Barbara Steiner
Barbara Steiner loves to write and she loves to travel. She says that her journeys have turned into gold, as many of her books have been inspired by her visits to exotic places. But she quickly adds that she never runs out of ideas for stories. Observations of everyday life, her daughters’ experiences growing up, and considering questions of “what if?” about a variety of topics keep her mind hopping. Writing all this down is an integral part of her life.
Her father supported his family by selling moonshine and Indian relics. His business was so successful that he expanded. They moved to the resort town of Hot Springs and lived in the back of a curio shop, which had an attached museum featuring Indian artifacts. Barbara has always aspired to be an eccentric like her father and she feels like she has been successful in accomplishing this goal. She reports that she was born on the kitchen table in her family home in Dardanelle, Arkansas, in 1934.
Barbara loved wandering through the store and listening to the stories her daddy told the tourists. One of her favorites featured the skeleton of boy clutching a Civil War Rifle. Her father would claim that this rifle was a rare find. Obviously the boy had been clutching it as he died. Many mesmerized shoppers left toting the “historic” rifle. As soon as the car drove away, Barbara’s daddy would go into the back room and come out with another rifle to place in the skeleton’s hands. His “authentic” arrow heads of different colors made from soda pop bottles were also popular souvenirs.
A loner as a child, Barbara had her favorite hiding places when her parents were fighting. She discovered at an early age that her father was an alcoholic and that her parents were in constant conflict. Barbara started first grade at age five and breezed through elementary school doing so well that the teachers had her skip the sixth grade. She was ten years old and close to six feet tall when she entered junior high. She had no problems with the school work, but she was isolated socially and very shy. That was the same year her parents divorced. The fighting stopped, but she didn’t see her beloved daddy for twenty years.
After completing college with majors in education and psychology, Barbara taught third grade and served as a reading specialist for four years. She saved most of her earnings and used them to take her first trip abroad in 1958, spending the summer traveling throughout Europe. Since then she has traveled to 88 foreign countries. When she ventures forth on her planned trip to Antarctica, she will have walked on all the continents of the world.
Her husband’s job brought her to Colorado 1966 and she has lived in Boulder since then. An established writer and the time of the move, Barbara reports that she has supported herself with her writing since 1980. With 66 books published so far, she is still counting. Picture books, animal books, humor, mysteries, horror stories, romances, school stories, historical novels. Name a genre and Barbara has written a children’s or adolescent book that fits there.
Whale Brother (1988), one of her best known picture books, features the bond between whales and people. Omu, a young Eskimo boy, wants to play the harmonica and make carvings from whale bone, but his playing and his carved creatures lack spirit until he cares for a dying whale on a nearby shore. Prior to the publication of this book, Barbara had written a series of biographies about endangered animals, including a killer whale, a Bengal tiger, a desert bighorn, and a kangaroo rat. She traveled throughout the world to see these animals and actually touched a killer whale from a boat in the ocean.
Oliver Dibbs to the Rescue (1985) begins a series of humorous books with underlying environmental themes. Set in Boulder, Colorado, Oliver sets out to rescue a town of prairie dogs. In a later book, he works with his classmates to convince the Colorado Legislature to name the stegosaurus as the state dinosaur. Oliver’s dog Dolby was such a popular character that he rated a book of his own, Dolby and the Woof-Off (1991). Barbara has just completed a book about Oliver and a panda project which she hopes to see in print soon. She says that Oliver, like many of her characters, just appears in her mind and talks to her.
Writing mystery stories for middle grades is one of Barbara’s specialties. Some of these titles include Ghost Cave (1990), The Mummy (1998), and Mystery at Chilkoot Pass (2003). She has recently added writing mysteries for the American Girls series to her repertoire. In The Cry of the Loon: A Samantha Mystery (2009), her latest published book, Samantha takes her friend Nellie to visit her beloved Grandmary’s lodge on the island of Piney Point in the Adirondacks. Grandmary has visibly aged since her last visit and she is thinking of selling the place, partly because of the number of strange accidents that keep happening. But are these incidents really “accidents?” Samantha and Nellie don’t think so. They set out to find the culprits.
Barbara confesses that her horror stories for adolescents are so scary that writing them sometimes frightens her. Friends, agents, and editors have received late night telephone calls for reassurance when she has been composing alone after dark and gusty winds are howling around her house.
Tessa (1988), a book for teens, is set in Arkansas and is somewhat autobiographical. Currently, Barbara is working on a memoir for both adolescent and adult readers, Takin’ after My Daddy. Kathleen Phillips, another Boulder author, and Barbara Steiner have collaborated on books about writing. Creative Writing: A Handbook for Teaching Young People and Catching Ideas: Activity Book for Creative Writing are widely used by teachers and teen writers.
Generous in sharing her expertise in writing, Barbara has helped many aspiring authors become successful. She has taught writing courses through the Continuing Education Program at the University of Colorado for many years. She was selected as a “Distinguished Instructor in Teaching” and later received an “Outstanding Teacher Award.” These honors are special to Barbara because they originate with students Barbara also holds classes in her home, conducts writing workshops in schools, and presents frequently at professional conferences.
Barbara helped organize the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She served as president and then as regional advisor. She later served on the national board and was co-coordinator for all regional advisors in the United States. Barbara has also been president of Rocky Mountain Sisters in Crime. She speaks at many of their annual workshops – called the Blunt Instrument Invitational.
The quality of Barbara’s books has been recognized with numerous awards and nominations. Some of the major ones include:
- Recipient of the Colorado Authors’ League Top Hand Award for fourteen different books
- Mystery of Chilkoot Pass included in Booklist’s Top Ten Mysteries of 2002
- Ghost Cave nominated for an Edgar by the Mystery Writers of America
- Tessa nominated for South Carolina’s Young Adult Book Award
- Oliver Dibbs and the Dinosaur Cause nominated for Children’s Book Awards in four states
- Three nominations for the Colorado Children’s Book Award
Both of Barbara’s daughters have become writers as adults. Rebecca writes for outdoor magazines. Rachel writes fantasy and is also an artist. Barbara is proud of her three grandchildren who are embarking on careers of their own. With the upcoming trip to Antarctica and several books in the process of publication, Barbara Steiner continues the adventures of her life--traveling and writing.
Contributor: Phyllis K. Kennemer
Reviews
Desert Trip
Barbara Steiner
Illustrated by Ronald Himler
Barbara A. Steiner's pleasing blend of fact and fiction in which an elementary grader, on an overnight desert trip with her mom, learns about Utah's canyon-lands and how Native Americans used its plants. 1996, Sierra, Ages 7 up, $16.9. Reviewer: Dr. Beverly Kobrin (Children's Literature).
Best Books:
- Adventuring with Books: A Booklist for Pre-K--Grade 6, 12th Edition, 1999; National Council of Teachers of English; United States
- Recommended Literature: Kindergarten through Grade Twelve, 2002; California Department of Education; California
ISBN: 0-8715-6581-1
ISBN: 978-0-8715-6581-5
The Dreamstalker
Barbara Steiner
The Dreamstalker is an absorbing mystery written for adolescents. Karen lives with her twin brother Kerr in a home atmosphere that is troubled and depressed. Her mother is withdrawing from life, and her father is a workaholic. The twins' relationships, though close, has certain unhealthy aspects to it. Karen and Kerr are studying dreams in an advanced placement psychology class during their senior year. Karen has disturbing dreams involving the deaths of her classmates. When these dreams come true, bodies start to pile up, and she is deeply confused. The conclusion of the story is quite strange and leaves many questions unanswered. However, YAs will like the book for its intensity. Another nice feature has the author interspersing the text with the killer's thoughts, reminiscent of the style of mystery writers like Mary Higgins Clarke. 1992, Avon Flare, Ages 12 to 18, $3.50. Reviewer: Barbara A. Zynda (KLIATT Review, April 1992 (Vol. 26, No. 3)).
ISBN: 0-380-76611-6
ISBN: 978-0-380-76611-6
The Cry of the Loon
Barbara Steiner
The “American Girls” have been the “girl power” series for quite some time now. In this latest installment, readers are taken back to the Adirondacks at the turn of the century. Samantha is excited about bringing her friend Nellie to meet her grandmother and to see the lodge; however, when she gets there, she begins to hear stories about accidents that seem to keep happening to the lodge and surrounding buildings. Grandmother thinks it is a sign that maybe they should sell the lodge to a developer that has been pressuring her, but Samantha and Nellie think a conspiracy may be at work. They set off to solve the mystery with an ever changing list of suspects including the manager’s two annoying sons and a traveling painter who keeps showing up. For readers familiar with the “American Girls,” this novel will be one more to add to their collection. The mystery makes sense, and the solution is a surprise, even though the clues are evident after the fact. The girls are likeable and easy to admire; however, readers who do not know about the series may have trouble following a few parts because the author expects them to know how the two girls and their two other traveling companions are related and at times refers back to situations that did not happen in this novel. It is a series book, and fans of this series will like it. 2009, Pleasant Company, Ages 11 to 13, $6.95. Reviewer: Heather Robertson Mason (Children's Literature).
ISBN: 978-1-5936-9480-7
ISBN: 1-5936-9480-6
Mystery at Chilkoot Pass
Barbara Steiner
In this well-researched historical fiction novel, Hetty McKinley and her father set off to search for gold in the Klondike. The year is 1897, and the Alaskan Gold Rush is in full swing. As they make their way along the seventeen- mile Chilkoot Trail, Hetty faces many hardships and meets an assortment of spirited people. A mystery presents itself almost at the start, first with the disappearance of substantial sums of money followed by many personal items with little more than sentimental value. Hetty, herself, finds her locket missing--one of the only remembrances of her deceased mother. Along with her friend, Alma, Hetty tries to solve the mystery as they move from camp to camp. Children will be captivated by descriptions of harrowing avalanches, rampant illness and the utter exhaustion of carrying heavy loads up the snowy, treacherous trail. A beautiful map at the beginning of the book will help kids keep up with Hetty's travels, and a nonfiction section at the back is very well illustrated and chock full of interesting tidbits about the Gold Rush. Kids will find this installment of the "American Girl History Mysteries" a pleasant and easy read, but the narrative would be much more immediate and personal if more entries from Hetty's journal had been included in the text. Much reference is made to Hetty wanting to be a writer and keeping a journal, but there are disappointingly few glimpses of it. Still, a very good book, which historical fiction fans will like. 2002, Pleasant Company, Ages 8 to 12, $10.95 and $6.95. Reviewer: Jane Harrington (Children's Literature).
It is 1897 and a madness has struck the country, a madness to seek gold in the Klondike. Hetty and her father have given up their life in San Francisco to join the thousands who flocked to a very inhospitable part of the world to seek their fortune. With them are Hetty's uncle Donall, her friend Alma, Alma's mother, Mrs. Vasquez, and a single woman traveling alone called Sarah Lancaster. The journey to the Klondike in Canada is a very difficult one. "Klondikers" must have almost a ton of supplies per person and must be able to pay a sizable tax to enter Canadian territory. Hetty and her party struggle to get all their supplies over the Chilkoot Pass before winter arrives. Carrying load after load of supplies, the Klondikers inch their way up the mountainside. They deal with a blizzard, an icy path, an avalanche, illness and even death. Against this backdrop of hardship, Hetty and those who are traveling with her encounter another problem. Money is stolen and then treasured keepsakes start to disappear as well. Hetty realizes that there is a thief, or even two thieves, among them. Hetty is determined to discover who is taking their possessions. Even if we think this hunt for gold is foolishness, we cannot help but feel admiration for these adventurers. They face each crisis as a group, finding love and even laughter as they toil up the mountainside. The author has incorporated a lot of fascinating historical detail into this mystery story. We meet various characters who really did cross the Chilkoot Pass in the late 1800s, for example, the now famous writer Jack London. In addition, many of the events in the story actually happened during the Klondike gold rush. This is one of the books in the “American Girl History Mysteries" series. 2002, Pleasant Company, Ages 10 up, $6.95. Reviewer: Marya Jansen-Gruber (Children's Literature).
ISBN: 1-5848-5488-X
ISBN: 1-5848-5487-1
ISBN: 978-1-5848-5488-3
ISBN: 978-1-5848-5487-6
Night Cries
Barbara Steiner
Formula fiction at its finest. Steiner takes a group of teens, strands them on an island, and then lets the fun begin. The kids are drama students and fairly sophisticated, making references to Orson Welles, El Greco and Rodin. The writing, however, is from the end-of-chapter thriller bag-of-tricks: "And there's blood on Miss Stubblefield's pillow." Steiner's has also used the Ten Little Indians gambit as her characters drop off one by one, which is good because with 13 characters, it is difficult to keep them all straight. Great cover, bland title and blurb, and an utterly functional thriller. 1993, Avon-Flare, Ages 12 to 15, $3.50. Reviewer: Patrick S. Jones (KLIATT Review, July 1993 (Vol. 27, No. 4)).
ISBN: 0-380-76990-5
ISBN: 978-0-380-76990-2
The Phantom
Barbara Steiner
Reggie Westmoreland, the star quarterback of last year's Stony Bay High School team in Michigan, has a little trouble staying in his grave. He was killed last year, as the result of a football game accident, but this does not seem to prevent him from showing up at the school's pep rally and at all the really good parties. The current football players are terrified, not only by the ghostly image, but by the fact that players are getting seriously hurt on and off the field. The malefactor is surprising although the characters are flat, with irritating nicknames such as "Frankie Pankie" and "Jilly Bean." The story will captivate both male and female readers, especially football fans. 1993, Scholastic, Ages 12 to 15, $3.50. Reviewer: Sherri Forgash Ginsberg (KLIATT Review, January 1994 (Vol. 28, No. 1)).
ISBN: 0-590-46425-6
ISBN: 978-0-590-46425-3
Spring Break
Barbara Steiner
It is easy - and sometimes necessary - to dismiss series fiction with its melodramatic plots, thin characterisation and paucity of language. Those of us determined to enmesh children in reading have often found 'Point Horror' to be a useful middle ground between the re-reading of early years favourites and the foray into adult fiction. The Carver is the better of these two titles, since it narrowly avoids the descent into implausibility. Gareth lives rough in the woods after an argument with his mother but is driven by a former existence and ancient forces to carve puppets full of evil intent, determined to grant the thwarted wishes of the adopted persona. Spring Break is less convincing, though there is some tension in the repeated motif of the haunted child in the deserted house. Too much is clumsily borrowed from The Birds and Great Expectations to sustain belief throughout, but there is animation in the characters and a degree of restraint in the narrative. Both titles will delight 'Point Horror' addicts and may entice more reluctant readers: this is 'want to read' fiction - another tool, however basic, with which to build literacy. Scholastic, Ages 10 to 12. Reviewer: BfK (Books for Keeps No. 106, September 1997).
ISBN: 0-590-19034-2
ISBN: 978-0-590-19034-3
Whale Brother
Barbara Steiner
Illustrated by Gretchen Will Mayo
Omu wants to become a great carver of ivory like Padloq his father. But Padloq tells him that he must first find the qarrtsiluni--the stillness. The magic he needs to create a great whalebone carving as well as music from his harmonica is not discovered until he stands watch beside a dying whale. Beautiful pastel drawings further enhance the text. 1988, Walker, Ages 7 up, $13.85, $12.95 and $6.95. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot (Children's Literature).
ISBN: 0-8027-6804-0
ISBN: 0-8027-6805-9
ISBN: 0-8027-6805-0
ISBN: 978-0-8027-6804-9
ISBN: 978-0-8027-6805-6
Added 08/25/09
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