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Kristine O'Connell George lives in a rural area in the Santa Monica Mountains of California and often finds poetry right outside her back door. The owl who lives in the 300-year old native oak, packs of coyotes howling at night, lizards on the front porch, and “Mighty” (the noisy donkey up the lane) all seem to find their way into her work. Memories of previous homes in Colorado, Idaho, Ohio, Oregon and Texas also provide inspiration. Kristine says she "fell in love with children's poetry" in 1989 in a children's poetry writing class taught by Myra Cohn Livingston at the UCLA Writer’s Program. She has been writing and learning ever since. Her poetry for children has appeared in anthologies, textbooks, and publications such as Booklinks, Instructor Magazine, and Time for Kids. Since her first highly acclaimed book, The Great Frog Race, was published in 1997, Kristine has earned honors and praise for each of her books. Major awards for her work include the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award, two CLCSC Myra Cohn Livingston Poetry Awards, the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, and two Claudia Lewis Poetry Awards. A frequent speaker at national conferences, Kristine also visits schools, where she is often accompanied by a large paper maché frog named "Studebaker” and a metal bucket containing such "props" as a garden hose and a monkey wrench. When she isn’t speaking or writing, Kristine enjoys spending time with her family and pets, hiking, gardening (but not weeding!), playing really bad golf, reading, painting, creating collages, and taking photographs. Kristine says she is ‘never bored!’ |
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Fold Me a Poem Join a young boy as he creates a world filled with origami creatures of all shapes and sizes out of an array of brightly colored paper. From roosters waking up and buffalo pawing the tablecloth to cheetahs racing lions and moths that yearn for butterfly colors, here is a glimpse into the vibrant imagination of a child. Awards |
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Up! A trip to the park with Daddy is full of joyful opportunities to climb, to jump, to swing, to be lifted ... Up! Once again, award-winning poet Kristine O'Connell George takes a playful look at the world through the eyes of a very young child. With a theme every parent and toddler will recognize, her brief stanzas, accompanied by Hiroe Nakata's bright watercolor paintings, perfectly capture the thrill and exuberance of being "Up!" Awards |
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One Mitten What can you do with only one mitten? Use your imagination! Award-winning poet Kristine O'Connell George shows that the simplest object can be a springboard into playful exploration. Spare rhyming text and bright, lively illustrations celebrate a small child's joyful discovery of many things she can do, be, and play with a single mitten. And when she finally finds the mitten's missing mate, two mittens open up a whole new realm of possibilities. Once again, the creators of Book! look at the world through a young child's eyes, revealing the fun that's hidden in everyday things. |
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Hummingbird Nest For two glorious months, one lucky family gets an intimate peek at the daily activities of a mother hummingbird and her babies. Nest building, egg hatching, flying lessons—the family sees it all unfold on the back patio. Share the experience through this poignant journal of poems filled with funny observations, fascinating hummingbird facts, and unforgettable moments. Awards |
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Swimming Upstream: Middle School Poems The first year brings an array of challenges: making new friends, moving from class to class, tests and homework, changing for PE, gossip, school dances, and, of course, budding romance. Short, accessible poems in a variety of forms, but all in a single voicethat of a new middle schoolerevoke the memorable moments of the school year, exploring situations and emotions that will resonate with preteens. Lively illustrations complement this perceptive, humorous, poignant record of an important transitional year. Awards |
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Little Dog and Duncan The endearing characters from Little Dog Poems are back—and this time the little girl and her little dog have a very large overnight visitor. Duncan is so big that he plays fetch with a log instead of a stick, his head alone fills Little Dog"s bed, and he takes up way more than his share of the backseat. But even though he and Little Dog are very different, they have lots in common, too—both love cookies and scratches and mud and mischief. Thirty short, playful poems, narrated by the little girl and illustrated with delicate watercolors, affectionately observe the contrasting canines and are an appealing introduction to poetry for very young readers. Awards |
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Book! I like the way you open. Awards |
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Toasting Marshmallows: Camping Poems Everything that happens when you go camping can be an adventure, from getting dressed inside your sleeping bag on a chilly morning to meeting a moose to sharing secrets in a tent at night. Kristine O'Connell George turns the memorable moments of a family outing into spirited, evocative verse, and Kate Kiesler's vivid paintings provide a cast of characters and the perfect setting. The captivating poems and pictures in Toasting Marshmallows will leave readers with wonderful memories of a camping tripeven if they've never been on one! Awards |
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Little Dog Poems From cold-nose wake-up to bedtime with a Little Dog-shaped lump under the covers, a day that a little girl spends with her Little Dog is recounted in thirty short, playful poems and enchanting watercolor illustrations. Little Dog protects the little girl from vacuum cleaners and beetles, chases cats, digs up flowers, and waits hopefully as kitchen preparations take place and as popcorn is eaten. The little girl, who loves Little Dog enough to "bake / birthday cookies with / liver powder," retrieves tennis balls, brings home a present from the pet store, and observes how little a wet Little Dog becomes at bath time. A perfect introduction to the pleasures of poetry, this beguiling volume belongs on every young dog lover's bookshelf. Awards |
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Old Elm Speaks This tree across the stream is a trickier bridge than it might seem... The author of The Great From Race and Other Poems has created a collection of short poems that celebrate trees and the amazing variety of ways they touch our lives. Deceptively simple verses reveal what trees think about and what they say to one another, as well as how they look and all the things they do for us. Humor and an unerring ear for the sounds of language make these poems an irresistible read-aloud; the luminous oil paintings evoke a country setting and the children who enjoy it through the year. Awards |
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The Great Frog Race and Other Poems A collection of poems about frogs and dragonflies, wind and rain, a visit to the tree farm, the garden hose, and other familiar parts of indoor and outdoor life. Awards |
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