About the Artist: Kate Duke
About Kate Duke
"I was born in New York City and grew up there, the oldest of four children. Both my parents were, and are, great readers, and we children were always well supplied with books. My parents seemed to enjoy reading to me as much as I loved being read to, and no stories have made such an impression on me as those I was introduced to as a child.
"Doctor Doolittle was my first major hero. I yearned passionately to be able to talk to animals as he could. After the good Doctor came Nancy Drew, whose carefree lifestyle I still envy, and Harriet the Spy. Harriet's adventures prompted me at age eleven to start following pedestrians around my neighborhood, taking notes on their every "suspicious" move. I owe Harriet my first conscious awareness that writing was important and meaningful work.
"At about the same age, I discovered that I could draw. In art period one day, the picture of a dog that I was copying from a how-to-draw book came out looking pretty much like a dog. I'd never thought of myself as being 'good in art' before, and I remember feeling very surprised and pleased by the revelation.
"After I grew up, left school, and floundered around for a few years tryingto 'find myself,' signed up for art classes in New York City. This turnedout to be a good move, for in one of these classes I met the nice fellow wholater became my husband Sidney, to whom many of my books are dedicated. At the same time I produced the artwork that, many revisions later, became my first book, The Guinea Pig ABC. When the book was accepted for publication, I knew that I'd finally found what I wanted to do: to make picture books that children today would love as much as I had loved mine."
Kate's Books
Kate has written and illustrated many books for children. Here are just a few. Click on the links to find out more about each book. (Book pages courtesy of www.readingrockets.org.)
- Archaeoogists Dig for Clues
- Aunt Isabel Makes Trouble
- Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One
- One Guinea Pig Is Not Enough
- Twenty is Too Many
More About Kate
- Reading Rockets: Kate Duke page
http://www.readingrockets.org/books/authorbio.php?ID=208
Includes biography, interview, lesson plans for Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One and Aunt Isabel Makes Trouble, and synopses of major books. - Kate Duke E-Cards
http://www.readingrockets.org/ecards/setup.php?photo_id=5
Send a Kate Duke e-Card to your friends! From the Reading Rockets site.