IN HER OWN WORDS
When I was young, I liked to sew,
play baseball, and read.
Short Bio
Jean Marzollo is the award winning author of over 100 books, including the best-selling I Spy books and the Shanna Show books. Recent books she has both written AND illustrated are: Pandora's Box; Let's Go, Pegasus! Little Bear, You're A Star; Daniel in the Lions' Den; Miriam and Her Brother Moses; David and Goliath; and Ten Little Eggs. She lives in Cold Spring, NY.
I was drawn to poetry early in life. I loved to read, and one of my favorite
books as a child was A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis
Stevenson. Also, my mother had several small poetry books in her bookshelf.
With their leather covers and gold titles, they were treasures to me.
I liked to hold them and peek through the pages.
I SPY
My favorite I Spy book is I Spy School Days.
But, of course, I love all the I Spy books. All of the riddles in the
books are written in rhythm and rhyme. Walter Wick, the photographer for
the I Spy books, is a visual poet. He makes and photographs the sets for
I Spy in his studio in Connecticut. I can’t write the riddles ahead
of time without restricting his artistic freedom. So I write them while
he is constructing his visually stunning sets. I suggest ideas for the
pictures and objects that fit the rhythm and rhyme of the riddles, and
I make sure that the pictures are developmentally appropriate for children.
The process is collaborative. The final riddles are written when the photos
are done.
Kids of all ages love I Spy because they like to use, to the fullest extent, their excellent powers of visual discrimination. Children and grown-ups can play on the same playing field; they are all good at I Spy. (Actually sometimes children are better than grown-ups.)
For children under three, I wrote new, simpler rhymes for board books
called: I Spy Little Book, I Spy Little Animals, I Spy Little Wheels,
I Spy Little Numbers, I Spy Little Christmas, I Spy Little Letters,
and I Spy Little Bunnies. I enjoyed testing these books with toddlers.
I also enjoy consulting on the I Spy games and puzzles available from
Briarpatch, on the I Spy CD-Roms available from Scholastic, and
on the I Spy TV show. For children who are beginning readers, I have
developed new I Spy readers, such as I Spy A School Bus, I
Spy Funny Teeth, I Spy Santa Claus, and I Spy A Balloon.
BOOKS I HAVE BOTH WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED
My latest passion
is illustrating my own books. So far I have illustrated three Greek myths,
one counting book, and five Bible stories.
Because children love fantasy and action, they love the ancient Greek myths, which are some of the most dynamic stories ever told.Unfortunately today, children usually are not exposed to these stories in book form until they are ten or older. Why is this? Probably because older children can read for themselves the rich, complex stories in such wonderful anthologies as Favorite Greek Myths retold by Mary Pope Osborne (Scholastic) and Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (Doubleday). The reading level of these books is too old for young children. I have found, however, in my visits to schools that children between the ages of 4-8 do recognize the names Zeus, Medusa, Pegasus, and Hercules. How do they know them? From movies and TV shows. What they know is not always faithful to the original stories, nor is it comprehensible.
My decision to retell and illustrate Greek myths for young children in picture book form is based on my desire to give children the opportunity to meet the famous Greek mythological characters and learn their powerful stories in a meaningful way. In educational jargon, I want to retell the stories in a manner that is "developmentally appropriate" for young children. I also want them to hear retellings that are faithful to the ancient storytellers Ovid and Hesiod. By learning about the Greek myths when they are young, children will have a solid base to build upon when they reach the upper elementary school grades. Then, through their own reading, they will enjoy adding new characters, intrigung details, and fascinating plot lines to their overall knowledge of Greek myths.
I love being able to create both the words and the art for children. All of me goes into these books, my teaching background, my writing skills, and my experience with children. Being responsible for both the text and the art is a huge challenge, but it is one that delights and refreshes me.
Ten Little Eggs was named the Best Counting Book by BabyZone! This book teaches children to count up to ten and back down to one. It also sets the foundation for addition and subtraction.
I have been overjoyed to retell and illustrate Bible stories for young children. I find these stories to be riveting and deeply satisfying. Too many children today do not know these wonderful stories, and they should. These rich tales are a vital part of our culture, and their messages are indeed relevant today. My retellings encourage children to think, laugh, ask questions, and act out the stories.
Children ask me about my hobbies today. I like to sew, watch baseball games, read, knit, and paint.
POETRY
Rhyme to me is verbal music.
Many of my books are
poems, and I have been fortunate to have outstanding artists illustrate
them: I
Love You illustrated
by Suse McDonald,
Ten Cats Have Hats illustrated by David McPhail, Home Sweet Home illustrated
by Ashley Wolff, Sun Song illustrated by Laura Regan, Pretend
You’re a Cat illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, Close Your
Eyes
illustrated by Susan Jeffers, In 1492 illustrated by Steve
Bjorkman, Christmas Cats illustrated by Hans Wilhelm, Do You
Know New? illustrated by Mari Takabayashi, and Mama Mama and
Papa Papa both illustrated by Laura Regan.
HISTORY AND SCIENCE
I like the challenge of writing non-fiction
for young children.
I don’t always write in rhyme. I like the challenge of writing simple
prose about complicated subjects. I wrote Happy Birthday, Martin Luther
King (illustrated by Brian Pinkney) to help young children celebrate
this great hero. I also wrote In 1492 about Christopher Columbus.
I have written
ten science books for beginning readers. The titles are: I Am a Leaf,
I Am a Rock, I am a Caterpillar, I Am Fire, I Am an Apple, I Am Water,
I’m a Seed, I Am Snow, I Am a Star, and I Am Planet Earth.
SPORTS
My sons helped me write these books.
I grew up in Manchester, Connecticut in a family that liked sports, especially
the Boston Red Sox. Now I live in New York State so I root, along with
my husband and sons, for the Knicks, the Jets, the Mets, and the Yankees.
I started writing sports stories when my sons were young. On my own I
wrote: Soccer Sam, Soccer Cousins, Cannonball Chris, Pizza Pie Slugger,
and Slam Dunk Saturday . Now my sons are old enough to help
me write sports books! Together we have written Football Friends, Basketball
Buddies, Hockey Hero and Baseball Brothers.
BOOKS FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS
I started out as a teacher and have always loved teaching and being in schools.
I have always enjoyed being with children and thinking about what is
good for them and how they learn best. These books about children and
learning are for both parents and teachers.
BACKGROUND AND EDUCATION
After graduating from the University of Connecticut in 1964, I received
a Masters in Teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
I
taught in Arlington (MA) High School and Harvard's Upward Bound Program
before I moved to New York City where I became involved in educational
publishing. For twenty years I was the editor of Scholastic's kindergarten
magazine, Let's Find Out, working closely with Carol Devine
Carson, an outstanding art director who has had a great influence on
me. In all the years I have been creating books, I have been fortunate
to have worked with excellent editors and art directors in various publishing
companies.
Young people inspire me I am privileged to keep a close link with children, teachers, and administrators through school visits. I like to look into the eyes of children and talk with them about books and imaginative ideas. I find children delightful, wherever I go. Meeting with my readers and their teachers is a treat.
SCHOOL VISITS
For information on school visits, please go back to the main stack of books you found when you entered this website and and
click on "School Visits."
