Gail Jarrow (born November 29, 1952, in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

) is an American children's book author and teacher.

Personal life and education

Jarrow was born November 29, 1952, in Dallas, Texas. She married Robert Jarrow in May 1974 and has three children: Kyle, Tate, and Heather. Jarrow received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

in 1974 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

in 1980.

Awards and honors

Eight of Jarrow's books are

Junior Library Guild Junior Library Guild, formerly the Junior Literary Guild, is a commercial Book sales club, book club devoted to juvenile literature. It was created in 1929 as one of the enterprises of the Literary Guild, an adult book club created in 1927 by Samue ...

selections: ''Lincoln’s Flying Spies'' (2011), ''Fatal Fever'' (2015), ''Bubonic Panic'' (2016), ''Spooked!'' (2019), ''The Poison Eaters'' (2019), ''Blood and Germs'' (2021), ''Ambushed!'' (2022), and ''American Murderer'' (2022). In 2012,

Bank Street College of Education Bank Street College of Education is a private school and graduate school in New York City. It consists of a graduate-only teacher training college and an independent nursery-through-8th-grade school. In 2020 the graduate school had about 65 ful ...

included ''Lincoln’s Flying Spies'' on their list of the year's best history books for children ages 12–14. In 2013, Bank Street College of Education included ''The Amazing Harry Kellar'' on their list of the year's best biographies for children ages 9–12. In 2014, ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, wi ...

'' included ''Red Madness'' on their list of the year's best children's books. The

Chicago Public Library The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the Chicago, City of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. It consists of 81 locations, including a central library, three regional libraries, and branches distributed thr ...

included it on their "Best Informational Books for Older Readers of 2014" list. The following year, Bank Street College of Education included it on their list of the year's best science books for children ages 12–14. In 2015, ''

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is ...

'' and ''The Bulletin'' named ''Fatal Fever'' one of the best young adult books of the year. The

included it on their list of the best STEM books for children ages 12–14, marking it an "Outstanding Title". In 2016, ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'' and the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

named ''Bubonic Panic'' one of the best children's/young adult books of the year. The

included it on their "Best Informational Books for Older Readers of 2016" list. The following year, Bank Street College of Education included it on their list of the year's best STEM books for children ages 12–14. In 2018, ''The Bulletin'' included ''Spooked!'' on their list of the best children's books of the year, and the Chicago Public Library included it on their "Best Informational Books for Older Readers of 2018" list. The following year, the

Association for Library Service to Children The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is a division of the American Library Association. ALSC has over 4,000 members, including children, experts in children's literature, publishers, faculty members, and other adults. The Associa ...

(ALSC) named it a Notable Children's Book, and ''

'' included it on their 2019 Editor's Choice: Books for Youth list. That year, Bank Street College of Education included it on their list of the best history books for children ages 12–14. In 2020,

Young Adult Library Services Association The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), established in 1957, is a division of the American Library Association. YALSA is a national association of librarians, library workers and advocates whose mission is to expand the capacity of l ...

(YALSA) included ''Spooked!'' on their

Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers Quick, as an adjective, refers to something moving with high speed. Quick may also refer to: In business * Quick (restaurant), a Belgian fast-food restaurant chain * Quick (sportswear), a Dutch manufacturer of sportswear * Quick (automobile), ...

list. In 2019, ''The Bulletin'' and ''Kirkus Reviews'' included ''The Poison Eaters'' on their lists of the best books of the year. The Chicago Public Library included it on their "Best Informational Books for Older Readers of 2019" list. The following year, ALSC named it a Notable Children's Book, and Bank Street College of Education named it one of the year's best STEM books for children ages 9–12. In 2020, the Chicago Public Library included ''Blood and Germs'' on their annual "Best Informational Books for Older Readers" list. In 2022, ''School Library Journal'' named ''Ambushed!'' one of the best children's books of the year. The same year, the Chicago Public Library included ''American Murderer'' on their "Best Informational Books for Older Readers" list. The following year, ALSC named it a Notable Children's Book.

Publications

* ''Lincoln's Flying Spies: Thaddeus Lowe and the Civil War Balloon Corps'' (2010) * ''The Amazing Harry Kellar: Great American Magician'' (2012) * ''Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary'' (2014) * ''Red Madness: How a Medical Mystery Changed What We Eat'' (2014) * ''Bubonic Panic: When Plague Invaded America'' (2016) * ''Spooked!: How a Radio Broadcast and The War of the Worlds Sparked the 1938 Invasion of America'' (2018) * ''The Poison Eaters'' (2019) * ''Blood and Germs: The Civil War Battle Against Wounds and Disease'' (2020) * ''Ambushed! The Assassination Plot Against President Garfield'' (2021) * ''American Murderer'' (2022)

References

External links

In Conversation: Gail Jarrow and Carolyn Yoder
(''Publishers Weekly'') {{DEFAULTSORT:Jarrow, Gail 1952 births Living people 21st-century American women writers Dartmouth College alumni Duke University alumni Writers from Dallas