Bio:

Kirby Larson went from history-phobe to history fanatic thanks to hearing a snippet of a story about her great-grandmother homesteading in eastern Montana. That bit of family lore inspired her to write HATTIE BIG SKY, a young adult historical novel, which is a 2007 Newbery Honor Award and Montana Book Award winner, and has garnered over a dozen state reading/Children’s Choice award nominations. In 2006, she began collaborating with her dear friend, Mary Nethery, a partnership that has so far produced two non-fiction picture books. The first, TWO BOBBIES: A TRUE TALE OF HURRICANE KATRINA, FRIENDSHIP AND SURVIVAL, illustrated by Jean Cassels, won the 2008 ASPCA Henry Bergh Award, 2009 SIBA Award, and has been nominated for over a dozen state reading awards. Their second joint project, NUBS: THE TRUE STORY OF A MUTT, A MARINE AND A MIRACLE, spent two months on the New York Times bestseller list, is a Christopher Award winner and has been nominated for the Washington Children’s Choice Picture Book award. In the past six months, Kirby has been drinking lots of coffee in order to finish not one but two historical novels. THE FENCES BETWEEN US (September 2010) is set during WWII and THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL (Spring 2011) takes place over a 10-year period during the Great Depression. She lives and writes in Kenmore, Washington, with her patient husband and Winston the Wonder Dog.

Writer
PAL
Member since 1987
Region: Western Washington

Contact Information

Website:  http://www.kirbylarson.com

Published In Children's Market: Yes
Available for Speaking Engagements? Yes