1. Patricia McKissack
…an endearing storyteller

2. In the Beginning
Patricia L'AnnCarwell
August 9, 1944
Smyrna, Tennessee
Moved to St. Louis, Missouri at
three
Parents divorced
Stayed in Missouri until age of
twelve
At twelve, moved back to
Tennessee
Met Fredrick McKissack
Tennessee State
University, Nashville
BA degree in English, 1964
Webster University, Missouri
Master‟s in Early Childhood
Literature and Media
Programming
Careers in teaching (9 yrs) and
editing (6 yrs)

3. Patricia‟s First Book
“Paul Laurence Dunbar: A
Poet to Remember”
Written in 1972
Published 1982

4. Becoming a Full-time Writer
"I remember sitting in our car - just the two of us - and
Fred asked, 'If you could do anything you want to do in this
whole wide world for the rest of your life, what would you do?'
I said, 'Write books.' And he said, 'Okay-let's do that. We'll take
it as far as we can go. We'll take it day by day.”

5. When asked why she
writes…
“There's a need to have books for, by, and about the
African-American experience and how we helped
to develop this country.”
“To tell a different story — one that has been
marginalized by mainstream history; one that
has been distorted, misrepresented or just plain
forgotten.”

6. Inspiration
Family Influence African-American
Experience

7. Over 100 Books!
Young adult
novels…
Flossie and the Fox (1986)
Mirandy and Brother Wind (1988)
A Million Fish…More or Less (1992)
*Sojourner Truth: Ain‟t I a Woman? (1992)
The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural (1992)
*Black Diamond: the Story of the Negro Baseball Leagues (1994)
*Rebels Against Slavery: American Slave Revolts (1996)
Ma Dear‟s Aprons (1997)
The Honest-to-Goodness Truth (2000)
Goin‟ Someplace Special (2001)
Precious and the Boo Hag (2005)
The All-I-Ever-Want Christmas Doll (2006)
A Friendship for Today (2007)
Stitchin‟ and Pullin‟: a Gee‟s Bend Quilt (2008)

8. Message from McKissack
“(…) successful teachers don‟t talk down to
their students; they don‟t tell students how to
think, and finally they don‟t hit students over
the head with a MESSAGE! The same
applies to a writer. Being preachy is the kiss
of death for any book. And every writer
should put a sign over his/her workplace:
„Show don‟t tell‟.”

9. Obstacles Endured
Reviewers
Book Buyers
Pub-houses
Teachers and librarians

10. Awards
THE DARK-THIRTY: Southern Tales of the Supernatural
• Newbery Award
• Coretta Scott King Award Winner
MIRANDY AND BROTHER WIND
• Caldecot Honor Book
• Coretta Scott King Award Winner (illustration)
BLACK HANDS, WHITE SAILS: The Story of African-American Whalers
• Coretta Scott King Honor Book
DAYS OF JUBILEE:
• Coretta Scott King Honor Book
*REBELS AGAINST SLAVERY: American Slave Revolts
• Coretta Scott King Award
*SOJOUNER TRUTH: Ain‟t I a Woman?
• Coretta Scott King Award

12. “To me, reading is like breathing; both are
essential to life.”
—Patricia C. McKissack