In third grade, my teacher gave everyone a strip of construction paper and asked us to write down what we wanted to be when we grew up. Without hesitation, I wrote "writer." I can still see that strip of paper posted on the bulletin board of my third grade classroom. All through elementary school, middle school, and high school, I wrote poetry and short stories. In college, at the University of Pittsburgh, I earned a B.A. in English Writing. However, years went by before I realized whom I wanted to write for. Many of my stories and poems had young protagonists. Adult publications rejected them. Then I started sending out some of the same material to children's magazines and received acceptance letters. Later, I went back to school to study library science. The children's literature courses mesmerized me. As an elementary school librarian, I have found a way to combine my love of reading and writing. I work in a room full of children's books. Every day, I have the opportunity to share stories with my students and find out what they enjoy. Nothing is more fun than entering the world of the story, meeting new characters in a faraway place or contemporary life. Reading is always an adventure. I love it when my students sit down in the library with me and ask, "Where are we going today?"

I am the author of eight books for children, including my fall 2007 title, No English, published by Mitten Press. No English was inspired by one of my students who came to the library frequently to check out books in Spanish. She had a sweet smile and a cute way of shaking her head and saying "No English," whenever we tried to communicate. By the time she left our elementary school two years later, she was among the best students in her class. Over the years, I have seen many students at my school develop English language skills and excel. Their determination and dedication to learning touches me. It was only natural that I would want to write a story about a student adjusting to life in America. However, I felt I should write from my own experience. While my father was an immigrant from Switzerland, I was born in the United States. I never personally moved to a new country or faced the challenge of learning English as a second language. My experiences were as an empathetic observer. So that's what I wrote about. No English is the story of a second grader named Diane, who reaches out to a new girl named Blanca. Things do not go well at first. Diane is jealous because their teacher, Mrs. Bertram, allows Blanca to draw instead of doing class work. One misunderstanding follows another until Diane feels compelled to make things right. But how can Diane apologize when they don't speak the same language? In No English, Diane and Blanca discover a creative way to overcome their differences and become friends. To learn more about No English please visit my website at www.jacquelinejules.com.

Also by Jacqueline Jules

A NEW TWIST ON A TIMELESS TALE

Noah and the Ziz
Illustrations by Katherine Janus Kahn
Kar-Ben Publishing, 2005, ISBN: 0-929371-01-1

Many children know the story of Noah's Ark. But do they know who collected the animals for the ark? Noah was busy, gathering leaves for the giraffes, bananas for the monkeys, and hay for the cows. How could he go in one direction to get the pandas and another direction to get the kangaroos?

Noah and the Ziz, by the award-winning author Jacqueline Jules, answers this question by sending the Ziz to the rescue. Who is the Ziz? He is an enormous yellow bird with red wings that block out the sun. The Ziz is so strong he can carry an elephant with his feet and fly across the world in twenty minutes. He is the perfect bird for the job. But there is a problem. The Ziz is a little clumsy and a lot hyperactive. In his zeal to succeed, the giant yellow bird causes havoc.
Alligators hang by their tails, bananas are swept overboard, and mice run for cover.

To learn more about this title and other books by Jacqueline Jules, please visit her website at www.jacquelinejules.com.