Kaye Umansky

Infobox Writer
name = Kaye Umansky


caption =
birthdate = Birth date and age|1946|12|6|df=yes
birthplace = Plymouth, Devon, England
nationality = English
occupation = Novelist
notableworks = Pongwiffy series
influences =
website = http://www.kayeumansky.com/

Kaye Umansky (Born: 6th December 1946) is an English children's author & poet. She is best known for her Pongwiffy Series.

Early life

Born an only child to a poor family, Kaye stayed in and listened to the wireless whilst weaving furniture with her family [http://www.kayeumansky.com/Profile/About%20Me.htm] . Her mother was a music teacher and encouraged her to play from a young age and her Dad was also a teacher who encouraged her reading.

After Kaye left school, she went to London to train as a teacher. Kaye enjoyed teaching music, drama and creative writing. She also did some acting and music in her spare time.

Personal life

She lives in North London with her husband Mo, an engineer, and they've been together over 30 years. She has a daughter called Ella. She has an extended family of step children & step grandchildren.

Career

Kaye loved acting until one night when ahe developed stage fright and forgot her lines. She gave up acting shortly after this. During this time she carried on writing stories as a hobby.

Alongside her husband (Mo), Kaye formed a soul band and played in the evenings and at weekends, She says "never became rich and famous, but we had a lot of fun".

Kaye got her first children's book published in 1986. The book was a collection of songs for children and was called Phantasmagoria. Kaye still writes music books, along with plays, poems, novels and picture books. But she is best known as the creator of Pongwiffy [ [http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,1000032499,00.html Kaye Umansky - Penguin UK Authors - Penguin UK ] ] "'

Pongwiffy

Below is a list of the Pongwiffy Books, they were illustrated by Chris Smedley, except the latest one, "Pongwiffy and the Spello-vision Song Contest". All the books were published in Italy, and the books were also published in Greece, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Romania, Belgium & Spain.
*Pongwiffy (1987)
*Pongwiffy and the Goblin's Revenge/ Broom-napped (1990)
*Pongwiffy and the Spell of the Year (1992)
*Pongwiffy and the Holiday of Doom (1994)
*Pongwiffy and the Pantomime (1996)
*Pongwiffy and the Spello-vision Song Contest (2003)

They are available as audio books, read by Prunella Scales.

The series also was made into a cartoon TV series of 13 episodes which was first aired of ITV1 between June & September 2002. Pongwiffy was voiced by Dawn French and Pongwiffy's best friend, Sharkadder, was voiced by Jennifer Saunders.

Book List

The 'Three' SeriesA series using tradtional stories and music.
*Three Singing Pigs (1993)
*Three Rapping Rats (1996)
*Three Tapping Teddies (1998)
*Three Rocking Crocs (2006)

The 'Curtain Up!' SeriesPlays written for primary school children, ages 5-12.
*Cinderella (1995)
*Noah's Ark (1995)
*The Emperor's New Clothes (1996)
*Sleeping Beauty (2000)

Sir Quinton QuestThe story of an explorer and his faithful butler, Muggins who go off on expeditions.
*Sir Quinton Quest Hunts the Yeti (1992)
*Sir Quinton Quest Hunts the Jewel (1994)

The Giant SeriesTales of Waldo the Giant and his beloved, Heavy Hetty. Illustrated by Doffy Weir.
*The Romantic Giant (1992)
*The Jealous Giant (1995)
*The Dressed Up Giant (1998)

The WeirdsStories about the Weird Family. Illustrated by Chris Mould.
*Meet The Weirds (2003)
*Weird Happen-ings (2004)
*Wildly Weird (2006)

Sophie Rabbit SeriesFour stories about a Rabbit called Sophie, Illustrated by Anna Curry.
*Sophie and Abigail (1995)
*Sophie and the Wonderful Picture (1995)
*Sophie and the Mother's Day Card (1995)
*Sophie In Charge (1995)

The Quest for 100 gold coins SeriesA four-part adventure about Nev Niceguy and his quest.
*Donkey Ride to Disaster (1998)
*Madness in the Mountains (1999)
*Strange Days at Sea (2000)
*No More Master Niceguy (2000)

Story Street SeriesBooks which were written for a Literacy Scheme [Literacy Land, http://www.literacyland.co.uk/] in the UK, for 4-10 year olds.
*The Magic Button - 2000
*Strange Street Again - 2000
*Aha! - 2000
*Jojo in the Jungle - 2000
*Dinosaur Adventure - 2000
*Moon Adventure - 2000
*Rope that Cow - 2000
*The Missing Shoes - 2000
*Pirates Ahoy! - 2000
*Clang! - 2000
*The Rubbish Monster - 2000
*Stop Thief! - 2000
*The Carnival - 2000
*Beyond Strange Street- 2000
*Soup with Obby - 2000
*Down the Rushing River - 2000
*Wizard Wagoo - 2000
*Up the Dizzy Mountain - 2000
*Gong! - 2000
*Poor Sam - 2000
*What a Mess - 2000
*I am Miss Cherry - 2000
*Pond - 2000
*Jumbo - 2000
*Sunita and the Wishing Well - 2000

PlayReaders SeriesFour short plays.
*Bandybones (1986)
*Little Sister (1986)
*The Toymaker's (1986)
*Litter Bugs (1987)

4 Spooky StoriesFour scary stories written in verse, the last is a compilation.
*The Night I Was Chased By A Vampire (2004)
*The Empty Suit Of Armour (1994)
*The Bogey-men and the Trolls Next Door (1994)
*The Spooks Step Out (1994)
*The Night I Was Chased By A Vampire and other stories (2004)

Nonsense RhymesCollections of Rhymes, Illustrated by Chris Fisher.
*Nonsense Counting Rhymes (1999)
*Nonsense Animal Rhymes (2001)
*Nonsense Fairytale Rhymes (2006)
*Nonsense Rhymes Collection (three books in one) (2006)

Wilma's AdventuresThe stories of Wilma, a Wicked Queen in training.
*Wilma's Wicked Revenge (2000)
*Wilma's Wicked Spell (2002)

GoblinzThree stories of a gaggle of Goblins.
*Goblinz (2002)
*Goblinz Detectives Inc (2004)
*Goblinz and the Witch (2005)

Solomon SnowA mock-Victorian adventure of a young Solomon Snow and his friend Prudence.
*The Silver Spoon of Solomon Snow (2004)
*Solomon Snow and the Stolen Jewel (2005)

JimStories told in rhyme for 3-7 year olds.
*Pass the Jam, Jim - 1992
*You can Swim, Jim - 1997
*Need a Trim, Jim - 1999
*This is Jane, Jim - 2002
*Three Days With Jim - 2001

Buster GuttAbout a Pirate called Buster Gutt and his arch enemy Admiral Ainsley Goldglove.
*Buster's Big Surprise - 2003
*Buster Gutt - 2003
*Buster and the Golden Glove - 2003

Other Books

*Big Iggy - 1987
*Phantas-magoria - 1987
*The Snow Queen - 2003
*Three Little Nativit-ies - 2006
*Let's Go To London - 2007
*I Am A Tree - 2006
*The Misfortunes of Captain Cadaverous - 1990
*Never Meddle With Magic Mirrors - 1993
*A Ruby, A Rug and a Prince Called Doug - 1995
*Horses' Holiday – 2005
*I Want A Pet – 2005
*He's Behind You - 2003
*Tin Can Hero - 1992
*Beyond the Beanstalk - 1997
*Hammy House of Horror - 1995
*Cruel Times - 2002
*Humble Tom's Big Trip - 2002
*Tiger and Me - 1991
*A Chair For Baby Bear - 2004
*Witches In Stitches - 1987
*The Fwog Pwince - the Twuth! - 1989
*King Keith and the Jolly Lodger - 1990
*King Keith and the Nasty Case of Dragonitus - 1988
*Do Not Open Before Christmas Day - 1992
*Trash Hits - 1990
*Tickle My Nose (infant action rhymes) - 1995
*Wiggle My Toes (infant action rhymes) - 2000
*My Very First Joke Book - 2004
*Prince Dandy-pants and the Masked Avenger - 2001
*Mick Mc Menace, Ghost Detective - 2003
*Dobbin – 1997
*I Don't Like Gloria - 2007

Awards

The 1993 Nottinghamshire Book Award for "Pongwiffy and the Spell of the Year"; the 1999 Times Educational Supplement Junior Music Book Award for "Three Rapping Rats"; the 2005 Spoken Word Award for the audio version of "The Silver Spoon Of Solomon Snow" , read by Rik Mayall.

External links

* [http://www.kayeumansky.com/ Kaye Umansky's homepage]
* [http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,1000032499,00.html Author Page at Penguin Books]

References