BEARD, Darleen Bailey 1961-

PERSONAL: Born January 24, 1961; daughter of Larry (involved in greenhouse business) and Ella Holman (a homemaker) Bailey; children: Spencer, Karalee. Education: University of Oklahoma, B.A., 1986. Hobbies and other interests: Flower gardening, decorating, reading, history.

ADDRESSES: Office—1627 Briarcliff Court, Norman, OK 73071-3811. E-mail—dbbookgal@aol.com.

CAREER: Children's book author. Dental assistant, Oklahoma City and Norman, OK, 1979-83; freelance writer, McGraw-Hill, School Book Division, Oklahoma City, 1989-90; part-time receptionist, Oklahoma City, 1991-95.

MEMBER: Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Parent-Teacher Organization.

AWARDS, HONORS: Attended the Writers Workshop at Chatauqua, NY, on full scholarship from Highlights for Children magazine; Creme-de-la-Creme award, Oklahoma Writers' Federation, 1990; Oklahoma Book Award, 2003, and Gamma State Author Award, 2004, both for The Babbs Switch Story.

WRITINGS:

The Pumpkin Man from Piney Creek, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1995.

The Flimflam Man, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York, NY), 1998.

Twister, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York), 1999.

The Babbs Switch Story, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York, NY), 2002.

Operation: Clean Sweep, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York, NY), 2004.

Work represented in Megan's Tree and The Barnyard Switch, Highlights for Children Books, 1995. The book Marry Me on Recess was never published, but can be found at http://www.darleenbaileybeard.com.

WORK IN PROGRESS: A novel about an outlaw, Elmer McMurtry, who was turned into a mummy.

SIDELIGHTS: Darleen Bailey Beard commented: "When I was young (or should I say younger) I wanted to be good at something. All my friends had things they were good at—Kathy was a good swimmer, Suzanne was a violinist, and Patty Jo was the prettiest girl in the school. So I set out on my own personal journey to find something to be good at, something to set me apart from everyone else. I knew I liked words and the way they sounded. I liked the way words created pictures in my mind and I knew I liked to tell stories so that everyone's eyes would open wide. But it wasn't until fifth grade that I realized what I was good at. Every week Mrs. Schickling would make us write stories with our spelling words. I couldn't wait to get home and start writing. Mrs. Schickling liked my stories and made me stand in front of the class and read them. Well, I was terribly shy and the first time I stood up to read I was scared silly. I shook so badly I could hardly read my story. Week after week, I stood in front of the class reading my stories and as the weeks turned into months I began to realize my search to find something that set me apart from everyone else was over. I was a writer! So right there in fifth grade, I decided that when I grew up I'd be a writer. Well, I'm not grown up yet, but I am a published writer and my first book is dedicated to Mrs. Schickling for opening up the world of writing for me."

"When I do author visits at schools I tell children about the band-aid collection I had when I was eight or nine. It all started because I was so shy and had a hard time talking to other children in school. One day, I discovered that if I wore band-aids to school kids would come up to me and ask 'What happened?' and 'Are you okay?' I'd tell them a wonderful story about how I got hurt, their eyes would open wide, and for a minute or two I wouldn't feel so shy. That's how I started my band-aid collection. And that's probably how I became a writer. I'm not as shy as I used to be. In fact, most people think I'm real outgoing, the life of a party. Sometimes I am. But most times I'm quiet. I like to work at home, take care of my two kiddos and dig, dig, dig in my flower garden. I love flowers. My favorite place is my old green porch swing where I sit reading books and admiring my beautiful morning glories and daisies. I have lots of hummingbirds, too."

In Beard's Pumpkin Man from Piney Creek, young Hattie sees a jack-o'-lantern for the first time, and tries to convince her Pa to spare one of the pumpkins he's selling. When Pa says that he's promised every pumpkin they've raised to the pumpkin man from Piney Creek, Hattie takes matters into her own hands. A writer for Kirkus Reviews noted that the author's first story, set in the late nineteenth century, contains "old-fashioned idioms" used "with care and taste." Teachers will find this story has "many uses in a whole-language classroom," wrote Ruth Semrau for School Library Journal.

Beard's next book, The Flimflam Man, is a story of a con-man who visits the town of Wetumka, Oklahoma, and swindles the townspeople for goods and services in return for his promise that a circus is coming to visit. Set in 1950, the story is a fictional account based on a true story. The book's main character, Bobbie Jo Hailey, is the first to meet the flimflam man, and though she's disappointed at being conned, she does learn tips from the con-man on how to overcome her stuttering. In addition, she befriends her former enemy, Clara Jean Knox. When the flimflam man leaves town, it is Bobbie Jo and Clara who come up with the idea to celebrate the nonexistent circus with a parade and festival. Jennifer Brabander of Horn Book called The Flimflam Man, "a rousing good tale of old-fashioned con artisty." The story is "full of nostalgic American fun and lively (fictional) characters," noted Michael Cart in Booklist.

Beard followed The Flimflam Man with Twister, a story about a brother and sister, Natt and Lucille, who wait out a tornado in a damp storage cellar. The intense action of the book leads up to the climax when the tornado bears down on the small town. At the end, Natt and Lucille are reunited with their mother, who had gone to help an elderly neighbor. Hazel Rochman of Booklist described Twister as "thrilling" and wrote that the book conveys "the sudden terror of a tornado through the eyes of a child." The pictures in the book, Rochman noted, were "powerful."

The Babbs Switch Story is another tale based on actual events in a small Oklahoma town. The town of Babbs Switch was struck by tragedy in 1924 when thirty-six people died in a fire at the local schoolhouse during a Christmas Eve celebration. In Beard's story, Ruth Ann Tillman is selected to sing at the annual Christmas celebration. Ruthie's older sister, Daphne, is mentally challenged and loves the touch of very soft things so much that she accidentally smothers the family's kitten. When Daphne almost suffocates a neighbor's baby, Ruthie's parents make her drop out of the celebration so they can avoid attracting further attention from the townspeople. Ruthie is upset about not being able to sing, and angry with her sister. It is not until tragedy strikes on the night of the Christmas celebration that Ruthie realizes how much she loves her sister. A Kirkus reviewer wrote, "Beard ably lays the groundwork for the horrifying number of deaths that occur in the disastrous fire on the snowy night of the celebration." "Surprisingly lighthearted for such a sad story," continued the reviewer, "Ruth Ann's gutsy intensity creates a lively tone and an appealing character." A Publishers Weekly reviewer noted, Beard's "evocation of the jumbled feelings of adolescence … are timeless."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

periodicals

Booklist, September 15, 1995, p. 168; February 15, 1998, Michael Cart, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 1010; February 1, 1999, Hazel Rochman, review of Twister, p. 979; March 15, 2002, review of The Babbs Switch Story, p. 1255.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, May, 1998, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 311; May, 1999, review of Twister, p. 308.

Children's Book Review Service, April, 1999, review of Twister, p. 97.

Horn Book, March-April, 1998, Jennifer M. Brabander, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 218.

Horn Book Guide, fall, 1998, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 325; fall, 1999, review of Twister, p. 244.

Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 1995, p. 1424; January 1, 1998, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 53; January 15, 1999, review of Twister, p. 142; March 15, 2002, review of The Babbs Switch Story, p. 406.

Publishers Weekly, September 18, 1995, p. 90; February 2, 1998, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 90; March 22, 1999, review of Twister, p. 92; March 18, 2002, review of The Babbs Switch Story, p. 105.

Reading Teacher, November, 1999, review of Twister, p. 240.

School Library Journal, October, 1995, p. 96; March, 1998, review of The Flimflam Man, p. 166; March, 1999, Patricia Pearl Dole, review of Twister, p. 162; March, 2002, Miranda Doyle, review of The Babbs Switch Story, p. 225.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2002, review of The Babbs Switch Story, p. 36.