Elvira Woodruff

Elvira Woodruff (born June 19, 1951) is an American children's writer[1][2][3][4] known for books that include elements of fantasy and history.[1]

Writing

Elvira Pirozzi was born in Somerville, New Jersey, and attended Adelphi University and Boston University for one year each as an English literature major.[1] She held diverse jobs including janitor, gardener, ice-cream truck driver, receptionist, window-dresser, store owner, and baker.[1][5] Her first marriage did not last, and she found herself divorced and raising two young sons.[5] She worked as a librarian in Easton, Pennsylvania and read stories to young children. She began writing.[5] By 1999, she had written twenty children's books.[5]

Reviews

Kirkus Reviews described her book Small Beauties as a "little history in a lovely story,"[6] and her book The Memory Coat as an exploration of how Russian-Jewish families escaped oppression to come to America.[7] Publishers Weekly described her book The Summer I Shrunk My Grandmother as a deft blend of "magic and farce" and a "lighthearted romp about a somewhat misguided budding scientist".[8]

Books

Dear Levi
  1. Dear Levi: Letters from the Overland Trail: Letters from the Overland Trail (Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), illustrated by Beth Peck OCLC 28724034[9][10]
  2. Dear Austin: Letters from the Underground Railroad (Knopf, 1998), illus. Nancy Carpenter OCLC 38390085 [11][12]

Time Travelers
  1. George Washington's Socks (Scholastic, 1991)[13][14][15][16][17]
  2. George Washington’s Spy: A Time-travel Adventure (2010)

Other
  • Awfully Short for the Fourth Grade (Holiday House, 1989), illus. Will Hillenbrand[4][18] – Woodruff's first book published[1]
  • The Summer I Shrank My Grandmother (1990)[4][8][18]
  • Tubtime (Holiday House, 1990)
  • Mrs. McClosky's Monkeys (Scholastic, 1991) – Woodruff's first manuscript sale[1]
  • Back in Action (1991)[19]
  • The Wing Shop (1991)[4]
  • Show And Tell (1991)
  • Dear Napoleon, I Know You're Dead, But ... (Holiday House, 1992), illus. Noah and Jess Woodruff OCLC 25281797[20][21]
  • The Disappearing Bike Shop (1992)[22]
  • Ghosts Don't Get Goose Bumps (1993)[23]
  • The Secret Funeral of Slim Jim the Snake (1993)
  • The Magnificent Mummy Maker (1994)[24]
  • Dragon in My Backpack (1996)
  • The Orphan Of Ellis Island: A Time-travel Adventure (1997) OCLC 33406510
  • Can You Guess Where We're Going? (1998)
  • The Memory Coat (1999)[25][26]
  • The Ghost of Lizard Light (1999)[27]
  • The Christmas Doll (2000)[28]
  • The Ravenmaster's Secret: Escape from the Tower of London (Scholastic, 2003)[29][30]
  • Small Beauties: The Journey of Darcy Heart O'Hara (2006)[6][31]
  • Fearless (2007)[32][33]
  • To Knit or Not to Knit: Helpful and Humorous Hints for the Passionate Knitter (2014)

References
  1. Lauren Manelius (Spring 2007). "Elvira Woodruff". Pennsylvania Center for the Book (pabook.libraries.psu.edu). Archived from the original on 2013-05-15. Retrieved 2013-09-05.
  2. March 15th, 2008, Kirkus Review of 'Fearless', Accessed June 15, 2014, "...Woodruff spins a labored but engrossing tale around a lighthouse, its builder and a cataclysmic storm—all three drawn from history..."
  3. March 1, 1991, Publishers Weekly, The Wing Shop (by) Elvira Woodruff, Author, Accessed June 15, 2014, "...Woodruff's gentle wit and sense of broad fantasy raise The Wing Shop head and shoulders above the norm.."
  4. October 20, 1989, GAY ELWELL, The Morning Call (Lehigh Valley newspaper), Storyteller Elvira Woodruff Is Big On Kids, Accessed June 15, 2014, "..For five years, Woodruff plied the storyteller's craft at Easton Public Library, where she worked in the children's room and conducted story hour. She now fills the storyteller niche at the Easton Book Shop. Her storytelling has also taken a different tack, with the publication of her first children's novel, "Awfully Short for the Fourth Grade."......With publication of "Awfully Short for the Fourth Grade" under her belt, Woodruff is looking forward to next year. "Tubtime," a picture book, is scheduled for publication in spring of 1990, and in the summer, another novel for 8-to-10-year-olds, titled (not her idea, she says) "I Shrank My Grandmother," will come out. Another fantasy picture book, "The Wing Shop," and a Christmas book, are due to come out next fall...."
  5. Gloria A. Hoffner, INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF, May 13, 1999, The Inquirer, Children Can Go By The Book Writer Elvira Woodruff Urged Students At The Norwood School To Read, Accessed June 15, 2014, "..Woodruff, 48, the author of 20 children's books, shared writing tips and life experiences recently with 750 kindergarten through eighth-grade students at Norwood Elementary School. ......Writing always had been something she wanted to do, Woodruff said, even as she worked in a variety of jobs, from gardener to ice-cream-truck driver. Her dream and occupation came together in the mid-1980s, she said, when she was working in a library and raising two sons as a divorced mother...."
  6. Kirkus Reviews, SMALL BEAUTIES: The Journey of Darcy Heart O’Hara by Elvira Woodruff, Accessed June 15, 2014, ".. A little history in a lovely story. ..."
  7. Kirkus Reviews, Jan 1, 1999, THE MEMORY COAT by Elvira Woodruff, Accessed June 15, 2014, "..readers learn why Russian-Jewish families fled to America for refuge at the turn of the century, the arduous 14-day journey they faced on the ocean, ..."
  8. The Summer I Shrunk My Grandmother by Elvira Woodruff, Accessed June 15, 2014, "...The author deftly blends elements of magic and farce to produce a lighthearted romp about a somewhat misguided budding scientist. .."
  9. "Dear Levi (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  10. "Dear Levi (review)". Horn Book Guide (Book Verdict). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  11. "Dear Austin (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  12. "Dear Austin (reviews)". Horn Book Guide, Library Journal (BookVerdict). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  13. a featured book in Baxter, Kathleen A.; Kochel, Marcia Agness (2012). Get Those Guys Reading!: Fiction and Series Books that Boys Will Love. Santa Barbara, California: Libraries Unlimited (ABC-CLIO). ISBN 978-1-59884-846-5.
  14. "George Washington's Socks (review)". Horn Book Guide (Book Verdict). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  15. Massey, Dixie D; Heafner, Tina L (Sep 2004). "Promoting reading comprehension in social studies". Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. 48 (1): 29. doi:10.1598/JAAL.48.1.3.
  16. Saad, S. Chris (May 2002). "George Washington's Socks (review)". Pennsylvania Legacies. 2 (1): 28. JSTOR 27764833.
  17. "George Washington's Socks (review)". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  18. Hunt, Caroline C (1995). "Dwarf, Small World, Shrinking Child: Three Versions of Miniature". Children's Literature. 23 (1): 134. doi:10.1353/chl.0.0602. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  19. "Back in Action (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  20. A featured book in Norris, Jill (December 2005). How to Report on Books, Grades 3-4. Monterey, California: Evan-Moor. ISBN 978-1-59673-085-4.
  21. "Dear Napoleon (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  22. "The Disappearing Bike Shop (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  23. "Ghosts Don't Get Goose Bumps (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  24. "The Magnificent Mummy Maker (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  25. "The Memory Coat (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  26. "The Memory Coat (reviews)". Horn Book Guide, Library Journal (BookVerdict). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  27. Westmoore, Jean. "FRIGHT NIGHT ; GHOST STORIES". The Buffalo News.
  28. "The Christmas Doll (review)". Horn Book Guide (Book Verdict). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  29. "The Ravenmaster's Secret (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  30. Villanueva, Patricia (January 1, 2004). "The Ravenmaster's Secret (review)". ALAN Review.
  31. "Small Beauties (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  32. "Fearless (review)". Booklist. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  33. Bush, Elizabeth (2008). "Fearless (review)". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. 61 (9): 406. doi:10.1353/bcc.0.0024. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
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