Jack Prelutsky (born September 8, 1940) is an American writer of
children's poetry
Children's poetry is poetry written for, appropriate for, or enjoyed by children.
Children's poetry is one of the oldest art forms, rooted in early oral tradition, folk poetry, and nursery rhymes. Children have always enjoyed both works of p ...
who has published over 50 poetry collections. He served as the first U.S. Children's Poet Laureate (now called the
Young People's Poet Laureate Young People's Poet Laureate is a position and award that was established by the Poetry Foundation in 2006. The position is to promote children's poetry in the United States. The organization changed the name from Children's Poet Laureate to captur ...
) from 2006–08 when the
Poetry Foundation
The Poetry Foundation is an American literary society that seeks to promote poetry and lyricism in the wider culture. It was formed from ''Poetry'' magazine, which it continues to publish, with a 2003 gift of $200 million from philanthropist R ...
established the award.
Early life
Jack Prelutsky was born on September 8, 1940 in
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, behi ...
, to Charles Prelutsky, an electrician, and Dorothea Prelutsky, a homemaker. While he was still a baby, a fire killed his family and he was saved by his Uncle Charlie, who was a father at the age of 56.
He attended local public schools in the Bronx, hated the experience, and was bored in class. Prelutsky claims to have hated poetry when he was younger. He stated that "When I was a kid, I didn't like poetry, because I had a teacher who didn't like poetry. She was a good teacher because she taught me not to like it, too."
After teachers discovered he had musical talents, they suggested that he attend
The High School of Music & Art
The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...
. The moment he was there, he was happy and was able to train his beautiful singing voice and even took part in the musicals. He graduated in 1958, and went on to
Hunter College
Hunter College is a public university in New York City. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools. It also adm ...
for two years. He failed English three times before dropping out.
Before becoming a writer, he worked odd jobs including driving a cab, moving furniture, busboy, potter, woodworker, and door-to-door salesman. In the late 1960s, he was working in a bookstore in
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
and at Izzy Young's Folklore Center, singing in coffeehouses under the name Jack Ballard. While doing the latter he met
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
, became friends, and Dylan even stated that Prelutsky sounded "like a cross between
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, American socialism and anti-fascism. He ...
and Enrico Caruso."
Prelutsky also loved to draw imaginary turtle animals, and a friend of his encouraged him to send it to a publisher in New York. He wrote poems to go with the drawings at the last minute. He met with
Susan Hirschman
Susan Hirschman was the founder of children's publisher Greenwillow Books.
Career
Hirschman was born in Manhattan, and lived there for her entire career. She was inspired to enter publishing during high school when she heard a talk by Jennie L ...
, and was amazed when they wanted his work; not the drawings that took six months to draw, but the poems which took two hours. He was 24 at the time, and the poems appeared in his first book, ''A Gopher in the Garden and Other Animal Poems'', in 1967. Hirschman told him he was a natural poet, published his book, and remained his editor until she retired 37 years later.
Poetry
Prelutsky has written more than 50 poetry collections, including ''Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep'' (1976), ''
It's Halloween
''It's Halloween'' is a picture book written by Jack Prelutsky and illustrated by Marylin Hafner, published in 1977. The book is a collection of children's poetry, children's poems with a Halloween theme.
Scholastic edition
The edition publi ...
'' (1977), ''The Mean Old Mean Hyena'' (1978), and ''Something BIG Has Been Here'' (1990). He has also compiled numerous children's anthologies comprising poems of others.
He has also set his poems to music on the audio versions of his anthologies. He often sings and plays guitar on them.
In 2006, the
Poetry Foundation
The Poetry Foundation is an American literary society that seeks to promote poetry and lyricism in the wider culture. It was formed from ''Poetry'' magazine, which it continues to publish, with a 2003 gift of $200 million from philanthropist R ...
named Prelutsky the inaugural winner of the Children's Poet Laureate award.
In 2007, the Washington Poets Association awarded Prelutsky a Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 1996, he appeared on the popular animated television series ''
Arthur
Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more w ...
'', in the episode "I'm a Poet."
His book ''Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant and Other Poems'' (illustrated by Carin Berger) won the 2007 Scandiuzzi Children's Book Award of the
Washington State Book Award
The Washington State Book Awards is a literary awards program presented annually in recognition of notable books written by Washington authors in the previous year. The program was established in 1967 as the Governor's Writers Awards. Each year, ...
s in the Picture Book category.
In 1993, his poetry collection ''The New Kid on the Block'' was made into an interactive story book by Brøderbund's ''
Living Books
''Living Books'' is a series of interactive read-along adventures aimed at children aged 3–9. Created by Mark Schlichting, the series was mostly developed by Living Books for CD-ROM and published by Broderbund for Mac OS and Microsoft Windo ...
'' series.
Prelutsky has garnered many awards in his long career including citations as: New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year, School Library Journal Best of the Best Book, International Reading Association/Children's Book Council Children's Choice, Library of Congress Book of the Year,
Parents' Choice Award
The Parents' Choice Award was an award presented by the non-profit Parents' Choice Foundation to recognize "the very best products for children of different ages and backgrounds, and of varied skill and interest levels." It was considered a "prest ...
, American Library Association Notable Children's Recording, an Association for Library Services to Children Notable Book and Booklist Editor's Choice, among others. His combined works have sold over a million copies and been translated into many languages.
In 2018, his poem "Homework! Oh, Homework!" was featured in a national commercial for
Apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ances ...
's
iPad
The iPad is a brand of iOS and iPadOS-based tablet computers that are developed by Apple Inc. The iPad was conceived before the related iPhone but the iPhone was developed and released first. Speculation about the development, operati ...
.
Bibliography
* ''A Gopher in the Garden and Other Animal Poems'' (1967) (illustrated by Robert Leydenfrost)
* ''The Terrible Tiger'' (1970) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''Toucans Two and Other Poems'' (1970) (illustrated by José Aruego)
* ''Circus'' (1974) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep'' (1976) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''
It's Halloween
''It's Halloween'' is a picture book written by Jack Prelutsky and illustrated by Marylin Hafner, published in 1977. The book is a collection of children's poetry, children's poems with a Halloween theme.
Scholastic edition
The edition publi ...
'' (1977) (illustrated by Marylin Hafner)
* ''The Mean Old Mean Hyena'' (1978) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''The Queen of Eene'' (1978) (illustrated by Victoria Chess)
* ''Rainy Rainy Saturday'' (1980) (illustrated by Marilyn Hafner)
* ''The Headless Horseman Rides Tonight: More Poems to Trouble Your Sleep'' (1980) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''It's Christmas'' (1981) (illustrated by Marylin Hafner)
* ''It's Thanksgiving'' (1982) (illustrated by Marylin Hafner)
* ''Kermit's Garden of Verses'' (1982) (illustrated by Bruce McNally)
* ''The Baby Uggs Are Hatching'' (1982) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''It's Valentine's Day'' (1983) (illustrated by Yossi Abulafia)
* ''Zoo Doings'' (1983) (illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky)
* ''The Random House Book of Poetry for Children'' (1983) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''It's Snowing! It's Snowing!'' (1984) (illustrated by Jeanne Titherington)
* ''What I Did Last Summer'' (1984) (illustrated by Yossi Abulafia)
* ''The New Kid on the Block'' (1984) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''Ride a Purple Pelican'' (1984) (illustrated by
Garth Williams
Garth Montgomery Williams (April 16, 1912 – May 8, 1996) was an American artist who came to prominence in the American postwar era as an illustrator of children's books. Many of the books he illustrated have become classics of American childre ...
)
* ''My Parents Think I'm Sleeping'' (1985) (illustrated by Yossi Abulafia)
* ''Read Aloud-Rhymes for the Very Young'' (1986) (illustrated by Marc Brown)
* ''Tyrannosaurus Was a Beast: Dinosaur Poems'' (1988) (illustrated by
Arnold Lobel
Arnold Stark Lobel (May 22, 1933 – December 4, 1987) was an American author of children's books, including the ''Frog and Toad'' series and ''Mouse Soup''. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as ''Fables'', a 1981 Caldecott Med ...
)
* ''Beneath a Blue Umbrella'' (1990) (illustrated by
Garth Williams
Garth Montgomery Williams (April 16, 1912 – May 8, 1996) was an American artist who came to prominence in the American postwar era as an illustrator of children's books. Many of the books he illustrated have become classics of American childre ...
)
* ''Something BIG Has Been Here'' (1990) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''For Laughing Out Loud: Poems to Tickle Your Funnybone'' (1991) (illustrated by Marjorie Priceman)
* ''There'll Be a Slight Delay: and Other Poems for Grown-ups'' (1991) (illustrated by
Jack Ziegler
Jack may refer to:
Places
* Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA
People and fictional characters
* Jack (given name), a male given name, ...
)
* ''A. Nonny Mouse Writes Again!'' (1993) (illustrated by Marjorie Priceman)
* ''The Dragons Are Singing Tonight'' (1993) (illustrated by
Peter Sís
Peter Sís (born Petr Sís; May 11, 1949) is a Czechs, Czech-born American people, American illustrator and writer of children's books. As a cartoonist his editorial illustrations have appeared in ''Time (magazine), Time'', ''Newsweek'', ''Esquire ...
)
* ''Monday's Troll'' (1996) (illustrated by
Peter Sís
Peter Sís (born Petr Sís; May 11, 1949) is a Czechs, Czech-born American people, American illustrator and writer of children's books. As a cartoonist his editorial illustrations have appeared in ''Time (magazine), Time'', ''Newsweek'', ''Esquire ...
)
* ''A Pizza the Size of the Sun'' (1996) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom'' (1997) (illustrated by Meilo So)
* '' Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!'' (1998) (with
Lane Smith
Walter Lane Smith III (April 29, 1936 – June 13, 2005) was an American actor. His well-known roles included newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman'', Walter Warner in ''Son in Law'', col ...
)
* ''Dog Days: Rhymes around the Year'' (1999) (illustrated by Dyanna Wolcott)
* ''The Gargoyle on the Roof'' (1999) (illustrated by
Peter Sís
Peter Sís (born Petr Sís; May 11, 1949) is a Czechs, Czech-born American people, American illustrator and writer of children's books. As a cartoonist his editorial illustrations have appeared in ''Time (magazine), Time'', ''Newsweek'', ''Esquire ...
)
* ''The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury'' (1999) (illustrated by Meilo So)
* ''It's Raining Pigs and Noodles'' (2000) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''Awful Ogre's Awful Day'' (2001) (illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky)
* ''The Frogs Wore Red Suspenders'' (2002) (illustrated by
Petra Mathers
Petra Mathers (born 1945) is a German-born American writer and illustrator of children's picture books
A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily ...
)
* ''Scranimals'' (2002) (illustrated by
Peter Sís
Peter Sís (born Petr Sís; May 11, 1949) is a Czechs, Czech-born American people, American illustrator and writer of children's books. As a cartoonist his editorial illustrations have appeared in ''Time (magazine), Time'', ''Newsweek'', ''Esquire ...
)
* ''If Not for the Cat'' (2004) (illustrated by
Ted Rand Ted Rand (1916-2005) was an illustrator who illustrated children's novels in his 60s, 70s, and 80s. He was born in 1916 on Mercer Island, WA. He started drawing early in his youth, traveled the world, and did portraits and advertising illustrations. ...
)
* ''Wild Witches' Ball'' (2004) (illustrated by Kelly Ashbury)
* ''Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant and Other Poems'' (2006) (illustrated by
Carin Berger Carin is a given name and surname. As a given name it is a variant spelling of Karin. Notable persons with the name Carin include:
Persons with the given name
* Carin Cone (born 1940), American swimmer
* Carin du Rietz (1766–1788), Swedish soldi ...
)
* ''I'm Glad I'm Me: Poems About You'' (2006)
* ''What a Day It Was at School!'' (2006) (illustrated by Doug Cushman)
* ''Good Sports: Rhymes about Running, Jumping, Throwing, and More'' (2007) (illustrated by Chris Raschka)
* ''In Aunt Giraffe's Green Garden'' (2007) (illustrated by
Petra Mathers
Petra Mathers (born 1945) is a German-born American writer and illustrator of children's picture books
A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily ...
)
* ''Me I Am!'' (2007) (illustrated by Christine Davenier)
* ''The Wizard'' (2007) (illustrated by
Brandon Dorman
Brandon Dorman is an American illustrator of children's books, including novels and picture books. His most well-known work is the #1 New York Times bestselling picture book, ''The Wizard'', written by Jack Prelutsky. He also illustrated al ...
)
* ''Awful Ogre Running Wild'' (2008) (illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky)
* ''My Dog May Be a Genius'' (2008) (illustrated by James Stevenson)
* ''Be Glad Your Nose Is on Your Face and Other Poems'' (2008) (illustrated by
Brandon Dorman
Brandon Dorman is an American illustrator of children's books, including novels and picture books. His most well-known work is the #1 New York Times bestselling picture book, ''The Wizard'', written by Jack Prelutsky. He also illustrated al ...
)
* ''Pizza, Pigs, and Poetry: How to Write a Poem'' (2008)
* ''The Swamps of Sleethe: Stories from Beyond the Solar System'' (2009) (illustrated by Jimmy Pickering)
* ''The Carnival of the Animals'' (2010) (illustrated by
Mary GrandPré
Mary GrandPré (born February 13, 1954) is an American illustrator best known for her cover and chapter illustrations of the ''Harry Potter'' books in their U.S. editions published by Scholastic. She received a Caldecott Honor in 2015 for illust ...
)
* ''There's No Place Like School'' (2010) (illustrated by Jane Manning)
* ''I've Lost My Hippopotamus'' (2012) (illustrated by Jackie Urbanovic)
* ''Stardines Swim High Across the Sky and Other Poems'' (2013) (illustrated by
Carin Berger Carin is a given name and surname. As a given name it is a variant spelling of Karin. Notable persons with the name Carin include:
Persons with the given name
* Carin Cone (born 1940), American swimmer
* Carin du Rietz (1766–1788), Swedish soldi ...
)
* ''The Silver Moon: Lullabies and Cradle Songs'' (2013) (illustrated by Jui Ishida)
PoetryFoundation.org
The Poetry Foundation is an American literary society that seeks to promote poetry and lyricism in the wider culture. It was formed from ''Poetry'' magazine, which it continues to publish, with a 2003 gift of $200 million from philanthropist R ...