Christine Zuchora-Walske
Christine Zuchora-Walske grew up—and eventually settled down—in Minneapolis. But as a young adult, she spent some time gallivanting elsewhere, including the University of Notre Dame, London, the University of Denver, and a small town in the cornfields of Illinois.
Along the way she discovered a love for reading, writing, and inquiry—and a desire to make a career of those activities. For almost twenty years now, Christine has been writing and editing books and magazine articles for children and their parents. She began as an editor with the Cricket family of children’s magazines. She ventured to the Lerner Group next, and then Meadowbrook Press. After having two children, she became a freelance editor and writer.
Christine’s author credits are many and varied. They include crafts and puzzles; a monthly column in which she impersonated a praying mantis; natural science titles for beginning readers; books exploring countries around the world; a debate on the pros and cons of Internet censorship; and books on pregnancy and parenting. Christine has also edited hundreds of articles and books in many genres and for all ages.
Christine is especially fond of science and history. But she loves all kinds of knowledge and literature. She never tires of learning new things, and she gets a kick out of trading knowledge with others.
Interview
What was your favorite book when you were a child?
Little Women. I read it ten times!
What’s your favorite line from a book?
Dozens of them stick in my head. But this one is especially sticky: “For all find what they truly seek.” —C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle
Who are your top three favorite authors or illustrators?
Mark Twain, Jane Austen, J. K. Rowling
Why did you want to become an author or illustrator?
It was obvious to me from adolescence that I would spend my life with words and learning—but at that point, I thought I’d be a teacher. It wasn’t until my junior year in college that I discovered the possibility of being an editor. It turned out to be my calling, and it was my path to becoming an author.
Do you have any advice for future authors or illustrators?
I sometimes get tangled up trying to explain difficult concepts to young readers. When that happens, I remember this quote from Albert Einstein: “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” That sends me back to fill in the gaps in my own knowledge.
