Bruce Coville

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications.
Primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of the article are generally not sufficient for a Wikipedia article. Please include more appropriate citations from reliable sources, or discuss the issue on the talk page.
This article has been tagged since March 2008.
Please help improve this article or section by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (January 2007)
Bruce Coville.
Bruce Coville.

Bruce Coville (b.May 16, 1950) is an American author of children's stories. He was born in Syracuse, New York and lived around central New York except for one year he spent at Duke University. In September 1990, he moved to New York City and lived there for two years. After that he moved back to Syracuse. His books generally fall into the fantasy and science fiction genres, full of personable and humorous characters. His books stress values like saving the environment and fair treatment of others.

Contents

[edit] Early Career

At first, he wasn't able to sell his stories, and along the way he had various other jobs. Among these are toymaker, gravedigger, cookware salesman, and assembly line worker. He eventually became an elementary school teacher, and worked with second and fourth graders at Wetzel Road Elementary in Liverpool, New York. After leaving education he worked as a temp, and continued to pursue his writing. Eventually he became editor of a Syracuse-based magazine called SENIORITY. He went completely freelance in 1986.

[edit] Career

His first published story was The Foolish Giant. He is most famous for his Unicorn Chronicles series, My Teacher is an Alien, Aliens Ate My Homework, and Magic Shop series. Other lesser-known series include: Space Brat, Camp Haunted Hills, I Was a Sixth Grade Alien, and The A.I. Gang.

The "Sixth Grade Alien" series was illustrated by Tony Sansevero, and was eventually the basis for a television series on Fox Family in the US and YTV in Canada.

Mr. Coville has also written picture books, retellings of William Shakespeare, and three children's plays - The Dragonslayers, Out of the Blue, and It's Midnight, Do You Know Where Your Toys Are?, all musicals. He also co-wrote the young-adult novel Armageddon Summer with Jane Yolen.

He is the founder of Full Cast Audio, an audio book company producing unabridged recordings of children's and young adult books, using full casts rather than solo readers. Authors who have worked with FCA include Elizabeth Winthrop, James Howe, and Tamora Pierce, who wrote an original novel called Melting Stones specifically for the company to record before the print edition appeared.

[edit] Early Life

Bruce grew up around the corner from his grandparents' dairy farm, near the village of Phoenix, New York. He loved to read children's classics such as Mary Poppins and Doctor Dolittle, along with popular titles like Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and many comic books. He regrets that he sometimes watched TV when he could have been reading. "After all, mind is a terrible thing to waste!" he says. The first time he can remember thinking to become a writer was in sixth grade. His teacher, Mrs. Crandall, gave his class an extended period of time to write a long story. He loved doing it. He started to work seriously at becoming a writer at the age of seventeen. When he was 19 he married Katherine Dietz. She lived right around the corner from him. She was and still is a wonderful artist and they tried making books together. In 1977 they sold their first book together titled The Foolish Giant. They did two other books together—Sarah’s Unicorn and The Monster’s Ring.

[edit] Family

They have three children: a son born in 1970 (Orion), a daughter born in 1975 (Cara), and another son born in 1981 named Adam. Bruce and Kathy have lived apart for many years, but they are currently sharing a house again. They are working on new projects, such as the Moongobble and Me series. "I feel like a very lucky person. From the time I was young, I had a dream of becoming a writer. Now that dream has come true, and I am able to make my living doing something that I really love."

[edit] Books

[edit] Series

Magic Shop

  1. The Monster's Ring. Aladdin (1989). ISBN 0671693891
  2. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher. Aladdin (1992). ISBN 0671747827
  3. Jennifer Murdley's Toad. Aladdin (1993). ISBN 0671794019
  4. The Skull of Truth. Aladdin (1999). ISBN 0671023438
  5. Juliet Dove, Queen of Love. Harcourt (2003). ISBN 0152045619

My Teacher

  1. My Teacher is an Alien. Aladdin (1990). ISBN 0671737295
  2. My Teacher Fried my Brains. Aladdin (1991). ISBN 0671727109
  3. My Teacher Glows in the Dark. Aladdin (1991). ISBN 0671727095
  4. My Teacher Flunked the Planet. Aladdin (1992). ISBN 067175081X

I Was a Sixth Grade Alien

  1. I Was a Sixth Grade Alien. Aladdin (1999). ISBN 067102650X
  2. The Attack of the Two-Inch Teacher. Aladdin (1999). ISBN 0671026518
  3. I Lost My Grandfather's Brain. Aladdin (1999). ISBN 0671026526
  4. Peanut Butter Lover Boy. Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026534
  5. Zombies of the Science Fair. Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026542
  6. Don't Fry My Veeblax! Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026550
  7. Too Many Aliens. Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026569
  8. Snatched From Earth. Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026577
  9. There's an Alien in My Backpack. Aladdin (2000). ISBN 0671026585
  10. The Revolt of the Miniature Mutants. Aladdin (2001). ISBN 0671026593
  11. There's an Alien in My Underwear. Aladdin (2001). ISBN 671026607

The Unicorn Chronicles

  1. Into the Land of the Unicorns. Scholastic (1994). ISBN 0439108381
  2. Song of the Wanderer. Scholastic (1999). ISBN 0590459546

Moongobble and Me

  1. The Dragon of Doom. Simon & Schuster (2003). ISBN 0689857543
  2. The Weeping Werewolf. Simon & Schuster (2004). ISBN 0689857551
  3. The Evil Elves. Simon & Schuster (2004). ISBN 068985756X
  4. The Mischief Monster Simon & Schuster (2007) ISBN 978-1416908074

Space Brat

  1. Space Brat
  2. Space Brat 2: Blork’s Evil Twin
  3. Space Brat 3: The Wrath of Squat
  4. Space Brat 4: Planet of the Dips
  5. Space Brat 5: The Saber-Toothed Poodnoobie

Rod Albright Alien Adventures

  1. Aliens Ate My Homework
  2. I Left My Sneakers in Dimension X
  3. The Search for Snout (Aliens Stole My Dad in the UK)
  4. Aliens Stole My Body

Bruce Coville's Book of...

  1. Bruce Coville's Book of Monsters
  2. Bruce Coville's Book of Aliens
  3. Bruce Coville's Book of Ghosts
  4. Bruce Coville's Book of Nightmares
  5. Bruce Coville's Book of Spine Tinglers
  6. Bruce Coville's Book of Magic
  7. Bruce Coville's Book of Monsters II
  8. Bruce Coville's Book of Aliens II
  9. Bruce Coville's Book of Ghosts II
  10. Bruce Coville's Book of Nightmares II
  11. Bruce Coville's Book of Spine Tinglers II
  12. Bruce Coville's Book of Magic II

Shakespeare Retellings

  1. The Tempest
  2. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
  3. Macbeth
  4. Romeo and Juliet
  5. Hamlet
  6. Twelfth Night
  7. The Winter's Tale

Nina Tanleven

  1. The Ghost in the Third Row
  2. The Ghost Wore Gray
  3. The Ghost in the Big Brass Bed

The A. I. Gang

  1. Operation Sherlock
  2. Robot Trouble
  3. Forever Begins Tomorrow

Camp Haunted Hills

  1. How I Survived My Summer Vacation
  2. Some of My Best Friends Are Monsters
  3. The Dinosaur that Followed Me Home

Bruce Coville's Chamber of Horrors

  1. Amulet of Doom
  2. Spirits and Spells
  3. Eyes of the Tarot
  4. Waiting Spirit

[edit] Anthologies

  1. A Glory of Unicorns
  2. Half Human
  3. Herds of Thunder, Manes of Gold
  4. The Unicorn Treasury
  5. Bruce Coville's Shapeshifters
  6. Bruce Coville's Alien Visitors
  7. Bruce Coville's Strange Worlds
  8. Oddly Enough. Simon & Schuster (1994). ISBN 0671516930
  9. Odder Than Ever (1999)
  10. Odds Are Good. Harcourt (2006). ISBN 9780152057169

[edit] Young Adult Novels

  1. Armageddon Summer
  2. Fortune’s Journey
  3. Space Station Ice-3

[edit] Middle Grade Novels

  1. The Dragonslayers
  2. Goblins in the Castle
  3. Monster of the Year
  4. The Monsters of Morley Manor
  5. The World’s Worst Fairy Godmother
  6. Thor's Wedding Day

[edit] Picture Books

  1. The Foolish Giant
  2. The Lapsnatcher
  3. My Grandfather’s House
  4. The Prince of Butterflies
  5. Sarah and the Dragon
  6. Sarah’s Unicorn
  7. Hans Brinker (retelling)

[edit] Nonfiction

  1. Prehistoric People

[edit] External links

Languages