Nixon, Joan Lowery 1927-2003
NIXON, Joan Lowery 1927-2003
(Jaye Ellen)
PERSONAL: Born February 3, 1927, in Los Angeles, CA; died of cancer, June 28, 2003, in Houston, TX; daughter of Joseph Michael (an accountant) and Margaret (Meyer) Lowery; married Hershell H. Nixon (a petroleum geologist), August 6, 1949; children: Kathleen Nixon Brush, Maureen Nixon Quinlan, Joseph Michael, Eileen Nixon McGowan. Education: University of Southern California, B.A., 1947; California State College, certificate in elementary education, 1949. Religion: Roman Catholic.
CAREER: Writer. Elementary school teacher in Los Angeles, CA, 1947-50; Midland College, Midland, TX, instructor in creative writing, 1971-73; University of Houston, Houston, TX, instructor in creative writing, 1974-77; taught creative writing in two parochial schools in Texas.
AWARDS, HONORS: Steck-Vaughn Award, Texas Institute of Letters, 1975, for The Alligator under the Bed; Edgar Allan Poe Award nominee, Mystery Writers of America, 1975, for The Mysterious Red Tape Gang, and 1985, for The Ghosts of Now; Outstanding Science Trade Book for children, National Science Teachers Association and Children's Book Council Joint Committee, 1979, for Volcanoes: Nature's Fireworks, 1980, for Glaciers: Nature's Frozen Rivers, and 1981, for Earthquakes: Nature in Motion; Edgar Allan Poe Award for best juvenile novel, Mystery Writers of America, 1980, for The Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore, 1981, for The Seance, and 1987, for The Other Side of Dark; Crabbery Award, Oxon Hill branch of Prince George's County (MD) Library, 1984, for Magnolia's Mixed-Up Magic; Young Hoosier Award, 1988, for A Deadly Game of Magic; Golden Spur, Western Writers of America, 1988, for A Family Apart, and 1989, for In the Face of Danger; Young Hoosier Award, 1989, for The Dark and Deadly Pool; Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Award, 1988, Virginia Young Adult Silver Cup, 1989, Oklahoma Sequoyah Young Adult Book Award, 1989, Iowa Teen Award, 1989, California Young Readers Medal, 1990, and Utah Young Adult Award, 1991, all for The Other Side of Dark; California Young Readers Medal, 1990, for The Stalker; Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Novel, Mystery Writers of America, 1994, for The Name of the Game was Murder.
WRITINGS:
FICTION; FOR YOUNG ADULTS
The Mystery of Hurricane Castle, illustrated by Velma Ilsley, Criterion (New York, NY), 1964.
The Mystery of the Grinning Idol, illustrated by Alvin Smith, Criterion (New York, NY), 1965.
The Mystery of the Hidden Cockatoo, illustrated by Richard Lewis, Criterion (New York, NY), 1966.
The Mystery of the Haunted Woods, illustrated by Theresa Brudi, Criterion (New York, NY), 1967.
The Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1979.
The Seance, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1980.
The Spotlight Gang and the Backstage Ghost, Harlequin (New York, NY), 1981.
The Specter, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1982.
(Under pseudonym Jaye Ellen) The Trouble with Charlie, Bantam (New York, NY), 1982.
Days of Fear, photographs by Joan Menschenfreund, Dutton (New York, NY), 1983.
The Gift, illustrated by Andrew Glass, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1983.
A Deadly Game of Magic, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1983.
Magnolia's Mixed-Up Magic, illustrated by Linda Bucholtz-Ross, Putnam (New York, NY), 1983.
The Ghosts of Now, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1984.
The House on Hackman's Hill, Scholastic Inc. (New York, NY), 1985.
The Stalker, illustrated by Wendy Popp, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1985.
Haunted Island, Scholastic Inc. (New York, NY), 1987.
Secret, Silent Screams, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1988.
The Island of Dangerous Dreams, Dell (New York, NY), 1989.
Whispers from the Dead, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1989.
Candidate for Murder, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1991.
High Trail to Danger, Bantam (New York, NY), 1991.
Honeycutt Street Celebrities, Dell (New York, NY), 1991.
Mystery Box, Dell (New York, NY), 1991.
Watch Out for Dinosaurs, Dell (New York, NY), 1991.
The Haunted House on Honeycutt Street, Dell (New York, NY), 1991.
A Deadly Promise, Bantam (New York, NY), 1992.
The Name of the Game was Murder, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1993.
A Dangerous Promise, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1994.
Shadowmaker, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1994.
Spirit Seeker, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1995.
Beware the Pirate Ghost, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Catch a Crooked Clown, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Don't Scream, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Search for the Shadowman, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Murdered, My Sweet, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1997.
The Haunting, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1998.
Who Are You? Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1999.
Nobody's There, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2000.
Ghost Town (collection), Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2000.
Playing for Keeps, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2001.
The Trap, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2002.
Nightmare, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2003.
Laugh Till You Cry, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2004.
"KLEEP: SPACE DETECTIVE" SERIES; ILLUSTRATED BY PAUL FRAME
Kidnapped on Astarr, Garrard (Champaign, IL), 1981.
Mysterious Queen of Magic, Garrard (Champaign, IL), 1981.
Mystery Dolls from Planet Urd, Garrard (Champaign, IL), 1981.
"MAGGIE" SERIES
Maggie, Too, illustrated by Darrel Millsap, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1985.
And Maggie Makes Three, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1986.
Maggie Forevermore, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1987.
"MARY ELIZABETH" SERIES
The Other Side of Dark, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1986.
The Dark and Deadly Pool, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1987.
The Weekend Was Murder, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1992.
"ORPHAN TRAIN" SERIES
A Family Apart, Bantam (New York, NY), 1987.
Caught in the Act, Bantam (New York, NY), 1988.
In the Face of Danger, Bantam (New York, NY), 1988.
A Place to Belong, Bantam (New York, NY), 1989.
A Dangerous Promise, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1994.
Keeping Secrets, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1995.
Circle of Love, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1997.
Lucy's Wish, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1998.
Aggie's Home, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1998.
Will's Choice, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1998.
David's Search, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1998.
In the Face of Danger, Gareth Stevens Publishing (Milwaukee, WI), 2000.
Caught in the Act, Gareth Stevens Publishing (Milwaukee, WI), 2000.
A Place to Belong, Gareth Stevens Publishing (Milwaukee, WI), 2000.
"ELLIS ISLAND" SERIES
Land of Hope, Bantam (New York, NY), 1992.
Land of Promise, Bantam (New York, NY), 1993.
Land of Dreams, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1994.
"HOLLYWOOD DAUGHTERS" TRILOGY
Star Baby, Bantam (New York, NY), 1989.
Overnight Sensation, Bantam (New York, NY), 1990.
Encore, Bantam (New York, NY), 1990.
"CASEBUSTERS" SERIES
The Statue Walks at Night, illustrated by Kathleen Collins Howell, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1995.
The Legend of Deadman's Mine, illustrated by Kathleen Collins Howell, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1995.
Backstage with a Ghost, illustrated by Kathleen Collins Howell, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1995.
Check in to Danger, illustrated by Kathleen Collins Howell, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1995.
The House Has Eyes, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Secret of the Time Capsule, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Beware the Pirate Ghost, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Catch a Crooked Clown, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Fear Stalks Grizzly Hill, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
Sabotage on the Set, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1996.
The Internet Escapade, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1997.
Bait for a Burglar, Disney Press (New York, NY), 1997.
"SUPER SLEUTHS" SERIES
The Deadman's Mine Mystery, Hodder (London, England), 1997.
The Meat Snatcher Mystery, Hodder (London, England), 1997.
The Theatre Ghost Mystery, Hodder (London, England), 1997.
"THUMBPRINT MYSTERIES" SERIES
(With daughter, Kathleen Nixon Brush) Champagne atRisk, Contemporary Books (Lincolnwood, IL), 1998.
(With daughter, Kathleen Nixon Brush) Champagne at the Murder, Contemporary Books (Lincolnwood, IL), 1998.
(With daughter, Kathleen Nixon Brush) Champagne with a Corpse, Contemporary Books (Lincolnwood, IL), 1998.
"YOUNG AMERICANS" SERIES
Ann's Story, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2000.
Caesar's Story, 1759, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2000.
Nancy's Story, 1765, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2000.
John's Story, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2001.
Maria's Story, 1773, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2001.
Will's Story, 1771, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2001.
FICTION; FOR CHILDREN
The Mystery of the Secret Stowaway, illustrated by Joan Drescher, Criterion (New York, NY), 1968.
Delbert, the Plainclothes Detective, illustrated by Philip Smith, Criterion (New York, NY), 1971.
The Alligator under the Bed, illustrated by Jan Hughes, Putnam (New York, NY), 1974.
The Mysterious Red Tape Gang, illustrated by Joan Sandin, Putnam (New York, NY), 1974.
The Secret Box Mystery, illustrated by Leigh Grant, Putnam (New York, NY), 1974.
The Mysterious Prowler, illustrated by Berthe Amoss, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1976.
The Boy Who Could Find Anything, illustrated by Syd Hoff, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1978.
Danger in Dinosaur Valley, illustrated by Marc Simont, Putnam (New York, NY), 1978.
Muffıe Mouse and the Busy Birthday, illustrated by Geoffrey Hayes, Seabury (New York, NY), 1978.
Bigfoot Makes a Movie, illustrated by S. Hoff, Putnam (New York, NY), 1979.
Gloria Chipmunk, Star!, illustrated by Diane Dawson, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1980.
Casey and the Great Idea, illustrated by Amy Rowen, Dutton (New York, NY), 1980.
When I Am Eight, illustrated by Dick Gackenbach, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1994.
Will You Give Me a Dream?, illustrated by Bruce Degen, Four Winds Press (New York, NY), 1994.
Gus and Gertie and the Missing Pearl, SeaStar Books (New York, NY), 2000.
Gus and Gertie and the Lucky Charms, SeaStar Books (New York, NY), 2001.
"FIRST READ-ALONE MYSTERIES" SERIES; ILLUSTRATED BY JIM CUMMINS
The New Year's Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1979.
The Halloween Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1979.
The Valentine Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1979.
The Happy Birthday Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1979.
The Thanksgiving Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1980.
The April Fool Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1980.
The Easter Mystery, Albert Whitman, (Morton Grove, IL), 1981.
The Christmas Eve Mystery, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 1981.
"CLAUDE AND SHIRLEY" SERIES
If You Say So, Claude, illustrated by Lorinda Bryan Cauley, Warne (New York, NY), 1980.
Beats Me, Claude, illustrated by Tracey Campbell Pearson, Viking (New York, NY), 1986.
Fat Chance, Claude, illustrated by Tracey Campbell Pearson, Viking (New York, NY), 1987.
You Bet Your Britches, Claude, illustrated by Tracey Campbell Pearson, Viking (New York, NY), 1989.
That's the Spirit, Claude, Viking (New York, NY), 1990.
"SUNDAY VISITOR" PICTURE BOOKS SERIES
When God Listens, illustrated by James McIlrath, Our Sunday Visitor (Huntington, IN), 1978.
When God Speaks, illustrated by James McIlrath, Our Sunday Visitor (Huntington, IN), 1978.
The Butterfly Tree, illustrated by James McIlrath, Our Sunday Visitor (Huntington, IN), 1979.
Before You Were Born, illustrated by James McIlrath, Our Sunday Visitor (Huntington, IN), 1980.
NONFICTION; WITH HUSBAND, HERSHELL H. NIXON
Oil and Gas: From Fossils to Fuels, illustrated by Jean Day Zallinger, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1977.
Volcanoes: Nature's Fireworks, Dodd (New York, NY), 1978.
Glaciers: Nature's Frozen Rivers, Dodd (New York, NY), 1980.
Earthquakes: Nature in Motion, Dodd (New York, NY), 1981.
Land under the Sea, Dodd (New York, NY), 1985.
OTHER
Five Loaves and Two Fishes: Feeding of Five Thousand for Beginning Readers; John 6:1-15 for Children, illustrated by Aline Cunningham, Concordia (St. Louis, MO), 1976.
Who Is My Neighbor?: The Good Samaritan for Beginning Readers; Luke 10:29-37 for Children, illustrated by Aline Cunningham, Concordia (St. Louis, MO), 1976.
The Son Who Came Home Again: The Prodigal Son for Beginning Readers; Luke 15:11-32 for Children, illustrated by Aline Cunningham, Concordia (St. Louis, MO), 1977.
If You Were a Writer, illustrated by Bruce Degen, Four Winds Press (New York, NY), 1988.
The Making of a Writer, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2002.
FOR ADULTS
(With others) This I Can Be (textbook), Benefic (New York, NY), 1975.
(With others) People and Me (textbook), Benefic (New York, NY), 1975.
Writing Mysteries for Young People, Writer, Inc. (Boston, MA), 1977.
The Grandmother's Book, Abingdon Press (Nashville, TN), 1979.
Author of introduction, Tales from Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine: Short Stories for Young Adults, edited by Cynthia Manson, Harcourt, 1986; humor columnist for Houston Post, 1969-76; contributor to magazines, including West Coast Review of Books, Writer, American Home, Parents, Woman's Day, and Ms.
SIDELIGHTS: Joan Lowery Nixon was a prolific author of books for children of every age. Over two-thirds of her works are young adult mysteries, noted for their emphasis on both characterization and plot. Nixon's love for mysteries began in childhood, along with her ability to develop sympathetic characters. She once said that she vividly recalls her own childhood experiences, "how I felt, how I reacted, how I responded to the emotions of happiness, sorrow, excitement, fear . . . so I can understand how a child of today would feel, how he would approach his problems, and how he would identify with the character in a book, who perhaps had the same problems to solve. My characters become a part of me and I feel with them."
Nixon insisted that she had an uneventful childhood, but growing up in Hollywood, California left her with many interesting and unusual experiences. In her autobiographical sketch in Something about the Author Autobiography Series (SAAS), Nixon recalled that her parents bragged to their relatives "back east" that "on the same day [they] could play in the snow up in the mountains and enjoy a swim on a sunny beach." She also remembered the excitement of going to a grand opening of a nearby grocery store, "complete with kleig lights, Hollywood starlets, talent shows, and lots of free samples of good things to eat." Nixon once also commented, "I remember one time, a friend and I went for ice cream at a little shop called The Pig'n Whistle next to the Egyptian Theatre. Shirley Temple came in with a friend and sat down at the table next to us. Well, we refused to acknowledge that she was there at all. We didn't want anyone to think us so uncouth as to stare at a movie star."
Despite the surrounding glamour, Nixon's fondest memories of childhood were of reading, performing puppet plays, and playing in the playroom that connected her parents' house with that of her grandparents. Nixon's mother had been a kindergarten teacher, and she "equipped the room with an upright piano, paints and an easel, and a worktable on which we could create with clay, colored construction paper, crayons, glue, and scissors," the author remembered in SAAS. Though her parents and grandparents read to her and her two younger sisters often, Nixon could never get enough. "I began teaching myself to read," she said, "by memorizing words, when I was three, so my mother completed the teaching process, using a combination of the 'look-say' method and phonics."
Nixon also enjoyed writing from an early age. "I always wanted to become a writer," she commented once. "My mother told me that at the age of two, before I was old enough to read or write, I would come to her and say, 'Write this down. I have a poem.'" When she published her first poem in Children's Playmate at age ten, she knew she had found a career. Her performance in school only encouraged her hopes; though she did poorly in physical education and remembers being teased by boys, she always did well in English classes. Nixon's high school English teacher, Miss Bertha Standfast, insisted that she had the talent to be a writer, and encouraged her to major in journalism when she went to college.
One week after her high-school graduation, Nixon began college classes at the University of Southern California, majoring in journalism. She found the campus swarming with young sailors who were earning their degrees before joining the troops fighting overseas in World War II. Though she was heavily involved in writing humorous skits for her sorority and attending social events, Nixon found time to meet Hershell Nixon, the man who would become her husband. Nixon graduated before they were married, however, and found that there were few jobs in journalism that paid enough to live on. In her autobiographical sketch, she recounted one particularly bad experience applying for the job of staff writer for a radio program: "I still remember how angry and discouraged I felt when one of these producers looked me up and down and said, 'Why do you want to compete with all the men who write for radio? You're a pretty girl, honey. Why don't you just get married and settle down and raise a family?' I firmly told him that I was a writer and being a woman was going to prove to be an advantage, not a disadvantage." It didn't get her the job, though she soon found a position teaching kindergarten near her parents' home.
Within a few years Nixon was married, living in Texas, and busy raising a family that would include three daughters and a son. But raising a family had not allowed her much time to write, and when she read in the Corpus Christi newspaper about an upcoming Southwest Writers Conference, she was eager to go. Leaving the conference, she was intrigued by the idea of writing for children. "I had children, I had taught children, and I have the vivid kind of memory which enables me to remember all the details I saw and the emotions I felt when I was a child," she recalled in SAAS. "I made a mental note to myself. Maybe I'd try writing something for children." Her decision was made when her daughters came to her and said: "If you're going to write for children, you have to write a book, and it has to be a mystery, and you have to put us in it." She did all three. The Mystery of Hurricane Castle, Nixon's first book, tells the story of two girls left behind during the evacuation of an area just before a hurricane and follows them as they seek shelter in a house that, according to local legend, is haunted. The vivid characterization and fast-moving plot set the tone for the many mystery stories that would follow.
Nixon soon found herself busy writing children's books, teaching creative classes at local schools, libraries, and colleges, and writing a humor column for the Houston Post. Nixon said that it "soon became apparent that I would have to make a decision about the direction of my career . . . for the careful time I spent on the work from the students in my writing classes subtracted from the time I had for my own writing. It was a difficult decision, but I gave up teaching." This allowed her to devote every morning to writing, a hard task, she said in her autobiographical sketch, "but it's such a fulfilling, enjoyable occupation that it's worth all the effort."
Nixon learned much of her discipline as a writer while studying journalism. She once said, "Journalism taught me to focus because I had to sit down and write, whether I felt like it or not—no waiting for inspiration. I learned the skill of finding the important facts in a story, and how to isolate them from all of the unnecessary details." Gathering ideas and developing plots for her books, however, required the different disciplines of imagination and careful research. Her ideas, she continued, were "derived from places I have lived and visited, people I have known, and interesting things I have seen, with the deeper, underlying thoughts which are exclusively mine: my beliefs, my approach to life, my goals, even my own sense of what is humorous, right, or good."
Nixon believed that many books for young people are better written than books for adults. "I'm more challenged when I write for young people," she once admitted, "because when you write for 'children' you write for everyone from a two-year-old to a teenager. There are so many, many different styles and forms for these age groups." Though she had written a number of nonfiction books, Nixon said that "fiction is my favorite form of writing. The knowledge that as a writer I can create my own characters and take them any place I wish is wonderful, heady, and powerful." And, she affirmed, children's writers "can give young people the feeling that although things may be tough right now, they will get better and that they have the power to make things get better."
Nixon had written nearly 150 books at the time of her death, and been awarded four Edgar Allan Poe Awards from the Mystery Writers of America, the only person to ever achieve that distinction. Among her most popular series are her "Orphan Train" and "Young Americans" series, which reflect the bravery and character of young people in historical settings. One of her last books, The Making of a Writer, is a remembrance of Nixon's own beginnings and one in which she offers advice to children who may want to follow in her footsteps.
BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:
BOOKS
Authors and Artists for Young Adults, Volume 12, Gale (Detroit, MI), 1994.
Drew, Bernard, The 100 Most Popular Young AdultAuthors, Libraries Unlimited (Englewood, CO), 1996, pp. 344-351.
Nixon, Joan Lowery, The Making of a Writer, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 2002.
St. James Guide to Young Adult Writers, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1999.
Silvey, Anita, editor, Children's Books and Their Creators, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 1995.
Twentieth-Century Children's Writers, 3rd edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1989, pp. 723-724.
PERIODICALS
Booklist, January 15, 1994, Elizabeth Bush, review of When I am Eight, p. 938; February 15, 1994, Candace Smith, review of Land of Dreams, p. 1072; March 1, 1994, Mary Harris Veeder, review of Shadowmaker, p. 1253; April 1, 1994, Mary Harris Veeder, review of Will You Give Me a Dream?, p. 1461; September 1, 1994, Chris Sherman, review of A Dangerous Promise, p. 36; March 1, 1995, Chris Sherman, review of Keeping Secrets, p. 1243; September 15, 1995, Jean Triner, review of Spirit Seeker, p. 153; April 1, 1997, Susan DeRonne, review of Circle of Love, p. 1334; September 1, 1997, Frances Bradburn, review of Murdered, My Sweet, p. 106; December 15, 1997, Hazel Rochman, review of Lucy's Wish, p. 697; January 1, 1999, Kay Weisman, review of Aggie's Home, p. 878; April 15, 1999, Anne O'Malley, review of Who Are You?, p. 1523; June 1, 2000, John Peters, review of Caesar's Story: 1759, p. 1894; June 1, 2000, Shelle Rosenfeld, review of Nobody's There, p. 1882; November 1, 2000, Carolyn Phelan, review of Gus & Gertie and the Missing Pearl, p. 540; December 15, 2000, Anne O'Malley, review of Nancy's Story: 1765, p. 821; December 15, 2000, Denia Hester, review of Ghost Town, p. 821; May 1, 2001, Hazel Rochman, review of Playing for Keeps, p. 1612; August, 2001, Anna Rich, review of Shadowmaker, p. 2143; August, 2001, Carolyn Phelan, review of Will's Story: 1771, p. 2121; January 1, 2002, Carolyn Phelan, review of Maria's Story: 1773, p. 859; January 1, 2002, Gillian Engberg, review of Gus & Gertie and the Lucky Charms, p. 859; June 1, 2002, Ilene Cooper, review of The Making of a Writer, p. 1700; September 15, 2002, Marta Segal Block, review of The Trap, p. 224.
Kirkus Reviews, August 1, 2002, review of The Trap, p. 1139.
Kliatt, March, 2004, Claire Rosser, review of Nobody'sThere, p. 21.
Publishers Weekly, March 15, 1991, review of ACandidate for Murder, p. 59; June 7, 1991, review of The Mystery Box, p. 65; June 14, 1991, review of High Trail to Danger, p. 58; April 27, 1992, review of The Weekend was Murder!, p. 270; November 30, 1992, review of Ellis Island: Land of Hope, p. 56; May 24, 1993, review of The Name of the Game was Murder, p. 89; December 6, 1993, review of When I am Eight, p. 73; June 7, 1997, review of Murdered, My Sweet, p. 47; May 25, 1998, review of Search for the Shadow Man, p. 92; April 26, 1999, review of Who Are You?, p. 84.
School Library Journal, July, 2000, Jennifer Ralston, review of Nobody's There, p. 108; August, 2000, Betty Teague, review of Caesar's Story: 1759, p. 186; October, 2000, Karen Land, review of Gus & Gertie and the Missing Pearl, p. 132; October, 2000, Steven Engelfried, review of Ghost Town: Seven Ghostly Stories, p. 168; July, 2001, Allison Follos, review of Playing for Keeps, p. 112; September, 2001, Kristen Oravec, review of Will's Story: 1771, p. 231; December, 2001, Carolyn Janssen, review of Maria's Story: 1773, p. 141; January, 2002, Laura Scott, review of Gus & Gertie and the Lucky Charms, p. 106; July, 2002, Barbara Scotto, review of The Making of a Writer, p. 139; September, 2002, Kim Carlson, review of The Trap, p. 231.
OBITUARIES:
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, July 7, 2003.
School Library Journal, August, 2003.*