Joan Carris
Joan Carris has just completed her 20th book and shows no signs of slowing down. She knows how important reading is, and so she writes books that will hold kids' attention. Joan writes stories about real, not perfect, families--and animals of all kinds, real and magical.
To flesh out her stories, she does plenty of research. Stolen Bones (1993, Little, Brown, now OP) took two years, including a two-week stint at Jack Horner's dinosaur dig in Montana. Living in the United Kingdom along with her curiosity about superstitions gave her the background for Aunt Morbelia and The Screaming Skulls (1990, Minstrel Bks, $3.99), Beware The Ravens, Aunt Morbelia (1995, Little, Brown, Ages 8 up, $14.95), and Hedgehogs In The Closet (Harper, 1987), the third Howard boys book, now OP. Years of summers on a Kentucky farm plus several books on pigs provided information for Just A Little Ham (Minstrel Bks, $3.99). Her love of dogs and more research resulted in Howling for Home (1992, Little, Brown, now OP)--a book for beginning readers. "I love this one," she says. "It's funny and fast-paced, yet full of hints on how to be a good dog owner." Her humorous tale of a modern-day witchly mistake, Witch-Cat (Harper, 1984), is still a CBS Story Hour Special.
Because children's fiction rarely makes a living for its author, Joan spends half of her time on more lucrative English textbooks that prepare high schoolers for SATs and help them to grow their vocabularies. "As an old English teacher," she says, "I enjoy creating books that teach yet are fun to study."
Joan's career includes journalism, a field she left because, "The editor always needed my work before I was finished beating on it." She's done many articles for education magazines, and all of her work is spiced with humor. "Life is going to throw bad stuff at us whether we want it or not," she says, "so in writing and in my own reading I look for joy and laughter. Laughing has positive, documented benefits for good health."
Several of Joan's books have been translated into French, and one, Just A Little Ham, is also available in Finnish. Both of the Aunt Morbelia books are available on audio tapes, as well. Joan's interest in literature in the classroom led her to developing teaching guides for several of her books as well as teacher-oriented essays on ways to lure children into reading. Right now she's working on a book for kids 7 to 10 years old, a critical period of the life of a young reader. "These shorter books look easy, but they're tough to do right," she says, grinning.
Follow this link to Teaching Guides by Joan Carris and this one for even more information about Joan Writing Tips and more.
Reviews
Beware the Ravens, Aunt Morbelia
Joan Carris
Great Aunt Morbelia may be a senior citizen, but she has enough spirit and energy to keep her grand nephew Todd Fearing and his friend Jeff on their toes during a visit to her ancestral English home, Harrowood. As soon as they arrive, croaking ravens and other odd occurrences cause them to wonder if perhaps Harrowood has too much spirit, the ghostly kind, that is. Their quest for a solution to an old family mystery also leads them to London and the Natural History Museum. Good-natured banter between Jeff and Todd and their impressions as visitors to England, help make this nonviolent tale a good choice for beginning mystery fans. 1995, Little, Brown, Ages 8 to 12, $14.95. Reviewer: Gisela Jernigan
Added 12/01/96
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