Laura Krauss Melmed wrote her first book just a little over a decade ago. Her warm poetic texts resonate with young and adult readers. Laura fell in love with books at an early age and feels that her parents had a lot to do with that. They provided her with books from the weekly walks to the public library in New York as well as instilling in her a love of reading. Throughout her childhood she wrote poems, stories and plays that she and her friends would perform on the roof of their apartment house. She majored in sociology in college and attended graduate school in New Orleans. Currently Laura lives with her husband in Washington DC. They have three grown children. She wrote her first picture book to answer her son, Jonathan’s, question, “What was the first song ever sung?” His question became the title and the refrain. Laura has gone on to publish many picture books, both fiction and non-fiction. She feels fortunate to have worked with many gifted artists over the years, whose illustrations have helped bring her stories to life.
Selected Reviews of Laura's Books
Little Oh
Laura Krauss Melmed
Illustrated by Jim LaMarche
No, this isn't really how children are made or how families are formed. But it is an allegory that works on a symbolic level. And it does describe--with beauty, refinement, and style--how love is the basis of nurturing family relationships. The story of Little Oh is a story-within-a-story, a tale told mother-to-son, about an origami paper doll that comes to life before the astonished woman who created her. "Good morning, Mother!" says the doll as she springs from a lacquer box. "Oh!" exclaims the woman, and so names the doll. All day long, and then for days on end, the woman spent all her time playing with Little Oh instead of performing her craft as a potter. Every day her love for the doll grew. But she made no wares to sell, and with no income, the woman at last ran out of food and was forced to return to her work. (Working mothers may see a parallel here with their own experiences after childbirth.) "Take me with you to the market!" Little Oh begged as her mother packed a set of teacups for sale. Mother agrees, and pens a return address on Little Oh's back as a precaution. Soon after, Little Oh is packed snugly within a teacup within a basket that her mother carries to town. At market a hungry dog sees Little Oh move, and attacks the basket. Pandemonium results, and poor Little Oh finds herself afloat in the teacup on a river that turns to white water rapids and waterfalls. Landfall on a sandy beach introduces Little Oh to a she-crane, who is mourning for her dead husband. "Day after day I stand here alone, remembering better times," she says to Little Oh. "I miss somebody I love, too," says Little Oh. "Maybe a song will cheer us up." And it does. The crane and Little Oh become fast friends, and the next day the crane flies Little Oh to the garden of a house that from the air looked like Little Oh's home. After the crane flies away, Little Oh is dismayed to discover this is not her home, but the home of a man and a little boy. After sleeping several nights in an empty watering can, Little Oh remembers the home address penned on her back. She folds herself into the shape of a heart and flutters to rest near the front door, waiting to be found by the little boy (who gives the heart to his father). When the father returns the paper heart to the penned address and into the hands of Little Oh's mother, the heart is magically transformed into a real little girl who shouts, "I'm Little Oh, Mother!" and dances into her mother's arms. Here the story-within-the-story ends. "You know the rest," says the mother to the son. "The man and woman fell in love and married, and Little Oh and the boy became brother and sister." With the story's end, the little boy leaves his mother to play outside with Little Oh, thus leaving the reader with a delicious dash of ambiguity. This is a gentle yet memorable story, well-told in stunningly beautiful words and pictures. This is the second collaboration between author Laura Krauss Melmed and illustrator Jim LaMarche following their highly-acclaimed The Rainbabies. 1997, HarperCollins, 9-1/2 x 11-1/4, 32 pages, $16.00. Ages 4 up. Reviewer: Dan Dailey (The Five Owls, September/October 1997 (Vol. 12, No. 1).
Capital!: Washington D.C. From A to Z
Laura Krauss Melmed
Illustrated by Frané Lessac
Melmed welcomes readers to the city she now considers home through a series of poetic verses about major spots in our nation's capital. It runs alphabetically from "A" to introduce the Air and Space Museum to "Z," where in addition to meeting plants such as the Xanthosoma and creatures like the Yellow-spotted sidenecked turtle, we come right back to "A:" because "It's Amazonia, at the Zoo!" A clever touch that brings everything full-circle. In between, the pages are packed with information about the places that tourists and certainly kids would be interested in visiting. The Capitol of course, Federal Bureau of Investigation and White House are among those. The little factoids on each page add to the fun, and trivia buffs will revel in picking up a few more gems to dazzle friends and family. Frane Lessac's primitive style is a perfect match for this picture book. Her map that makes up the end papers is a real treat, because it lays out all of the places mentioned in the text and helps put the city in perspective. Melmed sums it up very neatly in her introduction: "If you have been to Washington, you can use this book as a remembrance of what you saw and did. If not, I hope that one day you will have the chance to visit or live here, so that you can explore for yourself, from A to Z, your very special capital, Washington, D.C." 2003, HarperCollins, $15.99. Ages 6 up. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot (Children's Literature).
New York, New York: The Big Apple From A to Z
Laura Krauss Melmed
Illustrated by Frané Lessac
This vibrant alphabet book explores the five boroughs of New York--Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Whether children live in New York or dream of visiting some day, this book covers all of the major tourist attractions. The folk-art painting illustrations are so busy and detailed; children will find something new each time they read the book. The author has written interesting details about the many historic places in New York City. The small print and the amount of text will prohibit young children from reading this book alone. It is a great book for a read-aloud with school children or at bedtime. There is so much material that you could read the book over the course of several days. The book explores places like Central Park, Harlem, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Rockefeller Center. This book would make an excellent addition to any library. Children and adults alike will not tire of looking at the beautiful illustrations or the fascinating facts about the Big Apple. 2005, HarperCollins Publisher, $16.99. Ages 6 up. Reviewer: Renee Kirchner (Children's Literature).
Laura’s presentations are very interactive. She prefers to work with groups of 60 or less. She will make 4 presentations in a day. Her program focuses on the making of a picture book from conception to completion. She uses a lot of visuals and props. Her audiences are usually preK-grade 3. She will conduct poetry workshops with 4th and 5th graders.
Fees: In the Washington metro area, $700 for up to 2 sessions and $325 for each additional session up to four in one school day. Out of town: $1200 per day. Transportation and lodging costs to be paid by sponsoring organization.
To learn more about Laura and her publications please visit www.laurakraussmelmed.com.
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