(3) 4-6 Meet the Author series. Photographs by Nina Crews. A preoccupation with the natural world links these autobiographies by two successful children's book writers. Simon focuses on the writing process, while Cherry talks more about her environmental activism. Both authors effectively convey the challenges and rewards of their chosen career. Photographs, as well as reproductions of some of Cherry's earliest illustrations, reinforce the books' feeling of intimacy.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Meet the Author series. Photographs by Nina Crews. These autobiographies place special emphasis on motivation: Adler's own interests and those of his family provide the creative spark for his fiction and nonfiction; Bruchac's pride in his Native American heritage informs his writing; and painter/author Locker's respect for nature inspires his stories. Recent and archival photographs and simple but artful prose convey everything from these writers' childhood dilemmas to their artistic frustrations.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS Photographs by Nina Crews. A little boy spends the day playing with his grandmother and waiting for his sister to come home from school. Listening for the school bus, he hears other sounds--the plop of letters falling through the mail slot and the "CRCRICK" of tree trimmers working nearby. The color photos the busy boy will appeal to preschoolers, as will the repetition, sound effects, simple plot, and happy ending.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth