Patricia Polacco

Patricia Polacco (b. July 11 1944, Lansing, Michigan) is the author and illustrator of numerous picture books for children.

Although she struggled in school and was unable to read until age 14 due to dyslexia, she found relief by expressing herself through art. Polacco endured teasing and hid her disability until a schoolteacher recognized that she could not read and began to help her. "Thank you, Mr. Falker" is Polacco's retelling of this encounter and its outcome.

Early years

The early years of Polacco's childhood were spent at her grandmother's farm in Union City, Michigan, the setting for many of her published stories. The farm, originally called "The Plantation" was established in 1859 and was part of the Underground Railroad. President Lincoln actually visited the home during his presidency. [ [http://www.patriciapolacco.com/author/my_home/my_home.html The Polacco Farm] ] A meteorite that fell into the front yard of that farm "(Meteor!)"is now used as their family's headstone. Although Polacco's grandmother died in 1949, when Polacco was only 5, "babushka," or grandmother, nevertheless appears in several of Polacco's books. [ [http://www.patriciapolacco.com/author/bio/bio.html Who Is Patricia Polacco?] ]

After her grandmother's death, the family moved to Coral Gables, Florida, and then three years later to Oakland, California. Polacco's parents had divorced when she was three, and she and her brother therefore spent their early life living in two places: school years with their father and grandparents in the multicultural environment of Oakland, CA, and summers with their mother and her parents on a farm in Michigan. Polacco had a very difficult time in school and did not learn to read until she was nearly fourteen. In junior high school, one of her teachers finally discovered that dyslexia was the reason for her difficulties. Polacco wrote "When Lightning comes in a jar" as a tribute to her babushka, and her Detroit tiger cousin Billy Polacco.

Today

Following the 40-year absence from the home of her youth, Polacco returned to Union City, where she currently resides. Her home is often opened up to the public for writing seminars and children's literature festivals. Polacco does all of her own illustrations, and since she does not own a computer, responds to all letters with a hand-written reply. Whenever Polacco speaks with children, her advice is always the same: "Turn off the TV and LISTEN...LISTEN...LISTEN." [ [http://www.patriciapolacco.com/author/bio/bio.html Who Is Patricia Polacco?] ]

Trivia:Patricia Polacco used to babysit Tom Hanks

Patricia Polacco was a good friend of pupeteer Frank Oz when in school. She mentioned at an assembly in Amelia Earhart School that his first puppet was Paper Bag Man.

Books

* "Boat Ride with Lillian Two Blossom" (1988) ISBN 0-399-21470-4
* "The Keeping Quilt" (1988) ISBN 0-689-82090-9
* "Meteor!" (1988) ISBN 0-399-21699-5
* "Uncle Vova's Tree" (1989) ISBN 0-399-21617-0
* "Babushka's Doll" (1990) ISBN 0-671-68343-8
* "Just Plain Fancy" (1990) ISBN 0-553-05884-3
* "Thunder Cake" (1990) ISBN 0-399-22231-6
* "Appelemando's Dreams" (1991) ISBN 0-399-21800-9
* "Dream Keeper" (1991) ISBN 0-399-22947-7
* "Some Birthday!" (1991) ISBN 0-671-72750-8
* "Chicken Sunday" (1992) ISBN 0-399-22133-6
* "Mrs. Katz and Tush" (1992) ISBN 0-440-40936-5
* "Picnic at Mudsock Meadow" (1992) ISBN 0-399-21811-4
* "Babushka Baba Yaga" (1993) ISBN 0-399-22531-5
* "The Bee Tree" (1993) ISBN 0-399-21965-X
* "Firetalking" (1994) ISBN 1-878450-55-7
* "My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother" (1994) ISBN 0-671-72751-6
* "Pink and Say" (1994) ISBN 0-399-22671-0
* "Tikva Means Hope" (1994) ISBN 0-385-32059-0
* "Babushka's Mother Goose" (1995) ISBN 0-399-22747-4
* "My Ol' Man" (1995) ISBN 0-399-22822-5
* "Aunt Chip And The Great Triple Creek Dam Affair" (1996) ISBN 0-399-22943-4
* "" (1996) ISBN 0-399-22520-X
* "Rechenka's Eggs" (1996) ISBN 0-698-11385-3
* "The Trees of the Dancing Goats" (1996) ISBN 0-689-80862-3
* "" (1997) ISBN 0-698-11557-0; Author: Ernest Lawrence Thayer, Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
* "In Enzo's Splendid Gardens" (1997) ISBN 0-399-23107-2
* "Mrs. Mack" (1998) ISBN 0-399-23167-6
* "Thank You, Mr. Falker" (1998) ISBN 0-399-23166-8
* "Luba And The Wren" (1999) ISBN 0-399-23168-4
* "Welcome Comfort" (1999) ISBN 0-399-23169-2
* "The Butterfly" (2000) ISBN 0-399-23170-6
* "Betty Doll" (2001) ISBN 0-399-23638-4
* "Gracias, Sr. Falker" (2001) ISBN 1-930332-03-3, with Teresa Mlawer
* "Mr. Lincoln's Way" (2001) ISBN 0-399-23754-2
* "Christmas Tapestry" (2002) ISBN 0-399-23955-3
* "When Lightning Comes In A Jar" (2002) ISBN 0-399-23164-1
* "G is for Goat" (2003) ISBN 0-399-24018-7
* "The Graves Family" (2003) ISBN 0-399-24034-9
* "John Philip Duck" (2004) ISBN 0-399-24262-7
* "Oh, Look!" (2004) ISBN 0-399-24223-6
* "An Orange for Frankie" (2004) ISBN 0-399-24302-X
* "Emma Kate" (2005) ISBN 0-399-24452-2
* "The Graves Family Goes Camping" (2005) ISBN 0-399-24369-0
* "Mommies Say Shhh" (2005) ISBN 0-399-24341-0
* "Rotten Richie and the Ultimate Dare" (2006) ISBN 0-399-24531-6
* "Something About Hensley's" (200x) ISBN pending

Other Media

*Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair. Video, Color, 23 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
*Babushka's Doll. Audio Cassette (New York: Scholastic, 1995)
*The Butterfly. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
*The Butterfly. Video, Color, 30 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
*Chicken Sunday. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1992)
*Chicken Sunday. Video, Color, 14 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1992)
*The Keeping Quilt. Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1993)
*Meteor! Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
*Meteor! Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
*Mrs. Katz and Tush. Video, Color, 29 minutes (Lincoln, NB: Great Plains National, 1993)
*Patricia Polacco: Dream Keeper. Video, Color, 23 Minutes (New York: Philomel, 1996)
*Parents, Kids & Books: The Joys of Reading Together. Video, Color, 30 Minutes (Dallas, TX: Kera Productions, 1993)
*Pink and Say. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
*Pink and Say. Video, Color, 28 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
*Rechenka’s Eggs. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1991)
*Rechenka’s Eggs. Video, Color, 11 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1991)
*Thank You, Mr. Falker. Audio Cassette (St. Petersburg, FL: Spoken Arts, 1999)
*Thank You, Mr. Falker. Video, Color, 23 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
*Thunder Cake. Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1990)

Literary Awards

*1988 Sydney Taylor Book Award for "The Keeping Quilt"
*1989 International Reading Association Award for "Rechenka’s Eggs"
*March 10th 1990 Santa Clara Reading Council
*Author’s Hall of Fame
*Commonwealth Club of California Recognition of Excellence for:1990 "Babushka’s Doll":1992 "Chicken Sunday" (Nov. 14th 1992 declared "Chicken Sunday")
*1992 Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators
*Golden Kite Award for Illustration for "Chicken Sunday"
*1992 Boston Area Educators for Social Responsibility
*Children’s Literature and Social Responsibility Award
*Nov. 9th 1993 Jane Adams Peace Assoc. and Women’s Intl. League for Peace and Freedom Awards
*Honor Award for "Mrs. Katz and Tush" for it’s effective contribution to peace and social justice.
*Parent’s Choice Honors:1991 "Some Birthday":1997 Video/"Dream Keeper":1998 "Thank You, Mr. Falker"
*1996 North Dakota Library Association Children’s Book Award for "My Rotten Red Headed Older Brother"
*1996 Jo Osborne Award for Humor in Children’s Literature
*1997 Missouri Association of School Librarians
*Show Me Readers Award for "My Rotten Red Headed Older Brother"
*1997 West Virginia Children’s Book Award for "Pink and Say"
*1998 Mid-South Independent Booksellers for Children Humpty Dumpty Award

Articles written about Polacco

*Vandergrift, Kay E. "Peacocks, Dreams, Quilts, and Honey: Patricia Polacco, A Woman's Voice of Remembrance," In Ways of Knowing: Literature and the Intellectual Life of Children. Ed. By Kay E. Vandergrift. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1996, pp. 259-288.
*Vandergrift, Kay E. "Patricia Polacco," in Twentieth-Century Children's Writers. ed. by Laura Berger. 4th ed. Detroit: St. James, 1995. 759-760.
* [http://www.childrenslit.com/f_polacco.htm Author Profile & Book Reviews]
* [http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/specials/story/0,6079,104889,00.html Interview in "Time for Kids"]

References