- I was born in St. Louis, Missouri on September
5, 1950.
- Today, I live in Tucson, Arizona with my husband,
Nick Vitale.
- My daughter Lauren is twenty-three and my step-son
Justin is twenty-one. Lauren is a recent graduate from Reed College
in Portland, Oregon, where she currently resides. Justin attends the
American University in Washington, D.C. and lives in Maui, Hawaii.
- Until his death in the summer of 1998 at the
age of fourteen, we had a sweet dog named Sierra. In his old age, he
became afraid of thunder and woke up from his deep naps during rainstorms.
He's one of the "old" dogs in the poem. Five
years ago we adopted a 6 year-old standard poodle named "Contessa."
Tessa is a rather rough and tumble member of her breed. We often say:
"There's nothing French about our poodle!"
- We also care for two adult and three hatchling
desert tortoises. They are named Tortellini
and Boris-Doris (the mother); the hatchings are named Lucy, Charlie
Brown, and Linus. Our adult tortoises were given to us by someone who
had raised them as pets. They hibernate from November through March
or April.
- I am now a full-time writer and a consultant.
I also serve as an adjunct assistant professor at the University of
Arizona. I earned my Ph.D. in May 2003 when I was 52 years old! I have
taught education foundations, writing, literacy, children's and adolescent
literature, and school library courses.
- Students call me "Dr. Judi."
- Thanks to a great teacher, Miss Schwab, I've
loved writing since third grade.
- I like to wake up early in the morning and write
in my journal while I drink a cup of hot tea. Most mornings (when I
don't have to go to school) I walk in the desert with my dog Tessa.
- Besides writing and walking, I love telling
stories, reading, taking photographs, swimming, and visiting new places.
- Sing Down the Rain
was my first published book. Read to Me/Vamos
a leer, my second book, was published in January 2004.
- Click here to see a photograph
of my dog Tessa and me.
Sing Down the Rain
Teachers' Menu
|
