Guys Read: Other Worlds

Jon Scieszka is the National Ambassador for Children's Literature emeritus and the bestselling author of more than twenty-five books for kids, including The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, Math Curse, Robot Zot!, and the Time Warp Trio series. Jon founded Guys Read to encourage a passion for reading among young boys, with the philosophy that boys love to read most when they are reading things they love. A former elementary school teacher, Jon lives in Brooklyn with his family. For more great books, more great facts, and more about your favorite authors, head over to www.guysread.com. You'll be glad you did.

Tom Angleberger ("Rise of the RoboShoes™") began writing his first novel in eighth grade, but never completed it. Since then, he’s been a newspaper reporter and columnist, a juggler, a weed boy, a lawn-mower-part assembler, and a biology research assistant. This bestselling author insists he’s not really all that creative—"I’m more of a puzzle-putter-together."

Eric Nylund ("The Warlords of Recess") is a New York Times bestselling and World Fantasy Award–nominated author of fourteen published science fiction, fantasy, and YA novels. His latest is a science fiction series for young readers, The Resisters. Eric also works for Microsoft Studios, where he makes video games.

D. J. MacHale (""The Scout"") is a bestselling author and is also a director, executive producer, and creator of several popular television series and movies. He lives in Southern California with his family, where they spend a lot of time backpacking, scuba diving, and skiing

Neal Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of more than fifty books, including Challenger Deep, which won the National Book Award; Scythe, a Michael L. Printz Honor Book; Dry, which he cowrote with his son, Jarrod Shusterman; Unwind, which won more than thirty domestic and international awards; Bruiser, which was on a dozen state lists; The Schwa Was Here, winner of the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award; and Game Changer, which debuted as an indie top-five best seller. He is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for the body of his work. You can visit him online at storyman.com.

KENNETH OPPEL is the bestselling author of numerous books for young readers. His award-winning Silverwing trilogy has sold over a million copies worldwide and was adapted into an animated TV series and stage play. Airborn won a Michael L. Printz Honor Book Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award; its sequel, Skybreaker, was a New York Times bestseller and was named Children’s Novel of the Year by the Times (UK). Kenneth Oppel is also the author of Half Brother, This Dark Endeavor, The Boundless, The Nest, Every Hidden Thing, Inkling and the Bloom trilogy. His latest novel is Ghostlight. Ken Oppel lives with his family in Toronto.

Shaun Tan ("A Day in the Life") grew up in Perth, Western Australia, and made up for the fact that he was the shortest kid in every class by being known as a "good drawer." Besides working full-time as an illustrator of his own stories, Shaun has worked as a designer in theater and film, and also directed the Academy Award–winning short film The Lost Thing.

Rebecca Stead ("Plan B") went to the kind of elementary school where a person could sit on a windowsill or even under a table to read a book, and no one told you to come out and be serious. After trying to be serious as a lawyer for a while, she decided to be a full-time writer. Her book When You Reach Me was awarded the Newbery Medal in 2010 and was a New York Times bestseller. She lives in New York City with her family.