Press Kit

Short and Sweet Author BIO:

Jacqueline Jules is an elementary school librarian and the author of ten children's books, including The Hardest Word, Noah and the Ziz, The Ziz and the Hanukah Miracle, Abraham's Search for God, Sarah Laughs, No English, and the forthcoming The Princess and the Ziz. Her poetry and prose have appeared in over sixty publications including Highlights, Cricket, Cicada, Spider, and Ladybug. Her lively presentations feature songs and activities that engage young audiences and invite them to participate. To learn more about her, please visit www.jacquelinejules.com

Long Author Bio:

Jacqueline Jules first dreamed of being an author in third grade, when her teacher passed out strips of construction paper and asked everyone to write what they wanted to be when they  grew up. Without hesitation, she wrote "writer." All through elementary school, middle school, and high school, she wrote poetry and short stories. In college, at the University of Pittsburgh, she earned a B.A. in English Writing. However, years went by before she realized her audience. Many of her stories and poems had young protagonists. Adult publications rejected them. Then she started sending out some of the same material to children's magazines and received acceptance letters. Later, she went back to school to study library science and found the children's literature courses totally mesmerizing. As an elementary school librarian, she has found a way to combine her love of reading and writing. Not only does she work every day in a room full of books, but also the students and teachers she works with are constantly giving her writing ideas. Her just-released No English (Mitten Press, 2007), about a second grade girl who finds a creative way to bridge a language barrier with a new student from Argentina, was inspired by Jacqueline's experiences working in a school with a diverse student body from over thirty different countries. In 2009, Charlesbridge Press will release Unite or Die, a book on the constitutional convention, expanded from a skit she wrote for her students to perform.

Other books by Jacqueline include Abraham's Search for God, praised by School Library Journal as an "excellent introduction to the concept of monotheism" and named a 2008 Notable Book for Younger Readers by the Sydney Taylor Award Committee. Abraham's Search for God has been followed by a companion book entitled Sarah Laughs, released by Kar-Ben in Spring 2008.

The Ziz made his first appearance in 2001 in The Hardest Word: A Yom Kippur Story, a National Jewish Book Award Finalist and an Association of Jewish Libraries Notable Book for Young Readers. The San Diego Jewish Times review of The Hardest Word called it "a delightful tale, featuring a loveable, klutzy bird teaching the essential lessons of the High Holidays." The Ziz made his second appearance in 2005 in Noah and the Ziz, a book highly recommended by the Church and Synagogue Library Association in a review which quoted the response of a preschool child who said, "It's awesome!" A review in the Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle simply states, "We love the Ziz!" Reviews for the  latest book in the series, The Ziz and the Hanukkah Miracle have been just as enthusiastic. Kirkus Reviews said, "Jules incorporates the theme of sharing, as well as apologizing, in a droll version of a holiday tale." The Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee of the Association of Jewish Libraries recommended The Ziz and the Hanukkah Miracle on its list of "Great Hanukkah Books for Kids." The Princess and the Ziz, a tale in which the Ziz helps King Solomon's daughter, is scheduled to be released in the fall of 2008. Jacqueline appears at speaking engagements for the Ziz books with a giant stuffed Ziz for young audiences to hug and kiss.