Sandra Keith Boynton (born April 3, 1953) is an American humorist, songwriter, director, music producer, children's author, and illustrator. Boynton has written and illustrated over seventy-five books for children and seven general audience books, as well as over four thousand

greeting card A greeting card is a piece of card stock, usually with an illustration or photo, made of high quality paper featuring an expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are usually given on special occasions such as birthdays ...

s, and five music albums. She has also designed calendars, wallpaper, bedding, stationery, paper goods, clothing, jewelry, and plush toys for various companies.

Early life and education

The third of the four daughters of Jeanne () and Robert W. Boynton, Sandra was born in

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 30,134, reflecting a decline of 2,734 (−8.3%) from the 32,868 counted in 2000. Orange was original ...

, and grew up in the Mount Airy section of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

. Her father was a noted progressive educator, scholar (collaborating on textbooks with

Shakespearean William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

scholar Maynard Mack), and publisher and co-founder of Boynton/Cook Publishers. Boynton/Cook Publishers is now owned by Heinemann. Boynton's parents became

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

when she was two years old. From kindergarten through 12th grade, she and her sisters attended

Germantown Friends School Germantown Friends School (GFS) is a coeducational independent PreK–12 school in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States under the supervision of Germantown Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Fr ...

, where their father taught English and was Head of the Upper School. Boynton has frequently cited Germantown Friends' arts-centered curriculum as central to her own "upbeat offbeat" sensibility as well as its thorough integration of the values of

pacifism Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaign ...

, independent inquiry, and

individualism Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires and to value independence and self-reli ...

. She also spent part of her 10th grade year at Ackworth School near

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wak ...

, England. Boynton studied

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

for five years in high school, mostly in order to avoid science classes, the scheduling of which invariably conflicted with Latin. She went to

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

, entering in 1970 in the college's second year of coeducation. She spent the second semester of her junior year studying in Paris through

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...

's program. At Yale, she majored in English and also sang sporadically with the Yale Glee Club. She had joined the Glee Club when additional singers were needed for a performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at Carnegie Hall, under the direction of

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appear ...

. Boynton has described herself as "an enthusiastic but undistinguished alto". At her graduation from Yale in 1974, she received a Special Master's Magna solemnly bestowed by Charles Davis, the Master of Boynton's residential college,

Calhoun College John C. Calhoun (1782–1850) was the 7th vice president of the United States. Calhoun can also refer to: Surname * Calhoun (surname) Inhabited places in the United States *Calhoun, Georgia * Calhoun, Illinois *Calhoun, Kansas *Calhoun, Kentucky ...

. Unbeknownst to the graduation audience, the honor was actually a fiction. Boynton's grade point average did not in fact entitle her to any degree honor; but shortly before the ceremony, she had told Professor Davis in mock earnest that "my parents are here, so I'd really appreciate it if you could just mumble some Latin after my name". Boynton intended to become a theater director. She attended the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

for a year for graduate studies in drama, then transferred to the

Yale School of Drama The David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University is a graduate professional school of Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded in 1924 as the Department of Drama in the School of Fine Arts, the school provides training in e ...

D.F.A. program, however she did not complete the program. With the birth of her first child in 1979, Boynton postponed indefinitely a career in the theater, judging the demands of that profession not easily compatible with raising a family. During her undergraduate and graduate years, her teachers included

Cleanth Brooks Cleanth Brooks ( ; October 16, 1906 – May 10, 1994) was an American literary critic and professor. He is best known for his contributions to New Criticism in the mid-20th century and for revolutionizing the teaching of poetry in American higher ...

Harold Bloom Harold Bloom (July 11, 1930 – October 14, 2019) was an American literary critic and the Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. In 2017, Bloom was described as "probably the most famous literary critic in the English-speaking worl ...

, Richard B. Sewall, Maynard Mack, Maurice Sendak, Richard Gilman,

Rocco Landesman Rocco Landesman (born July 20, 1947) is a long-time Broadway theatre producer. He served as chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts from August 2009 to December 2012. He is a part owner of Jujamcyn Theaters. Early life Landesman was bor ...

David Milch David Sanford Milch (born March 23, 1945) is an American writer and producer of television series. He has created several television shows, including ABC's ''NYPD Blue'' (1993-2005), co-created with Steven Bochco, and HBO's '' Deadwood'' (2004 ...

Stanley Kauffmann Stanley Kauffmann (April 24, 1916 – October 9, 2013) was an American writer, editor, and critic of film and theater. Career Kauffmann started with ''The New Republic'' in 1958 and contributed film criticism to that magazine for the next fifty ...

, and William Arrowsmith. In an autobiographical talk given at Yale in 2002, "The Curious Misuse of a Yale Education", Boynton refers to her book ''Grunt'' (an illuminated book and recording of

plainchant Plainsong or plainchant (calque from the French ''plain-chant''; la, cantus planus) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text ...

in Latin and

Pig Latin Pig Latin is a language game or argot in which words in English are altered, usually by adding a fabricated suffix or by moving the onset or initial consonant or consonant cluster of a word to the end of the word and adding a vocalic syllable ...

) as "the culmination of a lifetime spent joyfully squandering an expensive education on producing works of no apparent significance".

Career

Greeting cards

Boynton's greeting card designs for

Recycled Paper Greetings Recycled Paper Greetings, Inc. (RPG) is a Chicago-based greeting card company founded by Phil Friedmann and Mike Keiser in 1971. They became successful as one of the first greeting card companies to print their product on recycled paper, and to gi ...

were at the forefront of the Alternative Cards commercial movement that began in the mid-1970s. According to RPG co-founder and president Mike Keiser, nearly 500 million copies of Boynton's distinctive humorous cards—featuring an assortment of unnamed cartoon animal characters, spare layout, and droll messages—sold between 1973 and 2003. The best known of these is a 1975

birthday card A birthday card is a greeting card given or sent to a person to celebrate their birthday. Similar to a birthday cake, birthday card traditions vary by culture but the origin of birthday cards is unclear. The advent of computing and introduction of ...

bearing images of four animals and the message "Hippo Birdie Two Ewes", a

pun A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...

playing on the phrase "Happy Birthday to You". The card has sold over ten million copies to date.

Books

Since the 1977 release of ''Hippos Go Berserk!'', Boynton has published many children's books, as well as several illustrated humor books for the general market. Her books are most typically for very young children, offered in the laminated paperboard format known as board books. Nearly all of Boynton's books have been published by either

Workman Publishing Workman Publishing Company, Inc., is an American publisher of trade books founded by Peter Workman. The company is comprised of either imprints: Workman, Workman Children’s, Workman Calendars, Artisan, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill and Algonq ...

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...

. Four of her books have been ''New York Times'' best sellers: ''Chocolate: The Consuming Passion'' (1982); ''Yay, You!'' (2001); ''Consider Love'' (2002); and ''Philadelphia Chickens'' (2002), which reached the number one position on the list, and was on the list for nearly a year. Six Boynton books were on the 2001 ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' All-Time Bestselling Children's Books list: '' Moo, Baa, La La La!'', ''The Going to Bed Book'', ''Barnyard Dance'', ''A to Z'', ''Blue Hat, Green Hat'', and ''Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs!''. More than 85 million copies of her books have been sold.

Theater

In May 1995, Boynton wrote and directed a benefit reading, ''On Stage''—featuring

Jill Clayburgh Jill Clayburgh (April 30, 1944 – November 5, 2010) was an American actress known for her work in theater, television, and cinema. She received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Ac ...

, Joe Pacheco, and

Jane Curtin Jane Therese Curtin (born September 6, 1947) is an American actress and comedian. First coming to prominence as an original cast member on the hit TV comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' in 1975, she went on to win back-to-back Emmy Awards for ...

—for Sharon Stage in Connecticut. In November 2005, and again in November 2007 she presented songs from ''Philadelphia Chickens'', ''Dog Train'', and ''Blue Moo'' at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

's Millennium Stage, co-hosting in 2007 with Davy Jones of the

Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was conc ...

. In November 2006, she directed her son Keith in his own play, ''The Quotable Assassin'',

Off-Off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commercialism of the pro ...

at Alternate Stages.

Music

In 1996, Boynton began writing and producing songs—which she has described as "renegade children's music" — with composer Michael Ford; these songs have been released as albums ('' Rhinoceros Tap'' 1996, '' Philadelphia Chickens'' 2002, ''Dog Train'' 2005, ''BLUE MOO: 17 Jukebox Hits from Way Back Never'' 2007, ''FROG TROUBLE'' Fall 2013 and Hog Wild in 2017) and also published as book and audio disc sets. The tracks were recorded, under Boynton's direction and Ford's musical direction, by an eclectic roster of actors and musicians, including Blues Traveler,

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

Steve Lawrence Steve Lawrence (born Sidney Liebowitz; July 8, 1935) is an American singer, comedian and actor, best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as " Steve and Eydie", and for his performance as Maury Sline, the manager and f ...

, and

Eydie Gorme Eydie may refer to: * Eydie Gormé (1928–2013), American singer. * Steve and Eydie, an American pop vocal duet, * Eydie Whittington, a Democratic politician in Washington, D.C. * The World Of Steve & Eydie, a 1972 album released by Steve Law ...

John Ondrasik Vladimir John Ondrasik III (born January 7, 1965), also known by his stage name Five for Fighting, is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. He is best known for his piano-based soft rock ballads, such as the top 40 hits "Superman (It's Not ...

Five for Fighting Vladimir John Ondrasik III (born January 7, 1965), also known by his stage name Five for Fighting, is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. He is best known for his piano-based soft rock ballads, such as the top 40 hits " Superman (It's No ...

, Kevin Kline, Laura Linney, "Weird Al" Yankovic duetting with Kate Winslet,

Patti LuPone Patti Ann LuPone (born April 21, 1949) is an American actress and singer best known for her work in musical theater. She has won three Tony Awards, two Olivier Awards, two Grammy Awards, and was a 2006 inductee to the American Theater Hall of F ...

The Bacon Brothers The Bacon Brothers is an American music duo consisting of brothers Michael Bacon and Kevin Bacon. Although they have played music together since they were boys, the brothers have only been a working band since 1994. Having heard the brother's ...

with Mickey Hart, Eric Stoltz, the

Spin Doctors Spin Doctors are an American alternative rock band from New York City, best known for their early 1990s hits "Two Princes" and "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong", which peaked on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart at No. 7 and No. 17, respec ...

, Mark Lanegan,

Hootie & the Blowfish Hootie & the Blowfish are an American soft rock band that were formed in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1986. The band's lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band w ...

, Natasha Richardson,

Billy J. Kramer William Howard Ashton (born 19 August 1943), known professionally as Billy J. Kramer, is an English pop singer. With The Dakotas, Kramer was managed by Brian Epstein during the 1960s and scored hits with several Lennon–McCartney composition ...

Scott Bakula Scott Stewart Bakula (; born October 9, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in two science-fiction television series: as Sam Beckett on '' Quantum Leap'' and as Captain Jonathan Archer on '' Star Trek: Enterprise''. For ''Quantu ...

Eric Bazilian Eric M. Bazilian (born July 21, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer. Bazilian is a founding member of the rock band The Hooters. He wrote " One of Us", a song first recorded by Joan Osborne in 1 ...

and

Rob Hyman Robert Andrew Hyman (born April 24, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter, keyboard and accordion player, producer, arranger and recording studio owner, best known for being a founding member of the rock band The Hooters. Early life Hyman st ...

, The Phenomenauts, Brian Wilson,

Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

Sha Na Na Sha Na Na was an American rock and roll doo-wop group. Formed in 1969, but performing a song-and-dance repertoire based on 1950s hit songs, it simultaneously revived and parodied the music and the New York street culture of the 1950s. After ga ...

Bobby Vee Robert Thomas Velline (April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016), known professionally as Bobby Vee, was an American singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s and also appeared in films. According to ''Billboard'' magazine, he had thirty-ei ...

Gerry & The Pacemakers Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein, and were recorded by George Martin. Their early successes alongsid ...

, Davy Jones of

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album ''Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerabl ...

Fountains of Wayne Fountains of Wayne was an American rock band that formed in New York City in 1995. The band included founding members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter, and Brian Young. They released five albums from 1996 to 2011 before e ...

Kacey Musgraves Kacey Lee Musgraves (born August 21, 1988) is an American country singer. She has won six Grammy Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, and three Academy of Country Music Awards. Musgraves self-released three solo albums and one as Texa ...

Ryan Adams David Ryan Adams (born November 5, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, artist, and poet. He has released 23 albums, as well as three studio albums as a former member of alt-country band Whiskeytown. In 2000, Adams lef ...

, Ben Folds,

Brad Paisley Bradley Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting with his 1999 debut album ''Who Needs Pictures'', he has released eleven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashvil ...

Josh Turner Joshua Otis Turner (born November 20, 1977) is an American country and gospel singer and songwriter. In 2003, he signed to MCA Nashville Records. That same year, his debut album's title track, "Long Black Train", was his breakthrough single ...

Darius Rucker Darius Carlos Rucker (born May 13, 1966) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He first gained fame as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, which he founded in 1986 at the University of South Ca ...

, and

Linda Eder Linda Eder (; born February 3, 1961) is an American singer and actress. She made her Broadway debut in the musical '' Jekyll & Hyde'', originating the role of Lucy Harris, for which she was nominated for the Drama Desk Award. Eder has performe ...

. Boynton received a 2003 Grammy nomination for ''Philadelphia Chickens''. The first three of these albums have been

certified gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the RIAA. In November 2010, Boynton produced and released a full-length 300-

kazoo The kazoo is an American musical instrument that adds a "buzzing" timbral quality to a player's voice when the player vocalizes into it. It is a type of '' mirliton'' (which itself is a membranophone), one of a class of instruments which modifie ...

plus orchestra performance of Maurice Ravel's Boléro, titled ''Boléro Completely Unraveled, performed by the Highly Irritating Orchestra''. Boynton played solo kazoo on this recording noting "I am at the perfect level of musical incompetence for this." She has written the text for four choral pieces composed by Fenno Heath, Director Emeritus of the

Yale Glee Club The Yale Glee Club is a mixed chorus of men and women, consisting of students of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded in 1861, it is the third oldest collegiate chorus in the United States after the Harvard Glee Club, founded in ...

, all of which have been performed by the Yale Alumni Chorus on international tour.

Music videos

In 2008, Boynton ventured into filmmaking, creating and directing music videos of her most popular recorded songs. Her first music video released in November 2009 as a book/DVD combination, was "One Shoe Blues", starring B.B. King and a cast of assorted

sock puppet A sock puppet or sockpuppet is a puppet made from a sock or a similar garment. The puppeteer wears the sock on a hand and lower arm as if it were a glove, with the puppet's mouth being formed by the region between the sock's heel and toe, and ...

s. Then she directed "Penguin Lament" starring

, "Philadelphia Chickens" which is mostly animation and includes cameos by

Kevin Bacon Kevin Norwood Bacon (born July 8, 1958) is an American actor. His films include the musical-drama film '' Footloose'' (1984), the controversial historical conspiracy legal thriller '' JFK'' (1991), the legal drama '' A Few Good Men'' (1992), t ...

and Michael Bacon, and "Be Like a Duck" which features all four of her children.

Awards

Boynton received the Irma Simonton Black Award for ''Chloe and Maude'', the National Parenting Publications Gold Medal for ''Barnyard Dance'' and for ''Your Personal Penguin'', a Grammy Award Nomination for ''Philadelphia Chickens'', the Eustace D. Theodore Fellowship (Yale University), the National Cartoonists Society Greeting Card Award for 1992, and the National Cartoonists Society Book Illustration Award for ''Blue Moo: 17 Jukebox Hits From Way Back Never'', in 2008. She is the 2008 recipient of the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Cartoonists Society's highest honor. ''Hippos Go Berserk!'' was awarded Mathical Hall of Fame status. She has received the following film festival awards for her film shorts: the

Rhode Island International Film Festival Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival (RIIFF) takes place every year in Providence and Newport, Rhode Island as well as satellite locations throughout the state. History Started in 1997, the Festival is produced by Flickers, the ...

Providence Prize 2010 for ''One Shoe Blues'' starring B. B. King; the Flickers North Country Film Festival 2010 Crystal Image Award for emerging artist, as director of all four films; the 2D or Not 2D Animation Festival 2011 Golden Pencil Award for ''Philadelphia Chickens''; the Forster Film Festival 2012 Winner of Song Category for "Be Like a Duck"; and the Wilmette International Children's Film Festival 2012 Best of Fest Live Action Short Film Winner for ''One Shoe Blues''.

Personal life

Boynton was married to writer and Olympic Bronze medalist (and fellow Yale graduate)

Jamie McEwan James Patrick McEwan (September 24, 1952 – June 14, 2014) was an American slalom canoeist who competed in the 1970s and then again in the 1980s and early 1990s. He teamed up with his son Devin to compete in the 2000s. Competing in two Su ...

from 1978 until his death from cancer in 2014. In 1991, Boynton and McEwan moved with their children to the Hautes-Pyrénées region of France for a year so McEwan and his Whitewater Slalom doubles partner, Lecky Haller, could train with the French team for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. McEwan/Haller ended in 4th Place. McEwan was a member of several whitewater expeditions to Mexico,

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...

, British Columbia, and a National Geographic–sponsored descent of part of the Tsang-Po River (

Brahmaputra The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. I ...

) in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa, Taman ...

, an ill-fated trip detailed in ''The Last River'' by Todd Balf, and in ''Courting the Diamond Sow'' by expedition leader Wickliffe W. Walker. Boynton has illustrated two of McEwan's five children's books. They have four children: Caitlin McEwan, an actress and director; Keith Boynton, a playwright and filmmaker; Devin McEwan, a Whitewater Slalom racer and member of the 2001-2016 U.S. Teams, including the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team; and Darcy Boynton, a writer and teacher. All four children sang on '' Philadelphia Chickens'' and ''BLUE MOO''. Boynton has appeared on numerous national television, newspaper and radio programs. Media include ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It ...

'', ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'', '' American Profile'',

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

's ''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

'', ''

CBS Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine television program that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and original hos ...

'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

,'' and ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

''. Boynton works in a reconstructed 120-year-old barn on her property in rural Connecticut.

Albums

* '' Rhinoceros Tap'' (1996) * ''GRUNT Pigorian Chant'' (1996) * '' Philadelphia Chickens'' (2002) * ''Dog Train: A Wild Ride on the Rock-and-Roll Side'' (2005) * ''BLUE MOO: 17 Jukebox Hits from Way Back Never'' (2007) * ''Boléro Completely Unraveled'' (2010) * ''FROG TROUBLE Country Music'' (2013) * ''HOG WILD: A Frenzy of Dance Music'' (2017)

Partial bibliography

Children's books

* ''Hippos Go Berserk!'' (1977, renewed 1996, 2019, 2022) * ''Hester in the Wild'' (1977) * ''If At First'' (1980) * ''A to Z'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''Blue Hat, Green Hat'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''Doggies'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''Horns to Toes'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''The Going to Bed Book'' (1982, renewed 1995) * '' Moo, Baa, La La La!'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''Opposites'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''But Not the Hippopotamus'' (1982, renewed 1995) * ''A is for Angry'' (1983, renewed 2015) * ''Good Night, Good Night'' (1985, renewed 2021) * ‘’Chloe and Maude’’ (1985) * ''The Story of Grump & Pout'' (written by Jamie McEwan) (1988) * ''Birthday Monsters!'' (1993) * ''Barnyard Dance!'' (1993) * ''One, Two, Three!'' (1993) * ''Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs!'' (1993) * ''RHINOCEROS TAP and 14 Other Seriously Silly Songs'' (book and audio CD) (1996) * ''Snoozers'' (1997) * ''Dinosaur's Binkit'' (1998) * ''BOB and 6 More Christmas Stories'' (1999) * ''Dinos To Go'' (2000) * ''Hey!, Wake Up!'' (2000) * ''Pajama Time!'' (2000) * ''The Heart of Cool'' (written by Jamie McEwan) (2001) * '' PHILADELPHIA CHICKENS'' (book and audio CD) (2002) * ''Snuggle Puppy!'' (2003) * ''Fuzzy Fuzzy Fuzzy'' (2003) * ''Moo Cow Book'' (cloth) (2004) * ''Belly Button Book!'' (2005) * ''DOG TRAIN: A Wild Ride on the Rock-and-Roll Side'' (book and audio CD) (2005) * ''Your Personal Penguin'' (book with song download) (2006) * ''What's Wrong, Little Pookie?'' (2007) * ''Bath Time!'' (2007) * ''BLUE MOO: 17 Jukebox Hits from Way Back Never'' (book and audio CD) (2007) * ''Fifteen Animals!'' (2008) * ''Barnyard Bath!'' (2008) * ''Let's Dance, Little Pookie'' (2008) * ''Night-Night, Little Pookie'' (2009) * ''One Shoe Blues'' (book and DVD) (2009) * ''Happy Birthday, Little Pookie'' (2010) * ''Perfect Piggies'' (2010) * ''Are You a Cow?'' (customizable board book) (2010) * ''Amazing Cows'' (2010) * ''Happy Hippo, Angry Duck: a book of moods'' (2011) * ''Little Pookie'' (2012) * ''Christmas Parade'' (2012) * ''Tickle Time!'' (2012) * ''Are You a Cow?'' (2012) * ''FROG TROUBLE Country Music'' (book and audio CD) (2013) * ''The Bunny Rabbit Show'' (2014) * ''Spooky Pookie'' (2015) * ''EEK! Halloween!'' (2016) * ''Dinosaur Dance!'' (2016) * ''HOG WILD!'' (book and audio CD) (2017) * ''But Not the Armadillo '' (2018) * ''Merry Christmas, Little Pookie'' (2018) * ''I Love You, Little Pookie'' (2018) * ''Dinosnores'' (2019) * ''Silly Lullaby'' (2019) * ''Your Nose!'' (2020) * ''How Big is Zagnodd?'' (2020) * ''Christmas Parade'' (2020) * ''Jungle Night'' (Soundtrack with Yo Yo Ma on cello) (2021) * ''Boo!, Baa, La La La!'' (2021) * ''Woodland Dance!'' (2021) * ''Moo, Baa, Fa La La La La!'' (2022) * ''Pookie's Thanksgiving'' (2022) * ''Peekaboo Rex!'' (2023)

General market books

* ''Gopher Baroque'' (1979) * ''The Compleat Turkey'' (1980) * ''Chocolate: The Consuming Passion'' (1982) * ''Don't Let The Turkeys Get You Down'' (1986) * ''Christmastime'' (1987) * ''GRUNT Pigorian Chant'' (book and audio CD) (1996) * ''Yay, You!'' (2001) * ''Consider Love'' (2002) * ''Chocolate: The Consuming Passion'' NEW EDITION (2015)

References

External links

*
NCS Awards

"Kids' Favorite Sandra Boynton Makes Music Video"
''

'', December 21, 2009 – a short interview * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boynton, Sandra 1953 births American children's writers American pacifists American Quakers American women children's writers Germantown Friends School alumni Living people People from Orange, New Jersey Quaker children's writers Wesleyan University people American women cartoonists American women illustrators Women religious writers Writers from New Jersey Writers from Philadelphia Yale School of Drama alumni American cartoonists 21st-century American women