Barbara Park

Children's Literature

Have you ever wondered what makes an author tick? Or, more to the point, how he or she got the idea to write the book you have been enjoying? This biography of the popular author of the "Junie B. Jones" books is part of the "Who Wrote That?" series and it sums up her life and career from her birth in 1947 through the first years of the 21st century. Barbara discusses the childhood that formed her perspective, the sources of her story ideas and the philosophy behind the attitudes of her characters, the way she plots her stories, and why she usually writes in first person. Photographs accompany the text, along with side bars of interesting facts labeled "Did You Know..." At the conclusion of the book is a list of notes, a chronology, lists of her most popular books, a list of works by Barbara Park, a list of her most well-known characters, major awards, a bibliography, further reading, web sites, and an index. 2006, Chelsea House Publishers/Infobase Publishing, Ages 12 up.
—Hazel Buys