ANSWER: When I was a child, my favorite thing was reading! The library was my home away from home! Picking out a book all by myself made me feel powerful. I began to dream about becoming a children's author someday. But first I had a few other jobs!

About the Author: Sharon Dennis Wyeth grew up in a neighborhood called Anacostia in Washington, D.C. In third grade, she lived right up the street from where Frederick Douglass used to have a big house!

Sharon kept very busy at Anacostia High School. She was editor of the school yearbook, sang in the chorus, and was in the school play. She was a regular on a nationally televised show called "Youth Wants to Know." The summer after eleventh grade she got a job writing newspaper articles. She also worked as a secretary at the YMCA. On the weekends she worked as a model in a department store.

Sharon went to college in Massachusetts. She graduated with honors from Harvard University. At Harvard her favorite subjects were anthropology, Russian and autobiographical writing. One summer she worked in the south end of Boston as a social worker in training. The people she worked with were senior citizens and teens.

After college, Sharon got a job in New York City, working as a family counselor in a daycare center. She went to night school to study drama. Soon she was teaching voice and public speaking at The New School. She also worked as a gardener, an actress and a television writer and wrote paperback books based on soap operas. Her interest in drama led to playwriting. At one time, along with two friends, she opened her own small theater.

Sharon's childhood dream came true in 1989, when her first children's book was published. Today, she has written nearly fifty books and is also a mom. One of her favorite things is visiting schools. She also finds time for singing and weight lifting. She has been a keynote or featured speaker for organizations such as The International Reading Association and National Council of Teachers of English. She is winner of the Stephen Crane Literary Award. She is also the proud owner of a poodle named Roscoe.

"All of my experiences have contributed to my work as a children's author," Sharon says. "I am a very lucky person."