Patricia Polacco

Patricia Barber Polacco (born July 11, 1944 in Lansing, Michigan) is an American author and illustrator. Throughout her school years, Polacco struggled with reading but found relief by expressing herself through art. Polacco endured teasing and hid her disability until a school teacher recognized that she could not read and began to help her. Her book Thank You, Mr. Falker is Polacco's retelling of this encounter and its outcome. She also wrote such books as Mr. Lincoln's Way and The Lemonade Club.

Patricia Polacco
Born (1944-07-11) July 11, 1944
Lansing, Michigan, U.S.
OccupationAuthor, illustrator

Early years

She is of Georgian,[1] Russian and Ukrainian-Jewish descent on her mother's side and of Irish on her father's side.[2][3]

She was born in 1944, the daughter of a teacher and a salesman turned talk show host. Her parents divorced when she was three years old. She, her mother, and her brother went to live at her maternal grandmother's farm in Union City, MI, the setting of many of her stories. Polacco was discouraged in school and did not learn to read until she was nearly fourteen. In junior high school, one of her teachers finally discovered that dyslexia was the reason for her lack of confidence.[4] Although her grandmother died in 1949, when Polacco was only five years old, she appears in several of Polacco's books.[5]

At Oakland Technical High School,[6] Polacco became friends with Frank Oz. She wrote When Lightning Comes in a Jar as a tribute to her grandmother (referred to as "Babushka" in her books), and a cousin. She did not start writing and illustrating her first children's book until she was 41 years old. Polacco resides in her native Union City, Michigan, although not on her family home but on a different property which she purchased which was originally known as "The Plantation".[5]

Marriages

Polacco has married twice. She had two children, Traci and Steven, with her first husband. The marriage ended in a divorce. Her second husband, Enzo Mario Polacco (m. August 18, 1979), is a chef and cooking instructor. This marriage also ended in divorce.

Publications
  • Lillian Two Blossom (1988) ISBN 0-399-21470-4
  • The Keeping Quilt (1988) ISBN 0-689-82090-9
  • Rechenka's Eggs (1988) ISBN 0399215018
  • Meteor! (1987) ISBN 0-399-21699-5
  • Uncle Vova's Tree (1989) ISBN 0-399-21617-0
  • Babushka's Doll (1990) ISBN 0-671-68343-8
  • Just Plain Fancy (1990) ISBN 0-553-05884-3
  • Thunder Cake (1990) ISBN 0-399-22231-6
  • Appelemando's Dreams (1991) ISBN 0-399-21800-9
  • Dream Keeper (1991) ISBN 0-399-22947-7
  • Some Birthday! (1991) ISBN 0-671-72750-8
  • Chicken Sunday (1992) ISBN 0-399-22133-6
  • Mrs. Katz and Tush (1992) ISBN 0-440-40936-5
  • Picnic at Mudsock Meadow (1992) ISBN 0-399-21811-4
  • Babushka Baba Yaga (1993) ISBN 0-399-22531-5
  • The Bee Tree (1993) ISBN 0-399-21965-X
  • Firetalking (1994) ISBN 1-878450-55-7
  • My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother (1994) ISBN 0-671-72751-6
  • Pink and Say (1994) ISBN 0-399-22671-0
  • Tikva Means Hope (1994) ISBN 0-385-32059-0
  • Babushka's Mother Goose (1995) ISBN 0-399-22747-4
  • My Ol' Man (1995) ISBN 0-399-22822-5
  • Aunt Chip And The Great Triple Creek Dam Affair (1996) ISBN 0-399-22943-4
  • I Can Hear The Sun: A Modern Myth (1996) ISBN 0-399-22520-X
  • The Trees of the Dancing Goats (1996) ISBN 0-689-80862-3
  • Casey at the Bat: A Ballad of the Republic Sung in the Year 1888 (1997) ISBN 0-698-11557-0; Author: Ernest Lawrence Thayer, Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
  • In Enzo's Splendid Gardens (1997) ISBN 0-399-23107-2
  • Mrs. Mack (1998) ISBN 0-399-23167-6
  • Thank You, Mr. Falker (1998) ISBN 0-399-23166-8
  • Luba And The Wren (1999) ISBN 0-399-23168-4
  • Welcome Comfort (1999) ISBN 0-399-23169-2
  • The Butterfly (2000) ISBN 0-399-23170-6
  • Betty Doll (2001) ISBN 0-399-23638-4
  • Gracias, Sr. Falker (2001) ISBN 1-930332-03-3, with Teresa Mlawer
  • Mr. Lincoln's Way (2001) ISBN 0-399-23754-2
  • Christmas Tapestry (2002) ISBN 0-399-23955-3
  • When Lightning Comes In A Jar (2002) ISBN 0-399-23164-1
  • G is for Goat (2003) ISBN 0-399-24018-7
  • The Graves Family (2003) ISBN 0-399-24034-9
  • John Philip Duck (2004) ISBN 0-399-24262-7
  • Oh, Look! (2004) ISBN 0-399-24223-6
  • An Orange for Frankie (2004) ISBN 0-399-24302-X
  • Emma Kate (2005) ISBN 0-399-24452-2
  • The Graves Family Goes Camping (2005) ISBN 0-399-24369-0
  • Mommies Say Shhh (2005) ISBN 0-399-24341-0
  • Rotten Richie and the Ultimate Dare (2006) ISBN 0-399-24531-6
  • Ginger and Petunia (2006) ISBN 9780399245398
  • The Lemonade Club (2007) ISBN 9780399245404
  • For the Love of Autumn (2008) ISBN 9780399245411
  • Someone for Mr. Sussman (2008) ISBN 9780399250750
  • In Our Mothers' House (2009) ISBN 0-399-25076-X
  • January's Sparrow (2009) ISBN 978-0-399-25077-4
  • Junkyard Wonders (2010) ISBN 0-399-25078-6
  • Something About Hensley's (2006) ISBN 0-399-24538-3
  • Just in Time, Abraham Lincoln (2011) ISBN 9780399254710
  • Bun Bun Button (2011) ISBN 9780399254727
  • The Art of Miss Chew (2012) ISBN 9780399257032
  • Bully (2012) ISBN 9780399257049
  • Gifts of the Heart (2013) ISBN 9780399160943
  • The Blessing Cup (2013) ISBN 1442450479
  • Clara and Davie (2014) ISBN 9780545354776
  • Mr. Wayne's Masterpiece (2014) ISBN 9780399160950
  • Tucky Jo and Little Heart (2015) ISBN 9781481415842
  • An A From Miss Keller (2015) ISBN 9780399166914
  • Fiona's Lace (2014) ISBN 9781442487246
  • The Mermaid's Purse (2016) ISBN 9780399166921
  • Because of Thursday (2016) ISBN 9781481421409

Other media
  • Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair. Video, Color, 23 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
  • Babushka's Doll. Audio Cassette (New York: Scholastic, 1995)
  • The Butterfly. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
  • The Butterfly. Video, Color, 30 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
  • Chicken Sunday. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1992)
  • Chicken Sunday. Video, Color, 14 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1992)
  • The Keeping Quilt. Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1993)
  • Meteor! Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
  • Meteor! Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
  • Mrs. Katz and Tush. Video, Color, 29 minutes (Lincoln, NB: Great Plains National, 1993)
  • Patricia Polacco: Dream Keeper. Video, Color, 23 Minutes (New York: Philomel, 1996)
  • Parents, Kids & Books: The Joys of Reading Together. Video, Color, 30 Minutes (Dallas, TX: Kera Productions, 1993)
  • Pink and Say. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
  • Pink and Say. Video, Color, 28 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1996)
  • Rechenka's Eggs. Audio Cassette (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1991)
  • Rechenka's Eggs. Video, Color, 11 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1991)
  • Thank You, Mr. Falker. Audio Cassette (St. Petersburg, FL: Spoken Arts, 1999)
  • Thank You, Mr. Falker. Video, Color, 23 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1999)
  • Thunder Cake. Video, Color, 13 minutes (New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1990)

Literary Awards
  • 1988 Sydney Taylor Book Award for The Keeping Quilt
  • 1989 International Reading Association Award for Rechenka’s Eggs
  • March 10, 1990 Santa Clara Reading Council
  • Author's Hall of Fame
  • Commonwealth Club of California Recognition of Excellence for
1990 Babushka’s Doll
1992 Chicken Sunday (Nov. 14th 1992 declared Chicken Sunday)
  • 1992 Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
  • Golden Kite Award for Illustration for Chicken Sunday
  • 1992 Boston Area Educators for Social Responsibility
  • Children's Literature and Social Responsibility Award
  • Nov. 9th 1993 Jane Adams Peace Assoc. and Women's Intl. League for Peace and Freedom Awards
  • Honor Award for Mrs. Katz and Tush for its effective contribution to peace and social justice.
  • Parent's Choice Honors
1991 Some Birthday
1997 Video/Dream Keeper
1998 Thank You, Mr. Falker
  • 1996 North Dakota Library Association Children's Book Award for My Rotten Red Headed Older Brother
  • 1996 Jo Osborne Award for Humor in Children's Literature
  • 1997 Missouri Association of School Librarians
  • Show Me Readers Award for My Rotten Red Headed Older Brother
  • 1997 West Virginia Children's Book Award for Pink and Say
  • 1998 Mid-South Independent Booksellers for Children Humpty Dumpty Award
  • 2014 Sydney Taylor Book Award for The Blessing Cup[7]

Articles written about Polacco
  • Vandergrift, Kay E. "Peacocks, Dreams, Quilts, and Honey: Patricia Polacco, A Woman's Voice of Remembrance," In Ways of Knowing: Literature and the Intellectual Life of Children. Ed. By Kay E. Vandergrift. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1996, pp. 259–288.
  • Vandergrift, Kay E. "Patricia Polacco," in Twentieth-Century Children's Writers. ed. by Laura Berger. 4th ed. Detroit: St. James, 1995. 759–760.
  • Profile, childrenslit.com; accessed on July 8, 2015.
  • Interview, TimeforKids.com; accessed on July 8, 2015.

References
  1. Connecting Holidays and Literature by Deborah Plona Cerbus, Rice/Cer, Cheryl Feichtenbiner Rice Teacher Created Materials, 1992, p94
  2. Patricia Polacco profile Archived 2009-07-08 at the Wayback Machine, wsra.org; accessed July 7, 2015.
  3. The Trees of the Dancing Goats Archived 2012-04-19 at the Wayback Machine, childrenslit.com; accessed July 7, 2015.
  4. The Polacco Farm Archived March 16, 2006, at the Wayback Machine. patriciapolacco.com; accessed July 7, 2015.
  5. Who Am I? Archived 2006-06-14 at the Wayback Machine, patriciapolacco.com; accessed July 7, 2015.
  6. "School Historical Archive". Patricia Barber Polacco ’62. Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  7. 2014 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced by AJL, January 21, 2014
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