborate on retellings of the story about the three bears from Goldilocks fame in several titles for young readers. The Three Bears Rhyme Book presents fifteen verses which Baby Bear narrates, talking of birthdays, rain, and temper tantrums, among other topics familiar to children. "Dyer's vivid pages are exceptionally clever" as well as "a snug match for Yolen's lilting text," according to a reviewer for Publishers Weekly. Similarly, Ellen Fader wrote in School Library Journal that the illustrated pages, "with their elaborate backgrounds and varied framing devices, reinforce the book's sweet look."

Baby Bear and Goldie return in Baby Bear's Bedtime Book. Here, Goldilocks is babysitting the young bear and tells numerous bedtime tales to get him to go to sleep. Ruth K. MacDonald, reviewing the title in School Library Journal, found that Dyer's illustrations "provide the visual detail that will draw children to [the stories] again and again." A reviewer for Publishers Weekly had similar praise for Dyer's artwork, concluding that she "treats readers to crisp, imaginatively framed images."

In The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book, the bears and Goldilocks mark fifteen holidays throughout the year with their own special celebrations. "Each occasion is featured in a splendid two-page watercolor illustration," remarked Virginia E. Jeschelnig in School Library Journal, and a Publishers Weekly contributor dubbed Dyer's "buoyant" water color images "consistently engaging."

Single-book collaborations with Yolen include The Girl in the Golden Bower and Child of Faerie, Child of Earth. For the former title, an original fairy tale about an orphan who is befriended by the animals of the forest, Dyer's watercolor illustrations on parchment-like paper give the "entire production a feeling of having been handed down through the ages," according to Christine A. Moesch in School Library Journal. A reviewer for the New York Times Book Review also referred to the "pretty illustrations" in this "comfortingly familiar" story, and Booklist contributor April Judge concluded that the book's art "beautifully complement[s] the story's setting and tone." An unusual friendship between a girl and a faerie boy is recounted in Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, then brought to life in what School Library Journal contributor Carol Ann Wilson dubbed "bucolic settings of sunlit golds and nocturnal blues." In Booklist Stephanie Zvirin found the artwork for this same title to be "a study in colorful contrast."

Other fruitful collaborative efforts include the "Penrod" books featuring texts by Christian. In these stories, Penrod Porcupine manages to get his friend Griswold Bear in trouble with his inflated ideas. In Penrod's Pants, for example, when Penrod attempts to tailor Griswold's pants, he ultimately shortens them so much that they no longer fit the bear … but are now a perfect fit for Penrod. In School Library Journal Nancy Palmer cited Dyer's "attractive pencil and vivid watercolor illustrations," and a Publishers Weekly critic concluded that "Dyer's exceptionally vivid watercolors highlight" the book. Five more mini-adventures featuring the duo are served up in Penrod Again. A critic for Publishers Weekly felt that Dyer's illustrations for this title "winningly conveyed" the dynamics between porcupine and bear with "intense hues and tiny, precise details." Dyer's "brilliant colors are sure to catch readers' attention," concluded School Library Journal contributor Sharron McElmeel.

Tender moments are captured in many of Dyer's illustrative efforts. Lyrics by folksinger Judy Collins form the text for My Father, described by a Publishers Weekly critic as an "appealing picture book" in which a "halcyon palette delicately evokes the simple pleasures of … childhood." A New York Times Book Review critic also praised the artist's "sweetly stylized illustrations" for that book, while School Library Journal critic Marianne Pilla noted that some of Dyer's "impressionistic watercolors evoke Monet's paintings." Working with Kennedy and his wife, Dorothy Kennedy, Dyer creates "vibrantly colored, splendidly detailed illustrations" for Talking like the Rain: A Read-to-Me Book of Poems, according to a Publishers Weekly reviewer who dubbed them "some of this gifted artist's finest work." Hazel Rochman, writing in Booklist, similarly commended Dyer's "old-fashioned and bucolic" illustrations for the collection. In bringing to life Beaumont's story about a group of animal friends in Move Over, Rover!, School Library Journal critic Tamar E. Richman cited Dyer's "marvelously textured watercolor-and-acrylic illustrations."

In Carlstrom's The Snow Speaks, Dyer serves up "colorful, appealing images" that "will draw viewers into the book," according to Booklist critic Carolyn Phelan. In Publishers Weekly a reviewer wrote of the same book that Dyer's illustrations "skillfully straddle the worlds of fantasy and reality." Further bucolic scenes appear in Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream: A Family Almanac, in which Dyer teams up with Newbery medalist Nancy Willard to bring to life Midwestern rural life through the four seasons. Lee Bock, writing in School Library Journal, remarked that "the text is exquisitely illustrated with hand lettering and beautiful watercolor details," and a contributor for Publishers Weekly called Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream a "nostalgic, exquisitely designed and compulsively readable picture book."

Children feature in many illustrated books by Dyer. Working with Mem Fox on Time for Bed, she produces "commanding yet gentle" images that serve as "the key to the appeal of this bedtime lullaby," as a critic for Publishers Weekly noted. Writing in the New York Times

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Book Review, Lisa Shea had similar praise for the book's art, remarking that Dyer's "exquisite watercolors enhance the lullaby's sense of nighttime beauty and mystery." Working with Rylant on Good Morning Sweetie Pie, and Other Poems for Little Children, Dyer provides "expressive paintings," according to a critic for Kirkus Reviews, and in Publishers Weekly a contributor commented that the artist' "remarkable facility for creating nostalgic scenes with a timeless feel is in evidence here." "Dyer's scenes of old-fashioned kitchens and balmy outdoor picnics create a feeling of nostalgia" that contributes to Amy Krouse Rosenthal's "deliciously charming" etiquette guide Cookies: Bite-sized Life Lessons, according to a Publishers Weekly critic.

In her contributions to Rose A. Lewis's I Love You like Crazy Cakes, Dyer depicts a mother's real-life adventure traveling to China to adopt a baby daughter, while in Every Year on Your Birthday the story is expanded to include the girl's growing-up years. Heather Davis, writing in the New York Times Book Review, dubbed Dyer's artwork for I Love You like Crazy Cakes "direct and joyful," noting that her "warm pastels spread across the page like a blanket." In Book Kathleen Odean also had high praise for the book's "exquisite watercolors full of beautifully detailed fabrics," while in Publishers Weekly a critic wrote that in I Love You like Crazy Cakes Dyer's illustrations "are almost meltingly tender." In Lewis's sequel, "expressive watercolors evoke vivid memories" ranging from the party celebrating the girl gaining American citizenship to other important firsts, according to a Publishers Weekly critic. In School Library Journal June Wolfe dubbed Every Year on Your Birthday a "tender offering" in which Dyer's "delightful watercolor illustrations highlight the most touching points of the story."

More family themes are explored as a child and a working mother come together at the end of a long day in Eileen Spinelli's When Mama Comes Home Tonight. In Booklist Zvirin praised the "soft, warm glow radiating from the pictures" in this book, while a contributor for Publishers Weekly cited the "scenes of quiet domestic harmony" in the book. Dyer rejoins Spinelli for Soph-ie's Masterpiece: A Spider's Tale, the story of a little spider that creates art in its webs. In this "quiet celebration of life's small miracles," as a Horn Book critic described the book, Dyer's illustrations "capture the delicate magic of Sophie's webs and enhance this tale's quiet mood." A reviewer for Publishers Weekly further described the book's art as "gently tinted watercolors," concluding that the collaborators' tale of "devotion and generosity is as delicately woven as Sophie's own work."

In her self-illustrated compilation The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories Dyer presents readers with "a spirited salute to bedtime," according to a Publishers Weekly commentator. The book contains twenty-one tales from the European and the American traditions: tales ranging from folktale classics such as "Snow White and the Red Rose" to the work of Beatrix Potter and contemporary stories such as Joan Aiken's "The Baker's Hat." Dyer's "delicate" and "sprightly" illustrations are "the frosting on the cake" of this collection, according to the Publishers Weekly critic, while Rochman concluded that the artist's "warm and gentle" illustrations gave the book "an old-fashioned, affectionate character." Janet M. Bair, reviewing the book for School Library Journal, claimed that "Dyer's delicately detailed watercolors have a wonderful European flair."

In Animal Crackers, Dyer collects sixty-two nursery rhymes for young readers. Here works span world cultures, from traditional poems such as "Sing a Song of Sixpence" to a Brazilian lullaby, and verses ranging from Mother Goose to Jane Yolen and William Carlos Williams. Dyer's "soft, old-fashioned watercolor paintings … create a warm, comfortable work in which children are safe and loved," noted Horn Book critic Maeve Visser Knoth, and Deborah Stevenson wrote in the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books that the book's art is "gentle and old-fashioned without becoming sweetly bland." A contributor to Publishers Weekly dubbed Animal Crackers a "sumptuous book" that blends the "best work of both traditional and contemporary poets with pellucid watercolors that simply dazzle."

In her "Little Brown Bear" books, Dyer's engaging bear cub deals with classic childhood predicaments, from resisting going to bed, to digging his heels in against school. In Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, for instance, Little Brown Bear refuses to go into winter hibernation. Although he points out to his parents that the geese do not sleep all winter—instead, they fly south—the cub's parents are not convinced by his argument. After they put him to bed, Little Brown Bear sneaks off to find the geese, which have gathered at a train station for the trip south. Joining them, he heads for the beach where he builds a warm sand cave and promptly falls asleep for the rest of the winter. Come spring, Little Brown Bear flies back north with the geese and returns to his bed just before his mother comes to wake him. "Dyer's tale unfolds at the leisurely pace of a child's unmeasured days," wrote a critic for Publishers

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Weekly. The same reviewer felt that the author/illustrator's "watercolors brim with warmth and affection." A Kirkus Reviews contributor thought that Dyer's illustrations will "entertain young readers with both their beauty and their humor," and that youngsters will also "refuse to nap without this one." Roxanne Burg, writing in School Library Journal, similarly found Dyer's watercolor artwork to be "warm and charming and brimming with life." In Booklist Dianne Foote predicted that "toddlers will love Dyer's clear, tender watercolor illustrations" in Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!

Dyer's rambunctious bear cub makes return appearances in Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School! and Little Brown Bear and the Bundle of Joy. After his parents leave him at school one morning, Little Brown Bear decides to try something different in Little Brown Bear Won't Got to School! Instead, the furry truant heads for the nearby diner and asks for a job. Hired as a waiter, he ultimately fails because he cannot write the orders. Other mishaps also occur: a job at a barbershop ends with a displeased lion client and work on a beaver dam stops when the dam falls apart. Disappointed, Little Brown Bear decides to return to school where he gets a job that is perfect for him: handing out papers. In Booklist Cooper noted that Dyer's illustrations have "a wistful air," and that the story's conclusion "is upbeat and just right." MaryAnn Carcich, writing in School Library Journal, deemed the book's artwork "tantalizingly full of detail." While Carcich called Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School! an "entertaining antidote for starting-school blues," a critic for Kirkus Reviews concluded that fans of the first title "will love seeing their hero again."

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Book, May, 2001, Kathleen Odean, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 80.

Booklist, March 15, 1992, Hazel Rochman, review of Talking like the Rain: A Read-to-Me Book of Poems, p. 1386; September 15, 1992, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Snow Speaks, p. 154; June 1-15, 1993, Kathryn Broderick, review of If Anything Ever Goes Wrong at the Zoo, p. 1857; December 3, 1993, Michele Landsberg, review of Time for Bed, p. 93; October 15, 1994, April Judge, review of The Girl in the Golden Bower, p. 440; January 1, 1995, Hazel Rochman, review of The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories, pp. 826-827; March 15, 1995, Lauren Peterson, review of The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book, p. 78; April 15, 1996, Lauren Peterson, review of Animal Crackers: A Delectable Collection of Pictures, Poems, and Lullabies for the Very Young, p. 1442; January 1, 1998, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, p. 825; July, 1998, Stephanie Zvirin, review of When Mama Comes Home Tonight, p. 1879; July 31, 2000, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 94; December 15, 2001, Stephanie Zvirin, review of The Sick Day, p. 728; January 1, 2002, review of Sophie's Masterpiece: A Spider's Tale, p. 769; September 15, 2002, Dianne Foote, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, p. 239; May 1, 2003, Helen Rosenburg, review of Babies on the Go, p. 1598; August, 2003, Ilene Cooper, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School!, p. 1992; September 15, 2003, Karin Snelson, review of Cinderella's Dress, p. 249; September 1, 2006, John Stewig, review of Move Over, Rover!, p. 134; June 1, 2007, Julie Cummins, review of Every Year on Your Birthday, p. 70.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, March, 1996, Deborah Stevenson, review of Animal Crackers, p. 224.

Horn Book, July-August, 1987, Ann A. Flowers, review of Piggins, p. 459; July-August, 1988, Ann A. Flowers, review of Picnic with Piggins, p. 488; July-August, 1992, Hannah B. Ziegler, review of Talking like the Rain, p. 460; July-August, 1996, Maeve Visser Knoth, review of Animal Crackers, pp. 474-475; July, 2001, review of Sophie's Masterpiece, p. 444.

Kirkus Reviews, September 15, 2001, review of Good Morning, Sweetie Pie, and Other Poems for Little Children, p. 1367; March 15, 2003, review of Babies on the Go, p. 459; June 15, 2003, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School!, p. 858; August 1, 2003, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, p. 1127; April 15, 2006, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, review of Cookies: Bite-size Life Lessons, p. 414; August 1, 2006, review of Move Over, Rover!, p. 781; April 15, 2007, review of Every Year on Your Birthday.

New York Times Book Review, March 4, 1990, review of My Father, p. 33; January 30, 1994, Lisa Shea, review of Time for Bed, p. 27; March 26, 1995, review of The Girl in the Golden Bower, p. 25; August 13, 2000, review of Oh My Baby, Little One, p. 16; November 19, 2000, Heather Davis, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 52.

Publishers Weekly, May 30, 1986, review of Penrod's Pants, p. 65; February 27, 1987, review of Piggins, p. 163; August 28, 1987, review of Penrod Again, p. 79; September 11, 1987, review of The Three Bears Rhyme Book, p. 92; February 12, 1988, review of Picnic with Piggins, pp. 83-84; March 24, 1989, review of Piggins and the Royal Wedding, p. 70; November 10, 1989, review of My Father, p. 59; March 30, 1990, review of Baby Bear's Bedtime Book, p. 60; April 5, 1991, review of The Patchwork Lady, p. 145; March 23, 1992, review of Talking like the Rain, p. 73; July 6, 1992, review of The Snow Speaks, pp. 54-55; April 26, 1993, review of If Anything Ever Goes Wrong at the Zoo, pp. 77-78; August 9, 1993, review of Time for Bed, p. 475; October 17, 1994, review of The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories, p. 81; February 13, 1995, review of The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book, p. 78; April 8, 1996, review of Animal Crackers, p. 69; July 28, 1997, review of Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream: A Family Almanac, p. 73; October 20, 1997, review of Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, p. 75; July 20, 1998, review of When Mama Comes Home Tonight, p. 217; February 14, 2000, review of Oh My Baby, Little One, p. 196; July 31, 2000, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 94; May 14, 2001, review of Sophie's Masterpiece, p. 81; September 3, 2001, review of Good Morning, Sweetie Pie, and Other Poems for Little Children, p. 86; February 18, 2002, review of A Box of Animal Crackers, p. 99; July 1, 2002, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, p. 78; June 5, 2006, review of Cookies, p. 62; October 2, 2006, review of A Woman for President: The Story of Victoria Woodhull, p. 66; April 9, 2007, review of Every Year on Your Birthday, p. 52.

School Library Journal, May, 1986, Nancy Palmer, review of Penrod's Pants, p. 112; April, 1987, Karen K. Radtke, review of Piggins, p. 91; February, 1988, Ellen Fader, review of The Three Bears Rhyme Book, p. 71; March, 1988, Sharron McElmeel, review of Penrod Again, pp. 160-161; August, 1988, Susan Hepler, review of Picnic with Piggins, p. 87; June, 1989, Marcia Hupp, review of Piggins and the Royal Wedding, p. 96; October, 1989, Marianne Pilla, review of My Father, p. 103; May, 1990, Ruth K. MacDonald, review of Baby Bear's Bedtime Book, p. 94; June, 1991, Sally R. Dow, review of The Patchwork Lady, p. 93; June, 1992, Kathleen Whalin, review of Talking like the Rain, p. 108; July, 1993, Lori A. Janick, re- view of If Anything Ever Goes Wrong at the Zoo, pp. 60-61; October, 1993, Joy Fleishhacker, review of Time for Bed, pp. 98-99; October, 1994, Christine A. Moesch, review of The Girl in the Golden Bower, p. 106; November, 1994, Janet M. Bair, review of The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories, pp. 100-101; June, 1995, Virginia E. Jeschelnig, review of The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book, p. 106; May, 1996, Sally R. Dow, review of Animal Crackers, p. 103; October, 1997, Lee Bock, review of Cracked Corn and Snow Ice Cream, p. 126; January, 1998, Carol Ann Wilson, review of Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, p. 95; November 1, 1998, Martha Topol, review of When Mama Comes Home Tonight, p. 97; January, 1999, Kristen Oravec, review of Here Is My Heart: Love Poems, p. 121; September, 1999, Carolyn Jenks, review of Blue Moon Soup, p. 233; October, 2000, Gay Lynn Van Vleck, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 129; September, 2002, Roxanne Burg, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Take a Nap!, p. 189, and Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, review of I Love You like Crazy Cakes, p. 71; May, 2003, Jane Marino, review of Babies on the Go, p. 134; August, 2003, MaryAnn Carcich, review of Little Brown Bear Won't Go to School!, p. 126; March, 2006, John Peters, review of A Woman for President, p. 90; September, 2006, Tamara E. Richman, review of Move Over, Rover!, p. 159; May, 2007, Barbara Auerbach, review of Whose Garden Is It?, p. 66; June, 2007, June Wolfe, review of Every Year on Your Birthday, p. 112.