J
C GREENBURG
Author
"I just want you to be normal!" my mother used to
say pleadingly—and often. She said it when she found me digging for dinosaur
bones in the backyard. She said it when she found the orchid plants I was
growing under my bed. (That was before I knew plants need light!) She said it in
the grocery store when, instead of asking for candy or cereal, I asked for a
Venus Fly Trap.
Poor Mom. She wanted a normal kid. I wanted to see
platypuses and figure out how flies walk across the ceiling without falling off.
And just how giant is a Giant Gippsland Earthworm anyway? With tons of questions
always spinning around in my head, I never had a boring moment.
I also loved to write. So when I graduated from
college, I found the perfect job for me. I became an editor of science books. I
worked on books about volcanoes and stars and weather and math. I especially
loved helping authors who wrote about living things. The biologists were such
fun! And they, too, loved to ask questions.
Now here was the best part about my job: If I had a question about anything, I
could call an expert anywhere in the world to find an answer. Experts are people
who love to study things like earthquakes and ants and octopuses. Experts are
people who want to tell you all about what they love! How continents move at the
rate fingernails grow to how sea slugs hurl their intestines and lungs at
predators to elude them.
After many happy years of working on other people's
books, I decided it was time to write my own. I had learned a lot about things
that interested me: why spiders don't stick to their own webs, why insects can
never grow as big as the ones in horror movies, what the inside of the earth is
made of. And I still had a TON of questions. Maybe there were kids who were
interested in the things I was interested in. That's when I came up with the
idea for "Andrew Lost."
Now there are two favorite parts of my work as an
author. I still get to call anyone in the world to ask questions. For example, a
little while ago, I needed facts on blue whales, the biggest creatures that have
ever lived, for Andrew Lost in the Whale. I called two experts. We had
interesting conversations about what a blue whale's tongue looks like and
whether a l0-year-old could squeeze through a whale's intestines.
My other favorite part of being an author is
visiting schools and talking to kids about everything from the cute creatures
that live upside down in our eyelashes to the giant squid that lives in the
deepest ocean.
If you asked me how to guarantee that your life
would be interesting, I'd tell you this:
Come up with some questions and look for answers. You'll meet terrific people,
have lots of fun, and you will never ever be bored.
Published
Books
Andrew
Lost #1: On the Dog
by
JC Greenburg (author), Debbie Palen (Illustrator), Random House Children's Books, 2002,
ISBN 978-0375812774
When Andrew's latest invention, the Atom Sucker, goes haywire, Andrew and Judy
are
shrunk down to microscopic level! Andrew and Judy find themselves lost on their
neighbor's dog, where they encounter everything from colossal fleas to crab-like
eyelash
mites. Now they have to find their way back to the Atom Sucker and get unshrunk
before
it's too late!
REVIEW
By A Customer: This review is from: On the Dog (Andrew Lost #1) (Paperback)
This book, as well as the others in the "Andrew Lost" series, is wonderful! I
stumbled across it as a gift for
my nephew, but decided to read it to my 6 & 8 year old sons. They loved it, and
we have read the whole
series. Andrew's adventures kept the boys interested and there was a whole lot
of learning too. Because
Andrew is shrunk to a level we don't normally see, we get an "up close" look at
things thru his adventures.
There is lots of science, like what the color of a bubble means and how an
insect sees with its many eyes
(and so much more!). The books are sufficiently "gross" to interest boys, but
not so gross that I couldn't
read them. In fact, I learned at least as much as they did. Really interesting
stuff! The chapters are short and
easy to read. We finished each book in 2-3 sittings. I highly recommend these
books.
Andrew Lost #2: In the Bathroom
by JC Greenburg (author), Debbie Palen (Illustrator), Random House Children's Books, 20002,
ISBN
978-0375812784
When Andrew and Judy's neighbor gives her dog a bath, microscopic Andrew and
Judy find themselves
washed off the dog and lost in the bathroom! They'll have to use their wits-and Thudd's storehouse of
facts-if they're to survive run-ins with mold, mildew, an ocean of soapy water,
and a predatory spider on
their way back to the Atom Sucker.
REVIEW
5.0 out of 5 stars For a nine year old
My nine year old has just discovered this series. He absolutely loves them. The
series is
not only funny and entertaining it also has some good science lessons in them
that can be
expanded on if you are creative with them.
Andrew Lost #3: In the Kitchen
by JC Greenberg (author), Debbie Palen (Illustrator), Random House Children's Books, 2002,
ISBN 978-0375812792
Andrew, his cousin Judy, and super-smart robot Thudd escape the bathtub-only to
get
flushed down the toilet! Now they have to find their way through a maze of pipes
to the
kitchen sink. But the kitchen is no place to be when you're the size of a flea.
Monster
cockroaches scurry across the counter while flies patrol the skies. Will the
kids survive
the kitchen? Or will they end up frozen in the fridge? Time is running out!
REVIEW
5.0 out of 5 stars
This review is from: In the Kitchen (Andrew Lost #3) (Paperback)
The entire Andrew Lost series is excellent! I bought the first book because my
son's
name is Andrew and I thought it would be cute for him to have a book with his
name in
it. As it turns out, the book was excellent, and he wanted to get another. We
are now up
to book number 8 and plan to buy the rest of the series. This series is not only
fun and
exciting to read, but it teaches the children about science. It is a sneaky way
to teach your
child without them thinking it's educational.
By Book lover "home school mom"
This review is from: In the Kitchen (Andrew Lost #3) (Paperback)
The Andrew Lost series are wonderful. I have four children aged 5,7, 9 and 10
and they
all enjoy these books. I read the books to my 5 year old and we both enjoy them.
The
older kids were able to read the first ten books all within one week, because
they were
not able to put them down!
Andrew Lost #4: In the Garden
by JC Greenburg (author), Debbie Palen (Illustrator), Random House Children's Books, 2003,
ISBN 978-0375812806
Andrew, his cousin Judy, and super-smart robot Thudd hitch a ride out of the
kitchen on
the back of a fly and end up in the garden. The view is awfully nice from the
head of a
daisy, but time is running out.... They have to get back to the Atom Sucker and
unshrink themselves before it's too late!
REVIEW
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book series, November 21, 2009
This review is from: In the Garden (Andrew Lost #4) (Paperback)
My 6 year old son loves this series. The books are infused with science facts by
the
befriended robot Thudd, but the story is easy enough to follow along and
includes enough
pictures to keep my son interested throughout the book. The first couple of
books are
about Andrew and his cousin Judy getting shrunk down smaller than an ant size
and what
happens to them when they try to get themselves unshrunk. Although the books are
a
series, you could pick one up out of the series and there is enough background
from the
previous book to follow along. I would recommend to any parent who is looking
for a
good series book, who wants to expose their kids to a bit of science while
reading a fun
adventure, and there are a lot of books in the series so it will take awhile
before you have
to find something else for them to read!
MORE "ANDREW LOST" FAVORITES
My
visits usually consist of up to four presentations per day based on my humorous
science-adventure series, "Andrew Lost." My presentations, adjusted for age
groups, center around an eye-popping PowerPoint presentation featuring weird and
wonderful creatures - from a Tyrannosaurus Rex to the giant squid and the blue
whale - to illustrate what inspires me and how I research and write my books. I
also share empowering stories about children - as young as 3! - who have made
scientific discoveries. And I weave in writing hints. At the end, there's time
for Q & A. Presentations can range in length from 30 to 60 minutes, depending on
your needs and the ages of the children. The presentations delight children from
ages 5 or 6 through about 10 (and adults, too!) and I've had great times with
kids as young as 3. The only problem I encounter is that children have so many
questions they don't want to go back to class! (I always invite them to email me
their questions.)
email: