Books & Reading
Oklahoma Authors & Illustrators
Something About the Author can be found at several Tulsa City-County Libraries.
Peggy
Perry Anderson (1953- )
Peggy Perry Anderson is an author and illustrator who lives in Broken
Arrow, Oklahoma. She has
illustrated books for Bessie Holland Heck and Virginia Poulet (who are
both OK authors), and she has self illustrated some of her own books. For more information, visit to
the Oklahoma
State Department of Education Web page (includes a lesson plan for one
of her books), or check out her biography in Something About the Author
volume 84.
Brent
K. Ashabranner (1921- )
Brent K. Ashabranner was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and he has lived and
traveled in many countries. He
draws from his experiences from all over the world to write his books.
Mr. Ashabranner writes mostly non-fiction, but he has also written
an easy picture book and a fiction book for children.
For more information about him read his biography in Something
About the Author volume 67, or click here to
read
an essay by Mr. Ashabranner.
Darleen
Bailey Beard (1961- )
Darleen Bailey Beard lives in Tuttle, Oklahoma.
She decided to become a writer when she was in the fifth grade,
thanks to her teacher's influence. Her book The Flimflam Man was on the 2000-2001
Sequoyah master list. For
more information about Ms. Beard read her biography in Something About
the Author volume 96, or go to her Web page
www.darleenbaileybeard.com.
Acee
Blue Eagle (1909-1959)
Acee (pronounced Ah-see) Blue Eagle was born on the Wichita Reservation in
Oklahoma. His mother was Creek and Pawnee and his father was Scottish.
Mr. Blue Eagle was an artist, painter, sculptor, ceramist and
dancer. Some of his art can
be viewed at the Muskogee Public Library where he painted a mural.
He was an art professor at Oklahoma State University.
And during the 1950s he had a children's TV program in Tulsa.
There are collections of his art in many museums including
the Philbrook and Gilcrease in Tulsa, and museums in Colorado, Arizona,
New Mexico, Oklahoma, Washington, D.C., and the National Museum of
Ethiopia. He is buried in the National Cemetery in Fort Gibson, OK.
He wrote and illustrated at least one book for children.
Bill
Cleaver (1920-1981)
Bill Cleaver was born in Hugo, Oklahoma, but he grew up in Seattle,
Washington. He wrote all of his books with his wife, Vera.
They had at least two of their books nominated the National Book
Award. For more information
about Mr. Cleaver and his wife, see their biographies in Something
About the Author volumes 22 and 27, or go to the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page about him, which includes a lesson
plan for one of his books.
Floyd
Cooper
Floyd Cooper was formerly of Tulsa, but he now lives in New York State.
He is an African American author and illustrator.
He has illustrated books by Jane Yolen, Patricia McKissack, Joyce
Carol Thomas, as well as many others, including himself.
He illustrated the book One April Morning: Children remember the
Oklahoma City bombing by Nancy Lamb.
To read more about him look up the article in Something About
the Author volume 96, or go to the
Random
House web page.
Kim
Doner (1955- )
Kim Doner is an author and illustrator who was born and currently lives in
Tulsa, Oklahoma. She also has Cherokee roots. She has won
the Oklahoma Book Award for Best Illustrated Book from the Center of the
Book in 1995. She currently
tours school systems talking to students. For more information about her, look in
Something About the
Author volume 91, or go to the Oklahoma
Department of Libraries Web page.
Lisa
Campbell Ernst (1957- )
Lisa Campbell Ernst is an author and illustrator who grew up in Oklahoma
(she was born in Bartlesville). She
currently lives in Kansas City with her family. Ms. Campbell self-illustrates her own picture books
and she has illustrated books for other authors, including Harriet Ziefert and Seymour
Simon. For more information about her or to see a picture of her, read the biography in Something
About the Author volume 95 or go to the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page.
Jim
Fowler
Jim Fowler is an illustrator who grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He currently lives in Juneau,
Alaska, with his family. He
has illustrated several books for his wife Susi Gregg Fowler as well as
books for Wayne Grover and Jean Rogers.
Carol
Hamilton (1935- )
Carol Hamilton was born in Enid, Oklahoma, and currently lives in Midwest
City. She was the Poet
Laureate of the state of Oklahoma from 1995 to 1997. She is a teacher, children's writer, and a poet.
To read more about her, see the article in Something About the
Author volume 94.
Joy
Harjo (1951- )
Joy Harjo was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and is an enrolled member of the
Muscogee Tribe. She studied painting and theater at the Institute of
American Indian Arts in New Mexico and thereafter began writing poetry and
lyrics. Her band, Joy
Harjo and Poetic Justice, perform music that combines elements of
tribal music, jazz and rock. She is the lead vocalist and saxophone player
for the band. To read more about her go to the Storytellers
biography of Joy Harjo.
She has written at least one book for children (The Good Luck Cat).
Beatrice
Harrell (1943- )
Beatrice Harrell was born in Claremore, Oklahoma, and she currently lives in
Glenpool. She is a Native American author. To read a
little more about her see the Something About the Author volume 93.
Bessie
Holland Heck (1911-1995)
Bessie Holland Heck was born near Colgate, Oklahoma, and later lived in
Tulsa. When asked why she
wrote for kids she replied, "Children are my favorite people." She also believed that ".one's
education should never 'be over with'." To read more
about her go to the article in Something About the Author volume 26.
S.
E. Hinton (1950- )
S. E. Hinton was born, grew up and currently lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was published by the time
she was 17, and she has received many awards for her books. Movies
have been made from four of her books for young adults. She has also written two children's books, in
addition to
the young adult novels that she is famous for. For more information about her, read the articles in
Something
about the Author, including the one in volume 115. You can also go to her home page
www.sehinton.com or
go to the web page at the
Oklahoma
Department of Education (This web page includes two lesson plans as
well as a biography and a list of awards that she has won.).
Stan
Hoig (1924- )
Stan Hoig was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, and he currently lives in Edmond. He is a Professor emeritus
of Journalism at the University of
Central Oklahoma, and he is a member of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame. He writes nonfiction
for both adults and children.
Harold
Keith (1903-1998)
Harold Keith was born in Lambert, Oklahoma Territory, and he later lived
in Norman. He was the Sports
Publicity Directory at the University of Oklahoma, Norman, from 1930-1969. He won the Newbery Award
in 1958 for Rifles for Watie. To read more about him go to Something About The Author
volume 74 or go to the page at the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page about him. This web page includes biographical information and a
list of books written by Mr. Keith.
Norma
Jean Lutz
Norma Jean Lutz began writing professionally in 1977. Since then she has had
over 250 short stories and articles published in both secular and
Christian publications. Her juvenile books include such titles as Smallpox
Strikes and Clash With the Newsboys. Ms. Lutz currently makes
her home in Tulsa.
Angela
Shelf Medearis (1956- )
Angela Shelf Medearis is an African-American author who has roots in Oklahoma and
many of her relatives still live here. She currently lives in Austin, Texas. For more information
about Ms. Medearis read the article in the 72nd
volume of Something About the Author, or go to her web page at
www.medearis.com.
Lynn
Moroney
Lynn Moroney is a member of the Chickasaw Nation. She worked for five years with the Kirkpatrick
Planetarium in Oklahoma City where she began gathering legends about the sky, sun, moon,
and stars. She is now a
professional storyteller and writer who has lived in OK most of her life. She calls herself "a true
Okie." Some of her stories have been adapted for children's picture
books. She also has released cassettes of her storytelling. For more information go to the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page. (this page has a short biography and a list of her books).
There is also information on her storytelling and how to get her to
come to your school at this web
page.
Shirley
Mozelle
Shirley Mozelle lived for a while in Moore, Oklahoma. She now lives in Florida. She
has contributed to several children's magazines and has written several
beginning readers and a picture book.
Anna
Myers (1942- )
Anna Myers lives in Chandler, Oklahoma, where she teaches eighth grade.
She won the Oklahoma Book Award twice: in 1993 for Red
Dirt Jessie and in 1996 for Graveyard Girl and she has been
a finalist for the award several other times. For more information go to
the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page (includes a lesson plan.)
Virginia
Poulet
Virginia Poulet is the author of the Blue Bug Books. She lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She wrote the Blue
Bug books, "so that readers might put their
newly acquired reading skills to use as soon as possible; to let beginning
readers reassure themselves that they can, indeed, master a real book."
Kandy
Radzinski
Kandy Radzinski is a freelance artist who lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was once a professor of art
at the University of Tulsa.
Wilson
Rawls (1913-1984)
Wilson
Rawls was born in Scraper, Oklahoma, and grew up in eastern Oklahoma. He won the Sequoyah award in
1979 for Summer of the Monkeys. In Something About the Author, he gives this advice to
aspiring writers: "Do a lot of reading. Read and study creative writing. Do not wait to start
writing. You are never too young to start." For more information about Mr.
Rawls read the article in Something About the Author volume 22. You can also visit the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page or go to the
Random
House web site.
Dian
Curtis Regan (1950- )
Dian
Curtis Regan grew up in Colorado, and lived for a time in Edmond,
Oklahoma. She now lives in
Venezuela. She is a full time author and speaker, who writes picture books
and chapter books as well as YA novels. For more information about Ms. Regan, read the article in
Something
About the Author volume 75, go to her home page at
www.diancurtisregan.com
or follow the link to the
Oklahoma
Department of Education (includes a link to an interview).
Bob
Ruddick
Bob
Ruddick was born in Oklahoma City. He
is married to his co-author Gery Greer. Together they spend much time traveling the world and writing
their books.
Helen
Rushmore (1898- )
Helen
Rushmore spent part of her childhood in Oklahoma Indian Territory. She was a student at the
University of Tulsa and she taught in the
Tulsa Public Schools. She was
also an elementary school librarian and a part of the Tulsa, Friends of
the Library.
Helen
Roney Sattler (1921-1992)
Helen
Roney Sattler's last home was in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. She was a children's librarian and
elementary teacher, as well as an author and illustrator. She
was the winner of the Oklahoma Book Award in 1989 for Tyrannosaurus Rex
and Its Kin and she also won many other awards. She wrote craft books, puzzle books, and many
other non-fiction
books, including many about dinosaurs. Mrs. Sattler was influenced to write by her young grandson. To
learn more about her read the article in Something About the
Author volume 74.
Cynthia Leitich Smith
Growing
up, Cynthia Leitich Smith lived in Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Ms. Smith has worked in law,
public relations, and journalism. A mixed-blood member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Smith lives in
Austin, Texas, with her husband and two cats. She attended law school in Michigan, lived for about
two and a half
years in Illinois, and now calls Austin, Texas, her home. For more information about her go to her
web page at
http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com
Lane
Smith (1959- )
Lane Smith is an illustrator and author and he has illustrated several
number one best-sellers including The True Story of the Three Little
Pigs and James and the Giant Peach. Twice he won the New York
Times' Best Illustrated Book of the Year award and in 1993 he received
a Caldecott Honor for the Stinky
Cheese Man. Smith was born in Tulsa, and his parents live in Sapulpa.
He spent most of his childhood in Corona, California, but in the
summers he would travel back to Oklahoma with his family. For more information,
go to the official web page of Lane Smith and Jon Scieszka.
Virginia
Stroud (1949- )
Virginia Stroud is Cherokee-Creek by birth. She
was later adopted (in the Indian sense of the word) into the Kiowa tribe. She grew up in the
Tahlequah area. She is an artist and she was once honored as the Indian Arts and
Crafts Association's Artist of the year. For more information go to the following web pages article
about
Ms. Stoud at the Internet
Public Library, or go to the page about her at the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page.
Joyce
Carol Thomas (1938- )
Joyce
Carol Thomas is an African-American author, who was born in Ponca City,
Oklahoma, and lived there until she moved to California at the age of 10. She now lives in Tennessee.
She has written fiction for children, young adults and adults, as
well as poetry for all ages and several plays (and she has produced
several of those plays). Ms.
Thomas has a background as a migrant farm worker in Oklahoma and
California. In 2001 Ms. Thomas won the Oklahoma Book Award and the Arrell
Gibson Lifetime achievement Award from the Oklahoma Center of the Book
(this is the first time someone has one both in the same year). To
read more about Joyce Carol Thomas look up the article about her in Something
About the Author volume 78. You
can also go to her official web page at
www.joycecarolthomas.com, or go to the page about her
on the Oklahoma
Department of education web page.
Bill
Wallace (1947- )
Bill
Wallace was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, and he still lives there. He is a former teacher and
rincipal in the Chickasha
schools, and now he is a full time author and speaker. He won the Sequoyah award twice and he has
also won many other state awards. In 2000 he won
the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oklahoma Center of
the Book. Animals are key
characters in many of his books. For
more information about him read the article in Something About the
Author volume 101. You can also visit the page about him at the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page.
Barrett
Waller
Barrett Waller is a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He wrote the picture book New Feet for Old.
Sherrin
Watkins
Sherrin
Watkins is of Shawnee and Cherokee heritage. She is a lawyer and writer who went to law school at the
University of Tulsa. She currently has a
private practice of law in Okmulgee, and she writes books and papers on
Native American history.
Lynn
Wendelbo
Lynn Wendelbo was born in Dewey County, Oklahoma on June 29, 1931 and was
raised in the town of Taloga. She is the author of Looking Through
Grandmothers Glasses, a series of children's stories using animal
metaphors. Lynn received both her Bachelors and Masters degrees in
Oklahoma. She is a mother, grandmother, and a play therapist.
Jon
Whitcomb (1906-1988)
Jon
Whitcomb was born in Weatherford, Oklahoma, and raised in Wisconsin. He was an illustrator for
magazines including Collier's, Good
Housekeeping, and Cosmopolitan. He
was known for his paintings of pretty girls. He also wrote and illustrated two children's books, and
he was also an author for adults. For
more information about him please visit the
Oklahoma
Department of Education or visit
this
Web page. You can also
read about him in Something About the Author volumes 10 and 56.
Mike
Wimmer (1961- )
Mike Wimmer was born in
Muskogee, Oklahoma, and now lives and works in Norman. He has illustrated
many children's book covers, including All the Places to Live by
Patricia MacLachlan. For more information on Mike Wimmer check out his
personal web site at www.mikewimmer.com
or his biography in There's Something About the Author volume 80.
G.
Clifton Wisler (1950- )
G.
Clifton Wisler was born in Oklahoma City, but he was raised in Dallas. He is an author of historical
fiction, but he has also written some science fiction. A former
teacher for Texas Public Schools, he currently lives in Plano, TX. He has written for both adults and
children. You can find more information about him in Something About the
Author volume 103, and at the
Oklahoma
Department of Education web page (this web page includes a lesson
plan).
Barry
Zimmerman
Barry Zimmerman was born in Texas in 1963. In 1991 he moved to Norman,
Oklahoma, the home of his wife Amy. Together they have produced the book Calm
Down, Look Around. Barry's words and Amy's illustrations come
together to create this fun and playful collection of poems.
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