My Biography

I didn't know that I would become an author when I was young, but I loved to read and play office. In a way, I still play office. In my office today I have a computer, a desk, a table, a rug, my grandmother's rocker, seven file cabinets, lots of books, and a copying machine. I look out of my window at the tops of trees, and in the summer I can hear the birds sing.

I was drawn to poetry early in life. I loved to hear my grandmother, mother, and father recite poems from memory. One of my favorite books was A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson. Also, my mother had several small poetry books in her bookshelf. With their leather covers and gold titles, they were like treasures to me. I liked to hold them and gently turn the soft, crumbling pages.

Rhyme, to me, is verbal music, and many of my picture books, such as Ten Cats Have Hats, I Love You: A Rebus Poem, Close Your Eyes, Pretend You're a Cat, Home Sweet Home, Sun Song, Do You Know New?, Mama Mama, and Papa Papa, are illustrated poems. All of the I Spy books are written in rhythm and rhyme.

When I write books in prose, such as I Am Planet Earth and Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King, I often use poetic tricks, such as alliteration, to improve my writing. For more information about my books, please visit my web site: jeanmarzollo.com.

I grew up in Manchester, Connecticut and graduated from the University of Connecticut and Harvard Graduate School of Education. My teaching experience and my love of poetry strongly influence my writing. I like to think that I write for children's eyes and my ears.