Kathy Brodsky facts for kids
Kathy Brodsky (born January 8, 1945) is an American author and poet. She has written many books, mostly for children. Her books often share important messages about life. Kathy has also worked as a writer-in-residence at schools in New Hampshire.
She helps the Children's Literacy Foundation and speaks at events across New England. Her books are found in over 100 libraries worldwide. Some of Kathy's books are even available in Braille for readers who are blind. One of her books has also been translated into Spanish.
Kathy Brodsky's books have won many awards. These include honors from the Green Book Festival and Creative Child Magazine. She was also chosen for a top 10 list by the International Literacy Association and Children's Book Council. This list is special because 12,500 school children vote for their favorite new books each year!
Her books have been featured in well-known publications like Publishers Weekly and The Huffington Post.
Kathy Brodsky is also a psychotherapist. This means she helps people with their thoughts and feelings. She has shared her knowledge as a therapist in newspapers like The Wall Street Journal.
Contents
Helping People: Kathy's Therapy Work
Before becoming a writer, Kathy Brodsky worked to help people. She studied at Simmons College to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She helped young people and adults at different places. This included a youth center and a mental health clinic.
Later, she helped families with children who had special needs in Manchester, New Hampshire. In 1987, she started her own private therapy practice. She still helps people today. Her work as a therapist has greatly influenced her writing.
Kathy's Writing Journey
Kathy Brodsky started her writing career with a poetry book for adults. It was called Moments in our Lives. This book shared her experiences as a woman and a therapist. It talked about joys, strengths, and dealing with tough times.
Children's Stories
After her poetry book, Kathy started writing for kids. Her children's books are all written in fun rhyming verse. They aim to entertain children while also teaching important social messages. These messages help kids with issues they face in their lives.
The Laconia Daily Sun said her books have "lovable characters and lively adventures." Each book ends with questions to make kids think and activities to do. While each story has a main character, characters from her other books often pop up!
Kathy loves animals and nature. So, her stories feature characters like dogs, cats, pigs, horses, and even a talking tree. All her books have discussion questions at the end. This helps teachers and parents talk about important topics. These topics include peer pressure, healthy eating, and self-confidence.
Because she is a therapist, Kathy's books always have positive messages. They teach kids to be true to themselves. They also teach about accepting others who are different. Her books show the advantages of unusual friendships and how to handle change.
Inspiration for Kathy's Books
Kathy says her many years as a therapist helped her writing. She heard many stories from her clients. These stories showed her how brave and strong people can be. She saw how people overcome difficulties.
Kathy believes her books for children share messages from her therapy work. These include ideas about differences, friendship, loyalty, and helping others. She wants kids to know that everyone can contribute, even if they are different.
She also wants her books to help kids grow stronger through difficult times. Kathy's books also teach about safety and kindness. She thinks these are very important for children to learn early on.
My Bent Tree
Kathy's first children's story, My Bent Tree, was inspired by a walk. She saw a crooked pine tree that had been hit by lightning. This reminded her of her own childhood experience with polio. It also reminded her of her clients who bravely faced challenges. The story shows how early experiences can shape us. It also shows how they can help us grow stronger.
In 2018, a special 10th anniversary edition of My Bent Tree was published. It was a bilingual Spanish/English version called Mi Árbol Doblado / My Bent Tree.
My Bent Tree teaches about embracing differences and overcoming hardships. It also talks about environmentalism. The book won an award at the Green Book Festival. This festival honors books that help us understand and protect the environment. The Girl Scouts magazine The Studio even featured the book. They gave it a Brownie Badge for promoting self-esteem.
The Perkins School for the Blind made My Bent Tree into a talking book and a Braille version. This helps students who are blind or visually impaired enjoy the story. Kathy works with artist Cameron Bennett, who creates beautiful acrylic paint illustrations for her books.
The Inside Story
Kathy's third book, The Inside Story, came from a friend's comment. Her friend said some letters would be "very happy" to be mailed. This made Kathy imagine happy letters excited for their journey! The story is about what happens when you write and mail a letter. It's told from the envelope's point of view.
This book also talks about change. Kathy explains that change can be hard for everyone, especially kids. The book helps children understand and cope with changes in school, family, or neighborhoods. It also discusses recycling. The book won an award from the Green Book Festival for its message about recycling.
Just Sniffing Around
Her fourth book, Just Sniffing Around, was dedicated to her French mastiff dog, Cali. The book opens with a picture of Cali. The illustrations in the book are even modeled after Cali. Just Sniffing Around is about a curious dog and the fun challenges of raising him. The questions in the book talk about being a responsible pet owner. They also highlight the special bond between dogs and their human families.
Purrsnikkity
Because Just Sniffing Around was so popular, people asked for a book for cat lovers! So, Kathy wrote Purrsnikkity. She even held a contest to find a cat to be the main character. Children were asked to donate money to a local rescue shelter when they submitted pictures of their cats. The winning cat became the model for the book's illustrations.
Midwest Book Review said Purrsnikkity captures the spirit of a cat and its relationship with its family. Kathy said the book's messages are about family and being tolerant. She noted how important it is to look beyond first impressions.
The Winner Is...
After her dog and cat books, Kathy wrote The Winner Is.... This story combines both! A bored dog reads about a contest for a cat to be a book star. The dog gets jealous and decides to pretend to be a cat to win. This book helps kids understand that it's okay not to always be first place. It teaches them to be happy with who they are and their own talents.
Kathy held another contest to find a floppy-eared dog for this book. Over 100 dog photos were sent in! The winning dog was a bloodhound named Gabriel. Publishers Weekly praised the book's humor and illustrations. The Winner Is... also won an award for helping with "Character Building."
Stover
Kathy decided to make a pig the main character of his own book. She thought a pig would be a great role model! She said, "Stover would be a great role model for kids. He's a pig who knows how to be fit and eat healthy foods."
Her sixth children's book, Stover, is about a pig from The Winner Is.... The story focuses on Stover's healthy lifestyle. This includes eating well and exercising. The book won an award for "Health and Fitness Storybook." The Children's Book Council also featured it for promoting wellness goals. Reviewers praised the book's poetry and its focus on exercise and healthy eating.
A Horse Named Special
Kathy wrote A Horse Named Special after her popular dog and cat books. She held a contest to find a model horse for the illustrations. Money from the contest went to horse rescue groups. The story is about a racehorse who gets hurt. He then becomes a therapy horse and helps change others' lives. This book shows how special the relationship between a rider and a horse can be. It can help people with physical or emotional challenges. The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation recommended this book for its message about therapy horses.
A CatFish Tale
Kathy's 2013 book, A CatFish Tale, is about a cat asked to care for some tasty-looking fish. The story teaches about being responsible for a pet. It also teaches the importance of making good choices. One reviewer said it shows "how hard it is to have self-control sometimes."
A CatFish Tale has won several awards, including Picture Book of the Year. It was also chosen by over 12,000 children as one of their top 10 favorite books! Experts praised the book for helping kids understand responsibility and kindness. A professor of psychology said it helps "nurture positive social skills." The Huffington Post called it a "funny book about unusual friendships."
In 2017, A CatFish Tale was translated into Spanish. It is called El Cuento de Don Gato Pez. This was Kathy's first book translated into Spanish!
High Wire Act
Kathy's 2016 book, High Wire Act, tells the story of a traffic light. The traffic light gets blown down by strong wind. It then realizes how important it is when traffic stops without it. High Wire Act was named Book of the Year in the life skills category.
Two Arms, Two Legs, Two Feet
Brodsky’s 2018 board book, Two Arms, Two Legs, Two Feet, follows a newborn baby. The baby is trying to find their family and figure out "Who am I?" and "Where do I belong?" In 2020, a version with a Black baby as the main character was published to support the Black Lives Matter movement.
Stover Goes to Camp
Brodsky’s 2019 book, Stover Goes to Camp, is about Stover the pig going to summer camp for the first time. Stover goes to Camp Welcome, a very diverse camp where all campers are different animals. Stover experiences many new things, including feeling homesickness. The book includes questions about what it’s like for kids to leave home for the first time.
How Talula Turned Her Day Around
Brodsky’s 2021 book, How Talula Turned Her Day Around, tells the story of Talula the turtle. Talula doesn’t like wearing her mask during the Covid pandemic. She is sad because she can’t go to school and misses her friends. Her mom helps Talula find ways to cope with feeling lonely. Talula learns to look forward to seeing her friends again, even with masks. Discussion questions relate to how kids felt during the pandemic. A coloring and activity book was also released with this story.
Stover Learns to Swim
Brodsky’s 2022 book, Stover Learns to Swim, is her third book about Stover the pig. The book follows Stover as he takes swimming lessons for the first time. When he was younger, Stover was afraid to swim. Now he’s older, and his friends know how to swim, so he feels ready to learn. The book shows Stover’s journey from fear to feeling safe and swimming. By the end, Stover is ready to swim with friends. Discussion questions relate to kids' feelings about swimming and trying new activities they were once scared of. A coloring and activity book was also released.
Kathy's Advice to Parents
Kathy Brodsky shared some great advice for parents in an interview: "Encourage your kids to read, read, read! Then when they're older, they'll have tons of images and stories in their heads. When they're asked to write something, they can 'reach inside' and pull out something in their imagination. That's what happened to me. Writing is whatever you make it, and it's yours. It can be so much fun!"
Public Appearances
Media
Kathy Brodsky has appeared on many radio shows and podcasts. She reads her books and talks about how she writes and what inspires her. She has been interviewed on shows like "City Wide Blackout" and "Marie Hulett's Pet Place." She also discussed writing on "Broadminded" on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. Kathy has recorded her books for podcasts like Storycast and Writer's Voices. In 2017, A CatFish Tale was even featured on the Story Time Pup's YouTube channel.
Presentations
Kathy often speaks at conferences and public events. She was a main speaker at the Child Health Services' annual breakfast. In 2012, she was the keynote speaker for New Hampshire Public Television's PBS Go! Writer's Contest, which helps children with their writing.
In 2008, she spoke at Girls, Inc., where she talked about her writing process. Since 2011, Kathy has spoken at the Children's Authors Tea several times. This event helps promote reading for families. She also regularly visits libraries across New England to discuss her books.
Schools
Kathy Brodsky has visited many schools in New England. She shares stories and works as a writer-in-residence. In 2015, she gave free books to schoolchildren at her readings through a special grant. She visited schools like Freedom Elementary School and Valley View Community School. She was also a writer-in-residence at Pierce Elementary School and Harold Martin School. She has even visited events for home-schooled students.
Helping Others: Charitable Activities
Kathy Brodsky uses her writing to help animal welfare services. When she wrote Purrsnikitty, she held a contest to find a cat for the book. Children donated money to local rescue shelters when they sent in cat pictures. This raised almost $700!
This success led her to run a second contest for The Winner is..., which raised over $2,000 for dog and cat shelters. She did a similar contest for A Horse Named Special, with donations going to horse rescue groups. She also supports New Hampshire Humanities.
About Kathy
Kathy Brodsky went to Marietta College and then received her Masters of Social Work (MSW) from Simmons College. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with her own practice. She is a member of several groups that support authors and literacy.
Books
- Moments in Our Lives. 2004. ISBN: 978-0972580861
- Moments in Our Lives (Audio CD). 2005. ISBN: 978-0977189441
- My Bent Tree. 2007. ISBN: 978-0615160665
- The Inside Story. 2009. ISBN: 978-0615235059
- Just Sniffing Around. 2009. ISBN: 978-0578036205
- The Winner is.... 2010. ISBN: 978-0982852903
- Purrsnikitty. 2011. ISBN: 978-0578050591
- A Horse Named Special. 2011. ISBN: 978-0982852927
- Stover. 2011. ISBN: 978-0982852910
- A CatFish Tale. 2012. ISBN: 978-0982852934
- High Wire Act. 2015. ISBN: 978-0982852965
- El Cuento de Don Gato Pez (Spanish translation of A CatFish Tale). 2016. ISBN: 978-0982852972
