Author Background Check
Directions: Use the web-site list for your author to answer the
following items:
Many authors do not use the name they were born with as their pen name. What is the real
name of this person?
When and where was the author born? Where does the author live now?
What are two activities the author enjoyed as a child or young adult?
Name at least two other jobs this author has done.
Tell something that is unusual about this author's life.
List five books the author has written.
Name one award this author has won for books or illustrations.
Go the the media center card catalog. List books by this author we have in this media center.
Put the call number next to each book.
If you do a subject search in the card catalog, what are two different words you could type in
to get this author's books?
Go to the site: http://www.ala.org
Do an author search to see if any of the author's books have been banned. List banned titles and
tell why they have been banned. (If there are several, do this for at least two books.)
If a friend likes reading books by this author, who is another author you could recommend to
your friend? Be sure you tell how the two authors are connected.
Go to the site:http://www.amazon.com
Do a search by author. Find two of the following, print them out and attach them to this
assignment:
- a review written by someone who didn't like the book
- an entry for a book by this author that has been translated into another language
- an entry for an audiobook by this author
- a review written by a professional library media group. (Examples are: ALA, Horn Book, a newspaper review)
Read a book written by this author. Write your own review.