Who Am I?

I'm a picture book author represented by James McGowan at BookEnds Literary. Always eager to get kids excited about reading, I visit schools, book festivals, libraries, and bookstores. My favorite place to be, however, is the woods, where I run, hike, and talk to the animals.

I was born in Lincoln, Maine, but my family moved when I was still just a baby. Ultimately, after several moves, I grew up in a South Jersey housing development, nestled between cornfields, woods, and a lake – the perfect recipe for fun, exploration, and mosquito bites!

Growing Up

I wrote my first stories in that South Jersey home, including a tall tale for my wonderful G & T teacher, Mrs. Hargus. Upon "publication" of our stories, my class was featured in the Vineland Times Journal. And look! I made the front page! I'm the one holding the pencil.

My First Stories

If I Could Go Back in Time…

After graduating from the green-and-gold Arthur P. Schalick High School in 1990, I attended the College of New Jersey and became a third grade teacher at the Lanes Mill Elementary School in Brick, New Jersey. To this day I think third graders are GREAT! If I could go back in time, I'd be an imaginative, live-in-the-moment, full-of-possibility third grader all over again.

Since then I've taught preschool, kindergarten, and fitness classes at the gym. I now live in New York with my husband and two children, plus one very naughty bunny . . . and I'll read books to anyone who will listen!

Scrapbook

  • My super fun family.

  • My cheerleading days. Go, Schalick Cougars!

  • Me with my younger sister Katie and brother John in the early 1990s.

  • My parents, Bruce and Rhonda Hall, on their wedding day. Love you, Mom and Dad!

  • Biking on the beach.

  • How Could a Bear Sleep Here? launch party.

  • My backyard bear, the inspiration for HOW COULD A BEAR SLEEP HERE?