Candace Fleming

Candace Fleming
Candace Groth Fleming (born May 24, 1962) is an American writer of children's books, both fiction and non-fiction. She is the author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize-honored The Family Romanov and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award-winning biography, The Lincolns, among others.
In 2013, the Children's Book Council named Fleming a Children's Book Month Champion, and in 2014, Fleming was awarded the Children’s Book Guild Nonfiction Award. In 2016, she was a finalist for the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature, which "celebrates the importance of children's and young-adult literature and the impact it has on our children's minds." Thirty-two of her books are Junior Library Guild selections.
Biography
Fleming was born May 24, 1962, in Michigan City, Indiana to Charles and Carol Groth. She received a Bachelor of Arts from Eastern Illinois University in 1985. She married Scott Fleming November 9, 1985 and has two children, Scott and Michael, with him.
From 1997 to 2005, Fleming was a teacher at William Rainey Harper College near Chicago. Since that time, she has worked full-time as a writer, educator, and speaker.
Her first picture book Professor Fergus Fahrenheit and his Wonderful Weather Machine was published by Simon & Schuster in 1994 as written by "Candace Groth-Fleming" and illustrated by Don Weller. Subsequent publications have all appeared under the name Candace Fleming.
Selected texts
The Lincolns (2008)
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary, published October 14, 2008 by Schwartz & Wade, is a nonfiction children's book about Abraham Lincoln and his wife, Mary. The book is a Junior Library Guild selection. The Horn Book Magazine, Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal named it one of the best nonfiction children's books of 2008.
The Great and Only Barnum (2009)
The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P. T. Barnum, published September 8, 2009 by Schwartz & Wade and illustrated by Ray Fenwick, is a nonfiction children's picture book about P. T. Barnum. The book is a Junior Library Guild selection. Publishers Weekly named it one of the best children's books of 2009. In 2010, Booklist included The Great and Only Barnum on their "Top 10 Biographies for Youth" list.
Amelia Lost (2011)
Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart, published February 8, 2011 by Schwartz & Wade, is a nonfiction middle-grade children's book about Amelia Earhart. In 2011, The Horn Book Magazine named it one of the best nonfiction children's books of the year, and Bank Street College of Education named it a book of outstanding merit for children aged nine to twelve and twelve to fourteen.
Oh, No! (2012)
Oh, No!, published September 11, 2012 and illustrated by Eric Rohmann, is a fictional picture book about a series of animals who fall into a hole. Bank Street College of Education named it one of the best books of the year for children age five to nine.
The Family Romanov (2014)
The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia, published July 8, 2014 by Schwartz & Wade, is a nonfiction children's book about the Romanovs.
Both the book and audiobook editions of The Family Romanov are Junior Library Guild selections. In 2014, The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, The Horn Book Magazine, School Library Journal named it of the best nonfiction children's books of the year. Publishers Weekly named it one of the best young adult books of the year. Booklist included it on their 2014 "Top of the List" and 2015 "Top 10 Biographies for Youth" lists. School Library Journal included the audiobook edition in their list of the top ten best audiobooks of the year.
Giant Squid (2016)
Giant Squid, published September 27, 2016 by Roaring Brook Press and illustrated by Eric Rohmann, is a nonfiction children's book about giant squids. Giant Squid is a Junior Library Guild book. In 2016, Horn Book Magazine and the New York Public Library named it one of the best nonfiction children's books of the year. In 2017, Bank Street College of Education named it one of the best books for children ages five to nine.
Honeybee (2020)
Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera, published February 4, 2020 by Neal Porter Books and illustrated by Eric Rohmann, is a nonfiction picture book about honey bees. Honeybee is a Junior Library Guild book. Publishers Weekly and Shelf Awareness named it one of the best picture books of 2020, and The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books and Horn Book Magazine included it on their list of the best nonfiction children's books of the year. Bank Street College of Education named it a book of outstanding merit for children aged nine to twelve.
The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh (2020)
The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, published February 11, 2020 by Schwartz & Wade, is a nonfiction children's book about Charles Lindbergh.
Both the book and audiobook editions of The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh are Junior Library Guild selections. Publishers Weekly named it one of the best young adult books of 2020, and Booklist included it on their 2020 "Top 10 Biographies for Youth" list. The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, Horn Book Magazine, and School Library Journal included it on their lists of the best nonfiction children's books of the year.
Publications
Picture books
Professor Ferguson Fahrenheit and his Wonderful Weather Machine (1994)
Women of the Lights (1995), illustrated by James Watling
Madame LaGrande and Her So High, to the Sky, Uproarious Pompadour (1996), illustrated by S.D. Schindler
Gabriella's Song (1997), illustrated by Giselle Potter
Westward Ho, Carlotta! (1997), illustrated by David Catrow
The Hatmaker's Sign (1998), illustrated by Robert A. Parker
When Agnes Caws (1999), illustrated by Giselle Potter
A Big Cheese for the White House: The True Tale of a Tremendous Cheddar (1999), illustrated by S.D. Schindler
Who Invited You? (2001), illustrated by George Booth
Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! (2002), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Boxes for Katje (2003), illustrated by Stacey Dressen-McQueen
Smile, Lily! (2004), illustrated by Yumi Heo
Gator Gumbo: A Spicy-Hot Tale (2004), illustrated by Sally Anne Lambert
This Is the Baby (2004), illustrated by Maggie Smith
Sunny Boy!: The Life and Times of a Tortoise (2005), illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Hide! (2007), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Splash! (2014), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Imogene's Last Stand (2009), illustrated by Nancy Carpenter
Seven Hungry Babies (2010), illustrated by Eugene Yelchin
Clever Jack Takes the Cake (2010), illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Oh, No! (2012), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Papa's Mechanical Fish (2013), illustrated by Boris Kolikov
Bulldozer
Bulldozer's Big Day (2015), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Bulldozer Helps Out (2017), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Go Sleep In Your Own Bed! (2017), illustrated by Lori Nichols
Emma's Circus (2017), illustrated by Christine Davenier
The Amazing Collection of Joey Cornell (2018), illustrated by Gérard DuBois
Fiction
Aesop Elementary
The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary School (2005)
The Fabled Fifth Graders of Aesop Elementary School (2010)
Lowji Discovers America (2005)
On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave (2010)
History Pals
Ben Franklin's in My Bathroom! (2017), illustrated by Marc Fearing
Eleanor Roosevelt's in My Garage! (2018), illustrated by Marc Fearing
Strongheart: Wonder Dog of the Silver Screen (2018), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
Non-fiction
Ben Franklin's Almanac: Being a True Account of the Good Gentleman's Life (2003)
Our Eleanor: A Scrapbook Look at Eleanor Roosevelt's Remarkable Life (2005)
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary (2008)
The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P. T. Barnum (2009)
Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart (2011)
The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia (2014)
Presenting Buffalo Bill: The Man Who Invented the Wild West (2016)
Giant Squid(2016), illustrated by Eric Rohmann
The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh (2020)
Anthologies
Guys Read True Stories (2014) edited by Jon Scieszka. Contributed “A Jumbo Story” about Jumbo the elephant.
Our Story Begins: your favorite authors and illustrators share fun, inspiring, and occasionally ridiculous things they wrote and drew as kids (2017) edited by Elissa Brent Weissman.
Fatal Throne: The Wives of Henry VIII Tell All (2018) concept by Candace Fleming. Written by M.T. Anderson (Henry VIII), Candace Fleming (Katharine of Aragon), Stephanie Hemphill (Anne Boleyn), Lisa Ann Sandell (Jane Seymour), Jennifer Donnelly (Anna of Cleves), Linda Sue Park (Catherine Howard), and Deborah Hopkinson (Kateryn Parr).
References
External links
Candace Fleming on PBS LearningMedia
Princeton University, Cotsen Children's Library
Reading Rockets interview
1962 births
Living people
21st-century American women writers
American children's writers
American non-fiction writers
American women children's writers
American women non-fiction writers
Eastern Illinois University alumni
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal winners