Stevens, Janet 1953–

views updated Jun 27 2018

Stevens, Janet 1953–

Personal

Born January 17, 1953, in Dallas, TX; daughter of Jack (a naval officer) and Frances Stevens; married Ted Habermann (a research scientist); children: Lindsey, Blake. Education: University of Colorado, B.F.A., 1975. Hobbies and other interests: Mountain biking, camping, hiking, skiing.

Addresses

Home and office—Boulder, CO. E-mail—rhinoink@aol.com.

Career

Children's book illustrator and writer, 1979—. Has worked in advertising, textile design, and architectural illustration.

Awards, Honors

Parents Choice Award, 1987, and Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies citation, National Council for Social Studies/Children's Book Coun-

cil, both for The Three Billy Goats Gruff; Caldecott Honor citation, and Notable Books for Children citation, both American Library Association (ALA), both 1996, Parents' Choice Honor Award, and American Bookseller Association (ABA) Pick of the Lists citation, all for Tops and Bottoms; ABA Book of the Year Honor Book designation, and Notable Books for Children citation, ALA, both 1998, both for To Market, to Market; Best Children's Book selection, Child magazine, 2001, Notable Book selection, National Council of Teachers of English, and Notable Books for Children citation, ALA, all for And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon. Stevens's books have been named International Reading Association Children's Choice selections, and have received several state children's choice book awards.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

From Pictures to Words: A Book about Making a Book, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1995.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) Shoe Town, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) My Big Dog, Random House (New York, NY), 1999.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2001.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) Jackalope, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2003.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) Plaidypus Lost, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2004.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) The Great Fuzz Frenzy, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2005.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) My Big Dog, Golden Books (New York, NY), 2005.

(With Susan Stevens Crummel) Help Me, Mr. Mutt! Expert Answers for Dogs with People Problems, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2008.

RETELLER; SELF-ILLUSTRATED

Animal Fair, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1981.

Hans Christian Andersen, The Princess and the Pea, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1982.

Aesop, The Tortoise and the Hare, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1984.

Hans Christian Andersen, The Emperor's New Clothes, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1985.

The House That Jack Built: A Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1985.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1986.

Aesop, The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1987.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1987.

Hans Christian Andersen, It's Perfectly True, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1988.

Aesop, Androcles and the Lion, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1989.

How the Manx Cat Lost Its Tail, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1990.

Jakob Ludwig and Wilhelm Karl Grimm, The Bremen Town Musicians, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1992.

Coyote Steals the Blanket: An Ute Tale, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1993.

Tops and Bottoms, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1995.

Old Bag of Bones: A Coyote Tale, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1996.

ILLUSTRATOR

Myra Cohen Livingston, editor, Callooh! Callay! Holiday Poems for Young Readers, Atheneum (New York, NY), 1978.

Marjorie Sharmat, Twitchell the Wishful, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1981.

Marjorie Sharmat, Lucretia the Unbearable, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1981.

Ida Lutrell, Not like That, Armadillo, Harcourt (New York, NY), 1982.

Steven Kroll, The Big Bunny and the Easter Eggs, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1982.

Edward Lear, The Owl and the Pussycat, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1983.

Marjorie Sharmat, Sasha the Silly, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1984.

Sheila Turnage, Trout the Magnificent, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1984.

Arnold Adoff, The Cabbages Are Chasing the Rabbits, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1985.

Paul Levitt and others, The Weighty Word Book, Bookmakers Guild/University of Colorado Foundation (Longmont, CO), 1985, reprinted, University of New Mexico Press (Albuquerque, NM), 2009.

Steven Kroll, The Big Bunny and the Magic Show, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1986.

Squire D. Rushnell, Little David's Adventures, Word (Waco, TX), 1986.

Eric Kimmel, reteller, Anansi and the Moss-covered Rock, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1988.

Edward Lear, The Quangle Wangle's Hat, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1988.

Brent Ashabranner, I'm in the Zoo, Too, Dutton (New York, NY), 1989.

Barbara Shook Hazen, Wally, the Worry-Warthog, Clarion Books (Boston, MA), 1990.

Eric Kimmel, Nanny Goat and the Seven Little Kids, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1990.

Polly Robertus, The Dog Who Had Kittens, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1991.

Eric Kimmel, reteller, Anansi Goes Fishing, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1992.

Margery Cuyler, Buddy Bear and the Bad Guys, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 1993.

Eric Kimmel, reteller, Anansi and the Talking Melon, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1995.

Kathryn Lasky, The Gates of the Wind, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1995.

Anne Miranda, To Market, to Market, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1997.

Susan Stevens Crummel, Tumbleweed Stew, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2000.

Eric Kimmel, reteller, Anansi and the Magic Stick, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2001.

Coleen Salley, Epossumondas, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Coleen Salley, Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2004.

Coleen Salley, Epossumondas Saves the Day, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2006.

Eric Kimmel, reteller, Anansi's Party Time, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2008.

Adaptations

The Tortoise and the Hare was narrated by Gilda Radner and televised on Reading Rainbow, Public Broadcasting System, 1985.

Sidelights

Bringing to life such well-loved storybook characters as Anansi the spider, Epossumondas, and Jackalope, children's book illustrator and writer Janet Stevens creates artwork for numerous books written by prominent authors. She has illustrated her own retellings of traditional stories, and has collaborated with her sister and fellow author Susan Stevens Crummel as well. Using artistic media such as pastel crayon, pencil, color pencil, and watercolor, Stevens is especially noted for her humorous illustrations that feature likeable animals. Her work as an illustrator has been described by Booklist re- viewer Denise M. Wilms as "strong, showing a sense of movement, composition, and drama similar to that found in [noted illustrator Paul] Galdone's most successful works."

Stevens was born in 1953, in Dallas, Texas, but was raised in such places as Virginia, Rhode Island, Florida, and Hawaii because her father was a career naval officer. After finishing high school, she earned a degree in fine arts from the University of Colorado, graduating in 1975. Involved since then in such creative endeavors as advertising, textile design, and illustrations for architects, Stevens has translated her early love of drawing into a career that has filled her life.

Stevens illustrated her first children's book, the anthology Callooh! Callay! Holiday Poems for Young Readers, in 1978, after being inspired by a workshop she attended. An editor at New York City publishing company Holiday House liked her work so much that she offered Stevens a contract. Animal Fair followed in 1981, a traditional nursery song that Stevens both illustrated and adapted as a read-aloud picture book. Michele Slung commented in the New York Times Book Review that the illustrations in the book display "such an array of inventiveness" that the reader might believe they "somehow have a life of their own."

Numerous other retellings have followed, including versions of such classic children's stories as The Princess and the Pea, The Emperor's New Clothes—where Stevens casts a rotund porker in the starring role—and Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Her imaginative retelling

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of The Bremen Town Musicians, originally written by one of the Brothers Grimm, has been particularly praised as a book worthy of a prominent spot during story time. Using watercolor and pastel on textured handmade paper, Stevens tells of the adventures of the four old animals who set out together for the city of Bremen in hopes of becoming musicians. "That Stevens can pull off chaos without clutter is a real tribute to her powers of composition and design," noted Betsy Hearne in the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books.

In How the Manx Cat Lost Its Tail, Stevens presents the explanation for an entire breed of tailless felines by showing Noah slamming the door on his favorite pet just as the cat scurries into the Ark at the last minute—the Manx cat's bad timing costs it one of its nine lives in addition to a tail. Hearne praised the "rollicking details" of the artist's double-page spreads, while Kathy Piehl commented in School Library Journal that Stevens's watercolors "create dramatic tension" by contrasting the coming rainstorm with "the anxious and skittish expressions of the animals."

Similarly, in Coyote Steals the Blanket: An Ute Tale, Stevens introduces readers to the folklore of the Ute Indians with her characteristic action-filled and animal-packed illustrations. "I go where I want, I do what I want, and I take what I want," announces the defiant Coyote, and his daredevil attitude ends up getting him into trouble. "A scruffier, more scraggly Coyote would be hard to find," noted Janice Del Negro in Booklist, praising Coyote Steals the Blanket as useful for "reading aloud, reading alone, and storytelling." A Kirkus Reviews critic applauded Stevens's "briskly informal, well-honed telling" and found her illustrations create "an outstanding setting for a lively, sagacious, well-sourced tale."

Several fables by Aesop, including The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, Androcles and the Lion, and The Tortoise and the Hare, have also been brought to new life through Stevens's colorful artwork and updated adaptation. Despite the criticism from some reviewers that Aesop's classic stories contain a compactness and simplicity that can not be improved upon in their appeal to children, Stevens's The Tortoise and the Hare was honored by being showcased on the Public Broadcasting System's popular Reading Rainbow television series. In addition to providing both text and pictures to these old tales, Stevens has also illustrated several stories by other authors, from Edward Lear's classic nineteenth-century rhymes The Owl and the Pussycat and The Quangle Wangle's Hat to Eric A. Kimmel's retellings of the African Anansi the Spider trickster tales and Arnold Adoff's humorous 1985 work The Cabbages Are Chasing the Rabbits.

Another trickster tale is the focus of Stevens's picture book Tops and Bottoms, recipient of a Caldecott Honor citation. A clever Hare, noting that rich but lazy Bear sleeps through the growing season, offers to work Bear's land in exchange for half of the crops—and Bear can even choose which half, tops or bottoms. When Bear chooses tops, Hare outwits his landlord by planting carrots and beets; when Bear then selects bottoms, Hare raises lettuce and celery. "Stevens retells the story with vigor and humor," Susan Dove Lempke noted in her Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books review, "but the artwork is the real star." The critic added that the vertical, top-to-bottom positioning of the illustrations creates "an ingenious twist." Horn Book contributor Ellen Fader similarly praised the artist's "bold, well-composed watercolor, pencil, and gesso illustrations," and concluded that "the story contains enough sly humor and reassuring predictability to captivate listeners."

Stevens uses anthropomorphism—endowing animals with human characteristics—in approaching her work as an illustrator. In From Pictures to Words: A Book about Making a Book she even uses animal characters to describe how she comes up with the idea for each new story. In fact, "Stevens barely has time to introduce herself before the text is taken over by a cast of imaginary animals clad in colorful clothing," according to Joy Fleishhacker in School Library Journal. "We need to be in a book," her animal characters demand of the illustrator at the start of her day in the studio. "We want something exciting to do. We need places to go, people to meet. We're like actors without a stage, burgers without buns, aliens without spaceships!" Faced with pitiful entreaties such as these, Stevens launches into a step-by-step guide to the way a children's picture book is constructed—setting, plot, cast of characters, and the development of a problem and solution that comprise the basics of dramatic tension. She portrays the creative task of bookmaking in a way that inspires young writers and concludes by encouraging them to try their hand at the process as well. "I hope I always have the opportunity to create books for children," Stevens once said, "so that my animal characters will have homes."

Stevens has also enjoyed success as an illustrator of books by others, including To Market, to Market by Anne Miranda. In this story, readers follow the adventures of a dedicated shopper as she travels between her kitchen and the hectic activity of the market in an increasingly harried effort to complete her grocery shopping. A Kirkus Reviews critic noted that Stevens brings "hilarity to scenes that combine acrylics, oil pastels, and colored pencil with photo and fabric collage elements." In Horn Book Marilyn Bousquin found that Stevens's illustrations help to draw readers into the text, commenting that the pictures "evoke the reckless feeling of being caught—like the increasingly disheveled shopper—in the loop of this rhyme."

Beginning in 1999, Stevens began collaborating with her sister, Susan Stevens Crummel. Their third book, My Big Dog, tells the story of a family cat who is accustomed to ruling the roost. When a new puppy comes along, though, the cat thinks they cannot be friends and decides to run away. After a series of adventures, the dog comes to rescue him, and the two go home together. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly called the story an "irresistible tale," and praised Stevens's effectiveness at showing the cat's inner life through illustrations. In a review for School Library Journal, however, Martha Topol noted that the cat's moping might cause "readers' interest and sympathy … to wane."

Several of the Stevens sisters' joint efforts have taken place in the world of nursery rhymes and expanded or retold familiar stories. Cook-a-Doodle-Doo! tells the story of a rooster, the great-grandson of the Little Red Hen, who sets out to make a strawberry shortcake from a recipe in his great-grandmother's cookbook. In an echo of the Little Red Hen story, the first few animals he asks for help refuse, saying, "Not I," but he soon finds enthusiastic, if somewhat inept (and unusual), helpers in Turtle, Iguana, and Pig. The animals learn about teamwork as well as about cooking and following a recipe, and readers can make their own strawberry shortcake with the recipe and cooking tips provided. A critic for Kirkus Reviews felt that "though entertaining, the story is not seamless in its many functions," but praised Stevens' "hilarious illustrations." Hazel Rochman, writing in Booklist, called Cook-a-Doodle-Doo! a "gloriously illustrated picture book … with parody and puns and nonsense slapstick that kids will love."

Another continuation and expansion of a familiar story can be found in And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon. One evening, Dish and Spoon run away and do not return, and Cat, Dog, and Cow must go find them and bring them back for the next evening's reading of their rhyme. They make their way through an enchanted landscape filled with literary landmarks, visual puns, and other well-known characters. As Carolyn Phelan wrote in Booklist, "children who know their nursery rhymes … will best appreciate" this rich picture book. A reviewer for Horn Book called it "an inventive, amusing farce that blends elements of Gilbert and Sullivan with Monty Python and Mel Brooks." Several reviewers praised the illustrations but pointed out that young children may not understand the puns and double meanings. However, as Rosalyn Pierrini wrote in a School Library Journal review, "those sophisticated enough to get it will love it."

One of the Stevens sisters' collaborations resulted in the publication of Jackalope, the story of a jackrabbit who wants to be fierce. His fairy godrabbit gives him horns, but they come with a Pinocchio-type curse, and the entrance of Coyote into the tale adds further conflict. Stevens' unique illustrations for this tale combine watercolors and colored pencils with photographs and collage. Although a critic for Kirkus Reviews called Jackalope "a labored slog through a confused tall-fairy-tale landscape," other critics had more positive reactions. A Publishers Weekly reviewer remarked favorably upon "the double ending, the puns, and the artwork," and Cris Riedel, writing for School Library Journal, found that "the nutty plot, sympathetic characters, and handsome illustrations make for a roaring good time."

Dogs looking for advice are the focus of the sisters' Help Me, Mr. Mutt! Expert Answers for Dogs with People Problems. Dog counselor Mr. Mutt offers solutions for the pets who write to him about their problems, such as owners who put their pooches on diets or neglect to take their animals on long walks. Much to the annoyance of "The Queen," Mr. Mutt's feisty feline counterpart, many of the canine's suggestions include denigrating cats, leading to an eventual run-in between the two parties. "Art and text work seamlessly," thought Booklist critic Stephanie Zvirin, who predicted the title would appeal to readers young and old. In a review for School Library Journal, Maura Bresnahan commented favorably on the book's "multi-layered story" and suggested that Help Me, Mr. Mutt! would most likely be enjoyed by "more sophisticated readers who will recognize the amount of effort that went into this creative venture."

A pig-tailed preschooler receives a special present, a stuffed animal made from an old plaid shirt, from her grandmother in Plaidypus Lost, but consistently loses it during her daily activities. Every time the girl realizes her toy has gone missing, she sets everyone in motion to find it, promising not to ever lose Plaidypus again. However, the youngster continues to forget the creature, leaving the toy in a lake and even accidentally throwing Plaidypus out the car window. While a few critics expressed reservations about the book's "aggressive, over-designed pages," as a Kirkus Reviews contributor described them, other critics found the layout an appealing feature of Plaidypus Lost. Writing in Booklist, Jennifer

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Mattson thought the author/illustrator's use of "digitally collaged elements … add[ed] texture without cluttering the clean, open compositions." A Publishers Weekly reviewer also found the artwork appealing: "Set against crisp white space, Stevens's watercolors capture the heroine's personality."

Stevens and Crummel continued their use of unusual page layouts in The Great Fuzz Frenzy, inviting readers to view vertical and horizontal illustrations on fold-out pages. When a bright green tennis ball falls into a prairie dog burrow, the underground rodents fall in love with the colorful fuzz, adorning themselves with it until they pluck the ball bare. The scarcity of the fuzz not only leads to a war among the prairie dogs but also causes one of them to forget about nearby predators. "Only the Stevens sisters could create such an over-the-top tale about fuzz," remarked Julie Cummins in Booklist, while a Publishers Weekly critic claimed Stevens "endows her furry cast with winning goofiness." Other reviewers also found delight in the author/illustrator's depiction of fuzz, with School Library Journal contributor Lisa Gangemi Kropp suggesting that Stevens' "marvelously rendered mixed-media illustrations … capture the true fuzzy nature and greenish glow of the ball."

In 2002, Stevens illustrated the first of Coleen Salley's books about the hapless possum Epossumondas, using the author herself as the model for the animal protagonist's human mother. In Epossumondas, readers are introduced to the title character, and to his often misguided attempts to follow the advice of his Mama. School Library Journal contributor Jane Marino praised Salley's text and took note of Stevens's "delightful watercolor and colored-pencil art." A Kirkus Reviews critic commented that while readers familiar with Salley's work as a storyteller will recognize "her signature tale … it is the lively, outsize illustrations that spark the story."

More tales about Epossumondas have followed, including Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail and Epossumondas Saves the Day. In the former, the young possum wants to know why his tail is skinny, pink, and hairless, unlike most other animals. To explain why, Mama Possum shares with Epossumondas a story about his great-great-grandfather who forgot to share stolen persimmons with his friend Hare. Angered by papa possum's greediness, the rabbit informs the owner of the persimmon tree, a bear, the identity of the thief. Bear catches the marsupial by his tail, stretching the once fluffy ball into a long, hair-free whip. "Stevens' signature mixed-media illustrations humorously concoct the delightful fun," claimed Booklist critic Julie Cummins. Other reviewers thought the book's pairing of text and colorful illustrations make the title a natural selection for reading aloud to children. Wrote Joanna Rudge Long in Horn Book, "Stevens's big, boisterous illustrations fairly leap off the page, nicely suiting them for the group-sharing the tale demands."

When Mama Possum runs out of "sody sallyraytus," or baking soda, in Epossumondas Saves the Day, the lovable possum must find a way to the store or else he will not have biscuits for his birthday treat. Though a dangerous snapping turtle has devoured everyone his mother sent before him, Epossumondas uses his wits to escape the same fate and rescue his family from the hungry turtle. "Stevens's art is right in the comic spirit of things," wrote Long in a Horn Book review, while School Library Journal contributor Lee Bock found "Stevens's hilarious mixed-media illustrations … a perfect match for the narrative."

Stevens once told SATA: "I treasure humor a great deal, and enjoy drawing animals in people situations. Facial expressions, clothing, movement, and accessories help make the animals become distinct personalities. Putting the diaper on Epossumondas brought him to life for me, and gave him his individuality; similarly, Jack doesn't need his glasses when he's transformed into Jackalope.

"I've always loved to draw and read—and I love children—so what a great combination for a career in illustrating and writing children's books!"

Biographical and Critical Sources

BOOKS

McElmeel, Sharron L., An Author a Month (for Dimes), Volume 3, Teacher Ideas Press (Englewood, CO), 1993.

Stevens, Janet, Coyote Steals the Blanket: An Ute Tale, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1993.

Stevens, Janet, From Pictures to Words: A Book about Making a Book, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1995.

Stevens, Janet, and Susan Stevens Crummel, Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 1, 1984, Denise M. Wilms, review of The Tortoise and the Hare, p. 251; April 1, 1993, Janice Del Negro, review of Coyote Steals the Blanket, p. 1428; January 1, 1999, Kathleen Squires, review of My Big Dog, p. 891; April 15, 1999, Hazel Rochman, review of Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!, p. 1530; May 15, 1999, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Shoe Town, p. 1705; April 1, 2001, Carolyn Phelan, review of And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon, p. 1472; September 1, 2004, Julie Cummins, review of Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail, p. 135; September 1, 2005, Julie Cummins, review of The Great Fuzz Frenzy, p. 146.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, October, 1990, Betsy Hearne, review of How the Manx Cat Lost Its Tail, p. 47; November, 1992, Betsy Hearne, review of The Bremen Town Musicians, p. 73; April, 1995, Susan Dove Lempke, review of Tops and Bottoms, p. 287; March 15, 2004, Jennifer Mattson, review of Plaidypus Lost, p. 1311; March 15, 2008, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Help Me, Mr. Mutt! Expert Answers for Dogs with People Problems, p. 55.

Horn Book, May, 1995, Ellen Fader, review of Tops and Bottoms, p. 337; November-December, 1997, Marilyn Bousquin, review of To Market, to Market, p. 671; July, 2001, review of And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon, p. 444; January-February, 2005, Joanna Rudge Long, review of Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail, p. 85; November-December, 2006, Joanna Rudge Long, review of Epossumondas Saves the Day, p. 729.

Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 1993, review of Coyote Steals the Blanket, p. 537; October 15, 1997, review of To Market, to Market; March 15, 1999, review of Cooka-Doodle-Doo!, p. 457; August 1, 2002, review of Epossumondas, p. 1142; April 1, 2003, review of Jackalope, p. 541; February 15, 2004, review of Plaidypus Lost, p. 186; August 1, 2004, review of Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail, p. 748; August 1, 2005, review of The Great Fuzz Frenzy, p. 859; October 15, 2006, review of Epossumondas Saves the Day, p. 1079; March 1, 2008, review of Help Me, Mr. Mutt!

New York Times Book Review, April 26, 1981, Michele Slung, review of Animal Fair, p. 66.

Publishers Weekly, December 7, 1998, review of My Big Dog, p. 58; January 13, 2003, review of Jackalope, p. 60; February 9, 2004, review of Plaidypus Lost, p. 81; July 18, 2005, review of The Great Fuzz Frenzy, p. 204; April 21, 2008, review of Help Me, Mr. Mutt!, p. 56.

School Library Journal, May, 1990, Kathy Piehl, review of How the Manx Cat Lost Its Tail, p. 101; July, 1995, Joy Fleishhacker, review of From Pictures to Words, p. 75; January, 1999, Martha Topol, review of My Big Dog, p. 102; May, 1999, Sharon R. Pearce, review of Shoe Town, p. 85; May, 2001, Rosalyn Pierrini, review of And the Dish Ran away with the Spoon, p. 136; September, 2002, Jane Marino, review of Epossumondas, p. 217; July, 2003, Cris Riedel, review of Jackalope, p. 108; May, 2004, Julie Roach, review of Plaidypus Lost, p. 125; September, 2004, Grace Oliff, review of Why Epossumondas Has No Hair on His Tail, p. 179; September, 2005, Lisa Gangemi Kropp, review of The Great Fuzz Frenzy, p. 186; December, 2006, Lee Bock, review of Epossumondas Saves the Day, p. 116; May, 2008, Maura Bresnahan, review of Help Me, Mr. Mutt!, p. 110.

ONLINE

Janet Stevens Home Page,http://www.janetstevens.com (September 15, 2008).

Something About the Author

Stevens, Janet 1953-

views updated May 14 2018

STEVENS, Janet 1953-

Personal

Addresses

Home and offıce— 3835 Spring Valley Rd., Boulder, CO 80304. E-mail— rhinoink@aol.com.

Career

Children's book illustrator and writer, 1979—. Has worked in advertising, textile design, and architectural illustration.

Awards, Honors

Parents Choice Award, 1987, and Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies citation, National Council for Social Studies/Children's Book Council, both for The Three Billy Goats Gruff; Caldecott Honor citation, and Notable Children's Books citation, both American Library Association, both 1996, Parents' Choice Honor Award, and American Bookseller Association "Pick of the Lists" citation, all for Tops and Bottoms; Stevens's books have been made Junior Literary Guild and International Reading Association Children's Choice selections, and have received several state children's choice book awards.

Writings

SELF-ILLUSTRATED

From Pictures to Words: A Book about Making a Book, Holiday House (New York, NY), 1995.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) Shoe Town, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) My Big Dog, Random House (New York, NY), 1999.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2001.

(With sister, Susan Stevens Crummel) Jackalope, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2003.