Jennifer L. Holm facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jennifer L. Holm
Holm in 2017
Born	(1968-06-16) June 16, 1968 (age 57) San Diego, California, U.S.
Occupation	Writer illustrator
Alma mater	Dickinson College
Period	1999–present
Notable works	Babymouse Squish The Stink Files Our Only May Amelia Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf Turtle in Paradise The Fourteenth Goldfish
Children	2

Jennifer L. Holm (born June 16, 1968) is a super popular American writer for kids! She has won many important awards for her books. These include three Newbery Honors and an Eisner Award.

About Jennifer L. Holm

Jennifer L. Holm was born in 1968 in San Diego, California. She grew up on Whidbey Island in Washington state. Later, her family moved to Audubon, Pennsylvania. She has four brothers.

After college, she worked in television. Then, she started writing books. Her first published novel was Our Only May Amelia. This story is about a 12-year-old girl. She lives in Washington state in the late 1800s. Jennifer was inspired by a diary written by her great aunt! This book won a Newbery Honor in 2000. A Newbery Honor is a special award for excellent children's books.

Jennifer Holm has written many different kinds of books. She wrote a series about Jane Peck, a young woman in the 1850s. This series is called Boston Jane. She also wrote The Creek, which is a scary thriller.

She is also famous for her graphic novels. These are like comic books. Her brother, Matthew Holm, draws the pictures for them. Two popular graphic novel series are Babymouse and Squish.

Another fun series she wrote with her husband, Jonathan Hamel, is The Stink Files. It's about a cat named James Edward Bristlefur. He was raised by a secret agent!

Her book Penny from Heaven is set in the 1950s. It's about an 11-year-old Italian-American girl. This book also won a Newbery Honor in 2007. Turtle in Paradise is another Newbery Honor book from 2011. It takes place during the Great Depression in Key West, Florida.

In 2013, her graphic novel Babymouse for President won an Eisner Award. This award is like the "Oscars" for comic books!

Our Only May Amelia was even turned into a play. It was performed in Astoria, Oregon, in 2006.

Jennifer's Life Today

As of 2013, Jennifer Holm lives in Foster City, California. She lives there with her husband and their two children.

Books by Jennifer L. Holm

Jennifer Holm has written many books for young readers. Here are some of her popular series and standalone novels.

Standalone Novels

• The Creek (2003)
• Penny from Heaven (2007) - Newbery Honor
• The Lion of Mars (2021)

The Fourteenth Goldfish Series

• The Fourteenth Goldfish (2014)
• The Third Mushroom (2018)

Sunny Series

These are graphic novels. They are illustrated by Matthew Holm and colored by Lark Pien.

• Sunny Side Up (2015)
• Swing it, Sunny (2017)
• Sunny Rolls the Dice (2019)
• Sunny Makes a Splash (2021)
• Sunny Makes Her Case (2024)

May Amelia Series

• Our Only May Amelia (1999) - Newbery Honor
• The Trouble with May Amelia (2011), illustrated by Adam Gustavson

Boston Jane Novel Series

1. Boston Jane: An Adventure (2001)
2. Wilderness Days (2002)
3. The Claim (2004)

Key West Series

• Turtle in Paradise (2010) - Newbery Honor
• Full of Beans (2016) - This book tells a story before Turtle in Paradise. It's from the point of view of Turtle's cousin, Beans.

Ginny Davis Series

These books are illustrated by Elicia Castaldi.

1. Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff (2007)
2. Eighth Grade is Making Me Sick: Ginny Davis's Year In Stuff (2012)

The Stink Files Series

Jennifer wrote these books with Jonathan Hamel. Brad Weinman did the illustrations.

• The Stink Files, Dossier 001: The Postman Always Brings Mice (2004)
• The Stink Files, Dossier 002: To Scratch a Thief (2004)
• The Stink Files, Dossier 003: You Only Have Nine Lives (2005)

Babymouse Series

These are graphic novels. Jennifer works on these with her brother, Matthew Holm.

1. Queen of the World! (2005)
2. Our Hero (2005)
3. Beach Babe (2006)
4. Rock Star (2006)
5. Heartbreaker (2006)
6. Camp Babymouse (2007)
7. Skater Girl (2007)
8. Puppy Love (2007)
9. Monster Mash (2008)
10. Babymouse: The Musical (2009)
11. Dragonslayer (2009)
12. Babymouse Burns Rubber (2010)
13. Cupcake Tycoon (2010)
14. Mad Scientist (2011)
15. A Very Babymouse Christmas (2011)
16. Babymouse for President (2012)
17. Extreme Babymouse (2013)
18. Happy Birthday, Babymouse (2014)
19. Bad Babysitter (2015)
20. Babymouse Goes for the Gold (2016)

Babymouse Tales From the Locker Series

These are also illustrated by Matthew Holm.

1. Lights, Camera, Middle School! (July 4, 2017)
2. Miss Communication (July 24, 2018)
3. School-Tripped (July 29, 2019)

Little Babymouse

This is a picture book, illustrated by Matthew Holm.

• Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes (October 24, 2016)

Squish Series

These graphic novels are also a team effort with Matthew Holm.

1. Squish: Super Ameoba (2011)
2. Squish: Brave New Pond (2011)
3. Squish: The Power Of The Parasite (2012)
4. Squish: Captain Disaster (2012)
5. Squish: Game On! (2013)
6. Squish: Fear the Amoeba (2014)
7. Squish: Deadly Disease of Doom (2015)
8. Squish: Pod vs. Pod (2016)

My First Comics

These books are illustrated by Matthew Holm.

• I'm Grumpy (2016)
• I'm Sunny (2016)
• I'm Silly (2017)
• I'm Scared (2017)
• I'm Cheese

Awards and Honors

Jennifer L. Holm has won many important awards for her writing.

• Newbery Honor Awards
  • 2000 for Our Only May Amelia
  • 2007 for Penny from Heaven
  • 2011 for Turtle in Paradise
• 2011 Golden Kite Award for Turtle in Paradise
• 2013 Eisner Award for Best Publication for Early Readers for Babymouse for President
• 2014 California Book Awards Gold Medal Juvenile winner for The Fourteenth Goldfish
• 2015 E. B. White Read Aloud Award for The Fourteenth Goldfish