Sharon Creech
Sharon was born in South Euclid, Ohio a suburb of Cleveland, and grew up there with her noisy and rowdy family: her parents (Ann and Arvel), her sister (Sandy), and her three brothers (Dennis, Doug and Tom). In the summer, they usually took a trip, they all piled in a car and headed out to Wisconsin or Michigan or once to Idaho. Her trip to Idaho was the inspiration for her book Walk Two Moons.
It was in college, where she took literature and writing courses, that she became intrigued with story telling. Sharon received her BA at Ohio's Miram College and her Master of Arts from the University of Virginia. Her previous jobs include teacher, editorial assistant, indexer and a researcher. Sharon started writing novels for adults and published two books while she lived in England having moved there in 1979. She then wrote Absolutely Normal Chaos and since then has mainly written about young people.
Books
Chasing Redbird
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Macmillan Children's books
Interest age: 11-15
Reading age: 11+
13-year-old Zinny becomes withdrawn after the death of her beloved Aunt Jessie ('Redbird'), but then an ancient pioneer trail is discovered on the family farm, giving her an irresistible challenge.
Heartbeat
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
Interest age: 8+
Reading age: 8+
Annie loves drawing, running barefoot, her family, and possibly Max, her running partner. It’s an eventful time for the 12-year-old: as her mother is about to give birth, her beloved grandfather is sliding slowly into dementia.
Love that Dog
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
Interest age: 9-12
Reading age: 9+
Jack has a great sadness in his life, but he is not about to share his feelings with anyone, and he is definitely not going to write poetry about it - he's a boy isn't he?
One Time
Author: Sharon Creech Illustrator: Sarah Horne
Publisher: Guppy Books
Interest age: 9-11
Reading age: 8+
An inspirational teacher and a neighbour with a welcoming smile open up a world of new possibilities for Gina Filomena.
Ruby Holler
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Interest age: 8-13
Reading age: 9+
Dallas and Florida are the oldest children in the Boxton Creek Home. Disillusioned, they have low expectations of their latest placing - but Tiller and Sairy Morey are an unusual couple.
Saving Winslow
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Guppy Books
Interest age: 9-11
Reading age: 8+
Louie takes on the challenge of saving Winslow the baby donkey, but can he let Winslow go when the time is right?
The Castle Corona
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Interest age: 10-11
Reading age: 10+
Two orphaned peasant children, Pia and Enzio, find a pouch, stolen from the King and dropped in their path. A fairytale about rich and poor.
The Great Unexpected
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Andersen Press
Interest age: 10+
Reading age: 10+
In the little town of Blackbird Tree, friends and fellow orphans Naomi and Lizzie are startled when a strange boy, Finn, falls out of a tree.
The Unfinished Angel
Author: Sharon Creech
Publisher: Andersen Press
Interest age: 9+
Reading age: 9+
A deceptively simple story about the nature of angels, full of wit, humour and insight.