Tiny Treasury

It’s the Friday Fifteen!

1. Where are you now?

At my desk at home in Chappaqua, New York.

2. What were your favorite books as a kid?

How much space do I have? To name just a few: Harriet the Spy, A Wrinkle in Time, Pippi Longstocking, The Black Stallion, Little Women, The Secret Garden, The Secret Language, Charlotte’s Web, My Side of the Mountain, The Island of the Blue Dolphins, Little House on the Prairie, Rascal, Half Magic, anything by Beverly Cleary….I read A LOT.

3. What are you reading now?

Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock. I love this book–it’s fresh and quirky. Also The Moons of Jupiter by Alice Munro. Munro is one of my favorite writers, so I’m reading her stuff super-slowly, to make it last.

4. Do you have kids?

I have two sons, ages 17 and 13, and a daughter, age 11. They’re all very witty and very verbal–our meals are sometimes so hilarious that we forget to eat. Some of the humor in Just Another Day in my Insanely Real Life comes from our dinner table–for example, Cassie’s list of “The Funniest Words in the English Language.”

5. What projects are you working on now?

I’m awaiting comments from my editor on a middle grade novel tentatively titled Solving Zoe, to be published in 2009. It’s about a girl who goes to a progressive school for gifted kids and feels lost–until she discovers her own gift for reading codes. And I’m just starting a new middle grade novel, sort of feeling out the characters. For me it’s always characters first, then plot: probably not the most efficient method of working, but if I don’t hear that character’s voice, I don’t know where the story is going.

6. What is your biggest writing or illustrating luxury?

Being in a family of great readers. My husband and kids always have first crack at my work, and luckily for me, they know how to be critical and supportive at the same time.

7. Coffee or tea?

Two cups of coffee to get me going in the morning, then chai tea for the rest of the day.

8. Name five artists on your iPod (or mp3 player).

Bob Dylan, Wilco, Amy Winehouse, Pink, U2.

9. What would I be surprised to know about you?

I’m the worst typist in the world. This is because when I was in high school, I boycotted my typing class. Not very smart, huh?

Here’s something else: I’m terrified of Ferris wheels. I know it’s weird, but I can’t help it. I’m not too happy about roller coasters either, for that matter.

10. What college did you attend (in what subject)?

Yale College (English).

11. If you weren’t working with kids’ books, what would your dream job be?

Broadcasting for the NY Yankees. Or socializing kittens at the SPCA, a job my older son had for the past two summers. Of course, he didn’t get paid, and I’m afraid my dream job would have to include a paycheck.

12. What’s the best thing on TV right now?

The Wire on HBO–every episode is teeming with flawed, complex, surprisingly sympathetic characters. I’ve also always loved The Sopranos and Seinfeld, and have a lot of respect for The Simpsons.

13. How did you get your “big break” into the field?

I’m glad you put “big break” in quotation marks! I’m not sure I’m there yet, but I know I got published because I viewed my rejection letters as constructive criticism, and used the feedback to revise. If you’re a newbie, you need to have thick skin–an expression I’ve always hated. (But really, if you want to get published, you do.)

14. Which celeb would you want most to meet?

Two of my favorite actors are Kate Winslet and Johnny Depp. But they’re so glamorous and talented– I’m not sure what I’d say to them. Actually, I think the person I’d most want to meet is cartoonist Roz Chast. I just totally get her; we’d talk about how how much we hate driving on highways.

15. Who is the best book character EVER?

For younger readers, Pippi Longstocking, a hilarious, iconoclastic superhero. Or maybe Harriet the Spy, for her depth and artistic sensibility.
For YA readers, Holden Caulfield. He’s the great teen voice, isn’t he?

–

Thanks, Barbara! Barbara’s book, Just Another Day in My Insanely Real Life, was released in paperback last month. Look for it in stores.