About the Author

Karen Hesse was born on August 29, 1952, in Baltimore, Maryland. Growing up, Hesse enjoyed writing poetry and playing with the many kids who lived in her neighborhood. She especially loved spending time with her big brother, Mark. When she wanted time alone, Hesse would curl up with a good book — make that climb up with a good book. She would walk out of her back door, book in hand, and climb an apple tree. “There,” she says, “cradled in the boughs of the tree, I spent hours reading. Often my bony bottom would go numb, but I loved it up there so much, I ignored the discomfort.”

Hesse remembers being awkward as a child. She didn’t like big groups and never wanted to be the center of attention. “As a child, I usually faded into the background. I liked being unnoticed.”

When her stepsister entered her life, things changed for Hesse. Her stepsister was beautiful and became a professional dancer while still in high school. Hesse was jealous. She decided to try acting so people would notice her, too. Her high school drama teacher was impressed with her talent and helped Hesse get into the theater program at Towson State College in Maryland.

Hesse left school and was married in 1971. She later finished her college education at the University of Maryland. She spent some of her free time at the University of Maryland writing poetry and giving poetry readings. She also worked in a pizza bagel shop, as a nanny, and in a library at her university. The library work was her favorite. She says, “Working in a library — well, I loved that the way I love chocolate pudding. It was truly that good.”

From that point on, almost all of Hesse’s jobs had something to do with reading. She worked as a proofreader, as an advertising secretary at a magazine, and as a typesetter. It was while working with children’s books as a typesetter that she first thought about becoming a children’s book author.

In 1976, Hesse and her husband, Randy, settled in Vermont. There they raised their two daughters, Kate and Rachel. Hesse began writing books for children in 1982, but she had trouble finding a publisher. “There were about nine years when I submitted work and received not one acceptance. I think a less stubborn person would’ve given up!” But Hesse didn’t give up. Her first book, Wish on a Unicorn, was published in 1991. Since then, she has published more than a dozen acclaimed books, including Letters from Rifka, Phoenix Rising, The Music of Dolphins, Out of the Dust, Just Juice, Stowaway, Witness, and Aleutian Sparrow. She still lives in Vermont.

Quote sources: Hesse, Karen. Essay in Something About the Author, Volume 113. Farmington Mills, MI: Gale Group, Inc., 2000. Pages 67-82 ./ “Karen Hesse’s Interview Transcript,” www.scholastic.com.