Guys Read Jon Scieszka Interview

Insanely popular author Jon Scieszka was born in Flint, Michigan, September 8, 1954. He's the second of six boys and no girls (unless you count his mom). He spent his childhood playing as many rough house games as possible with his brothers and reading tons and tons of books. He attended Culver Military Academy and then went on to Albion College where he majored in pre-med. However, the doctor's life was not for him, so he switched careers and earned a Masters of Fine Arts from Columbia University in 1980 which, in his words, "Qualified him to paint houses." It also gave him a passion for writing. His stories for his writing came from teaching elementary and middle school students.

Scieszka didn't see anything that young men wanted to read coming through his classrooms. He took a year off from teaching to pursue full time writing. He teamed with illustrator Lane Smith and their books, beginning with the True Story of the Three Little Pigs, were created and produced.

Scieszka is married to Jerilyn, an art director, and has 2 children. They reside in Brooklyn, NY.

He created a nonprofit organization called Guys Read. The goal was to recommend cool books for boys (his own and other really fun writers). It was this concept and organization that led to the development of Guys Read clubs in Charlotte. The goal is to introduce reading to guys in a way that's fun and comfortable. These clubs have been around for 2 years and continues to grow.

The work that Scieszka has done led Librarian of Congress James H. Billington to appoint him as the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. The position was created to raise national awareness of the importance of young people's literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education, and the development and betterment of the lives of young people.

 LISTEN TO PODCAST OF Jon Scieszka interview (19.1mbs)