My parents loved reading and shared that passion with us through bedtime stories, trips to the library, and visits to the bookstore. Our house was filled with books and I guess you could say that reading began as a habit and became a pleasure. Later books would become a refuge, somewhere to escape to after a disappointment, a place to meet new people or to have a laugh or a cry. I met a lot of people I liked in books and some that I didn’t like. I remember feeling very close to many of the characters and learning a lot from them. And as I matured, I found books helped me to sort out life. They were a safe place to become familiar with emotions—confusion, sadness, anger, grief, humiliation, happiness and love. I especially liked picture books, and the way in which words and illustrations could create a whole new world in which sometimes real and other times magical and unexpected things could happen.

I attended Wellesley College and received a Masters degree in History from Columbia University. After a stint in publishing I moved to Europe where I’ve spent the past 25 years, dividing my time between Italy and France with my husband Pierluigi and sons, Peter Anton and Max. I have written many award winning works for children—from picture books to YA novels.

I am often asked where I get ideas for my stories. I used to think that inspiration was a product of my experiences, big and small, which somehow found their way into my writing. While I still believe that to be true to some extent, my own journey has taught me that there is a larger force at work, and I am but the vehicle of an expression that belongs to something collective as well as individual.

After a life threatening medical accident in 2003 I became deeply involved with Energy Medicine Therapies and trained in Reiki, Pranic Healing, Emotional Freedom Technique, TAT, Bodytalk, and Reconnective Healing. I am also a certified hypnotherapist and member of the Past Life Regression Academy.

When I am asked what I do for a job, I am often tempted to say that I don’t work. That’s because I am lucky enough to do something I love for a living. Whether journeying through a story or navigating a therapy session my greatest joy is helping people find their way to the place where head meets heart, where all things are possible.

When I’m not writing or practicing therapy, I love playing the piano, doing pottery, puttering around outdoors, and cooking. I especially like making birthday cakes, but I hate cleaning up. And I love being with children. I love watching them and listening to them as much as I love writing for them.

What to do on a dull gray day? Head into the wilds and look for an elephant. You will need a pair of binoculars, a blanket, a flute, some food, a little imagination, and a lot of curiosity. Look and listen closely, because elephants can be anywhere. And watch out, because if you’re not careful, the elephant may find you first!

With pleasing prose and “now you see it, now you don’t artwork, Banks and Kulikov take readers on a romp that will both challenge and delight.

It’s a gray and slightly rainy day—what better time to go looking for an elephant? The pith-helmeted backyard explorer created by longtime collaborators Banks and Kulikov (the Max series) doesn’t encounter his quarry until the final pages, but the elephant is not nearly as elusive as the boy thinks it is: readers can spot the grinning creature throughout, whimsically camouflaged into lush paintings that blend fantasy and reality. As the second-person guidebook-style language offers pro tips (“The first thing you will want to do is climb to the top of the nearest tree”) and salient points (“Don’t forget elephants are fine swimmers”), there are false alarms (a rhino looks a lot like an elephant), wild adventures (a monkey takes the boy for a swing), and many lovely, graceful moments. In one spread, readers see the world through a pair of rain-dotted binoculars; in another, the boy and several animals walk on tiptoe while the elephant, hidden by trees, does the same. Forget about the elephant in the room—the one in your imagination is a lot more fun. Ages 3–6. –Rick Margolis, Rising Bear Literary. (Nov.)​ 

School Library Journal

An imaginative, elephant-loving young explorer goes on an adventure to find one in the wild. Outlining all the necessary supplies an elephant explorer should have, he ventures out, providing a step-by-step guide to addressing the expected and the unexpected as they occur. This title’s approach to the unknowns of exploration is full of humor and pragmatism. Although not the most exciting or adventurous read, it has a good deal of heart and excels at giving young readers interesting facts about elephants such as, “don’t expect to hear the elephant’s footsteps, because they walk on tiptoe” or “elephants are fine swimmers.” Readers also learn that the pachyderms have large appetites, so having plenty of bamboo shoots and tree bark handy is helpful. However, the book’s greatest achievement is its illustration, which perfectly meshes with the text. The lush shades of green, blue, and brown in the landscape allow for subtle optical illusions in the wild that young readers will enjoy identifying. VERDICT For extra-curious, nature-loving, budding explorers, this engaging title is a real treat. –Maegen Rose, Collegiate School, New York City

The Arctic is big and frightening for one small lost wolf pup—especially when he finds himself nose to nose with a polar bear. After all polar bears eat wolves. But not this one.

Bear may not be Pup’s mother, but she keeps him safe and teaches him to make his own way through the wide world. And when Pup is no longer a pup and finds himself nose to nose with a host bear cub, the cycle begins again in the wondrous wheel of life.

Max and his two brothers hop into a car and go looking for problems they can solve. They cruise down highway number 4 on their way to Shapeville, but they see an abandoned number along the way. Is it a 6? Is it a 9? And what’s it doing on the side of the road? Once the trio reach Shapeville, there’s another problem: a flood washed away all of the squares. Max and his brothers show the town that putting together two triangles will bring their shapes back together, and then they follow the residents on a trip to Count Town, where they put the missing number back in its place in the countdown to a rocket’s blastoff.

On his first trip into the world, a baby baboon meets a very slow turtle and concludes that the world is slow. But then, as his mother takes him farther afield, he sees much more: he watches a hungry crocodile, a thundering herd of elephants, a swift gazelle, a rhinoceros. He feels the heat of a fire, the softness of grass, the warmth of the sun. Throughout the day, everything he experiences expands his understanding, and when night falls, he has seen with his own eyes that the world is a big and varied place.

With its simple, rhythmic text and bold, impressionistic jungle pictures, Baboon is a book to share with children as they explore their own new worlds.

Published in Paperback March 2004 and in Hardcover April 1997.