Peter Lerangis facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Peter Lerangis
Peter Lerangis
Born	1955 (age 69–70) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Author
Nationality	American
Education	Harvard University (BA)
Notable works	Seven Wonders series, 39 clues series
Spouse	Tina deVaron

Peter Duncan Lerangis, born in 1955 in Brooklyn, New York, is a popular American author. He writes exciting books for kids and young adults. He is famous for his Seven Wonders series and his contributions to The 39 Clues series.

About Peter Lerangis

Early Life and Education

Peter Lerangis grew up in Freeport, New York, on Long Island. His father worked for the telephone company, and his mother was a school secretary.

He went to Harvard University and studied biochemistry. While in college, he loved acting in musicals. He also sang and directed an a cappella group called the Harvard Krokodiloes. It's interesting to know that he was classmates with Bill Gates for a while before Bill Gates left college to start Microsoft.

After graduating, Peter moved to New York City. For eight years, he worked as an actor and a freelance editor. Then, he became a full-time author.

His Amazing Books

Peter Lerangis has written many popular books for young readers. His Seven Wonders series is very famous. All five books in this series became bestsellers on The New York Times Best Seller list.

He also wrote two books in The 39 Clues series: The Sword Thief and The Viper's Nest. These books are also New York Times bestsellers. He also wrote part of Vespers Rising, which introduced a new series called Cahills Vs. Vespers. Peter wrote the third book in that series, The Dead of the Night.

Some of his other books include the historical novel Smiler's Bones. He also wrote Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am with Harry Mazer. Peter has written several book series like Drama Club, Spy X, Watchers, and Abracadabra. He even wrote two adventure books called Antarctica.

Ghostwriting and Movie Books

Peter Lerangis has also written books for other popular series without his name on them. This is called ghostwriting. He wrote for series like Three Investigators, Hardy Boys Casefiles, Sweet Valley Twins, and over forty books for The Baby-sitters Club series.

He has also turned movie scripts into novels. Some of these include books based on The Sixth Sense, Sleepy Hollow, and Beauty and the Beast. He also wrote five novels based on video games for the Worlds of Power series. Sometimes, he used the name A. L. Singer for his ghostwriting work.

Special Events and Travels

In 2003, Peter Lerangis had a special trip. The First Lady of the United States at the time, Laura Bush, chose him to go with her to the first Russian Book Festival in Moscow. Other famous children's authors, R. L. Stine (who wrote Goosebumps) and Marc Brown (who created the Arthur the Aardvark series), also joined them.

Also in 2003, a publisher in the United Kingdom asked Peter to write a book called X-Isle. This book helped restart the Point Horror series there. He wrote a sequel, Return to X-Isle, in 2004.

In 2016, Peter Lerangis traveled to Patan Dhoka, Nepal. He was a special guest speaker at the first children's literature festival ever held in Nepal.

Family Life

Peter Lerangis lives in New York City with his wife, Tina deVaron, who is a musician. They have two grown children named Nick and Joe.

Awards and Recognition

Peter Lerangis has received several awards for his books:

• Last Stop, the first book in his Watchers series, was named a 1999 Best Book for Reluctant Readers by the American Library Association.
• War, another book in the Watchers series, was chosen as a 2000 Children's Choice book by the International Reading Association and the Children's Book Council.
• His 2006 historical novel Smiler's Bones was selected by the Junior Library Guild. It was also named among the Best Books for Teens in 2006 by the New York Public Library and the Best Books of 2006 by Bank Street.
• Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am won the 2013 Schneider Family Book Award from the American Library Association. This award honors books that show the experience of disability for young readers. It was also on the ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults list that year.
• All the books in his Seven Wonders series have been chosen as Junior Library Guild selections.