Jeanne Willis

Jeanne Willis
Born	(1959-11-05) 5 November 1959 (age 65) St Albans, England
Notable works	The Monster Bed (1986) Dr. Xargle series (1988–2004)
Spouse	Ian James Wilcock (m. 1989)
Children	2

Jeanne Willis (born 5 November 1959) ^[1] is an English author of several children's books, including The Monster Bed (1986) and the Dr. Xargle's Book of... series (1988–2004). Willis was also a contributor to the authorised Winnie-the-Pooh sequel, The Best Bear in All the World. ^[2]

Biography

Willis was born 5 November 1959, in St Albans, England to David Alfred and Dorothy Hilda Celia Willis, both of whom were teachers. ^[1] She attended Watford College of Art, where she received a diploma in advertising writing in 1979. ^[1] She married Ian James Wilcock on 26 May 1989, and the couple has two children. ^[1]

As both a child and adult, Willis has had an active imagination, which has sometimes resulted in psychic distress. For instance, she remembers a time as a child when she would believe "wolves were following [her] home from school, so [she'd] arrive back sweating". As an adult, she ended up in Cromwell Hospital's psychiatric ward while she was working in a creative position at an advertising agency. ^[3] After her hospitalization, she began writing full-time. ^[3]

Awards and honours

In January 2004, The Guardian named Willis their Author of the Month. ^[3] In October 2011, they included Willis's Big Bad Bun on their list of recommended reading for children aged 5–7. ^[4]

Awards for Willis's writing

Year	Title	Award	Result	Ref.
1995	The Rascally Cake	Red House Children's Book Award for Picture Book	Winner	[ citation needed ]
2003	Naked Without a Hat	Whitbread Award for Children's Book	Shortlist	[3]
2003	Tadpole's Promise	Nestlé Smarties Book Prize (0–5 years)	Silver	[3] [5]
2006	Tadpole's Promise	"Off the Cuff" Award for Best Plot Twist	Winner	[6]
2007	Who's In The Loo?	Red House Children's Book Award for Younger Children	Winner	[ citation needed ]
2007	Grill Pan Eddy	Booktrust Early Years Award for Pre-School Book	Shortlist	[ citation needed ]
2008	The Bog Baby	Booktrust Early Years Award for Pre-School Book	Winner	[7]
2008	There's An Ouch in My Pouch!	Booktrust Early Years Award for Pre-School Book	Shortlist	[ citation needed ]
2010	Bottoms Up!	Red House Children's Book Award for Younger Children	Winner	[ citation needed ]

Publications

Standalone books

• The Tale of Georgie Grub, Andersen Press, 1981, Holt, 1982.
• The Tale of Fearsome Fritz, Andersen Press, 1982, Holt, 1983.
• The Tale of Mucky Mabel, Andersen Press, 1984.
• The Monster Bed, illus. by Susan Varley, Andersen Press, 1986, Lothrop, 1987.
• The Long Blue Blazer, illus. by Susan Varley, Andersen Press, 1987, Dutton, 1988.
• Toffee Pockets, illus. by George Buchanan, Bodley Head, 1992.
• In Search of the Hidden Giant, illus. by Ruth Brown, Andersen Press, 1993,
  • Republished as In Search of the Giant, Dutton, 1994.
• The Lion's Roar, illus. by Derek Collin, Ginn, 1994.
• The Rascally Cake, illus. by Paul Korky, Andersen Press, 1994.
• Two Sea Songs, Ginn, 1994.
• Tom's Lady of the Lamp, illus. by Amy Burch, Macdonald Young, 1995.
• The Princess and the Parlour Maid, illus. by Pauline Hazelwood, Macdonald Young, 1995.
• Wilbur and Orville Take Off, illus. by Roger Wade Walker, Macdonald Young, 1995.
• Dolly Dot, Ginn, 1995.
• Flower Pots and Forget-Me-Nots, Ginn, 1995.
• The Pet Person, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 1996, Dial, 1996.
• The Pink Hare, illus. by Ken Brown, Andersen Press, 1996.
• What Do You Want to Be, Brian, illus. by Mary Rees, Andersen Press, 1996.
• Sloth's Shoes, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 1997, Kane/Miller (Brooklyn, NY), 1998.
• The Wind in the Wallows, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 1998.
• The Boy Who Lost His Belly Button, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 1999, Dorling Kindersley, 2000.
• Susan Laughs, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 1999, Henry, 2000.
• Tinkerbill, illus. by Paul Cox, Collins Publishers, 1999.
• Parrot Goes to Playschool, illus. by Mark Birchall, Andersen Press, 2000, published as Be Quiet, Parrot, Carolrhoda, 2000.
• What Did I Look Like When I Was a Baby, illus. by Tony Ross, Putnam Press, 2000.
• Take Turns, Penguin, illus. by Mark Birchall, Carolrhoda, 2000.
• Be Gentle, Python, illus. by Mark Birchall, Carolrhoda, 2001.
• No Biting, Panther, illus. by Mark Birchall, Carolrhoda, 2001.
• No Biting, Puma, illus. by Mark Birchall, Carolrhoda, 2001.
• Do Little Mermaids Wet Their Beds, illus. by Penelope Jossen, Albert Whitman, 2001.
• Don't Let Go, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 2002, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2003.
• The Truth or Something, Henry Holt & Co., 2002, originally published in England as The Hard Man of the Swings.
• The Boy Who Thought He Was a Teddy Bear: A Fairy Tale, illus. by Susan Varley, Peachtree, 2002.
• I Want to Be a Cowgirl, illus. by Tony Ross, Henry Holt & Co., 2002.
• Sleepover!: The Best Ever Party Kit, illus. by Lydia Monks, Candlewick Press, 2002.
• Rocket Science, Faber & Faber, 2002.
• Naked without a Hat, Faber & Faber, 2003, Delacorte
• When Stephanie Smiled, illus. by Penelope Jossen, Andersen Press, 2003.
• Adventures of Jimmy Scar, Andersen Press, 2003.
• New Shoes, Andersen Press, 2003.
• The Beast of Crowsfoot Cottage, Macmillan Children's Books, 2003.
• I Hate School, illus. by Tony Ross, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2004.
• Shhh, illus. by Tony Ross, Hyperion Books for Children, 2004.
• The Magic Potty Show with Trubble and Trixie, illus. by Edward Eaves, Pan MacMillan, 2004.
• Bits, Boobs and Blobs, illus. by Lydia Monks, Walker Books, 2004.
• Snogs, Sex and Soulmates, illus. by Lydia Monks, Walker Books, 2004.
• Zitz, Glitz and Body Blitz, illus. by Lydia Monks, Walker Books, 2004.
• Manky Monkey, illustrated by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 2004.
• Operation Itchy, illus. by Penny Dann, Candlewick Press, 2005.
• Secret Fairy Talent Show, illus. by Penny Dann, Orchard Books, 2005.
• Misery Moo, illus. by Tony Ross, Henry Holt & Co., 2005.
• Tadpole's Promise , illus. by Tony Ross, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2005.
• Never Too Little to Love, illus. by Jan Fearnley, Candlewick Press, 2005.
• Dumb Creatures, illus. by Nicola Slater, Macmillan Children's Books, 2005.
• Daft Bat, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 2006.
• Gorilla! Gorilla, illus. by Tony Ross, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2006.
• Really Rude Rhino, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 2006.
• Dozy Mare, Andersen Press, 2006.
• Mayfly Day, Andersen Press, 2006.
• Rat Heaven, Macmillan Children's Books, 2006.
• Grill Pan Eddy, illus. by Tony Ross, Andersen Press, 2007.
• Who's in the Bathroom, illus. by Adrian Reynolds, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2007.
• Delilah D. at the Library, illus. by Rosie Reeve, Clarion Books, 2007.
• Killer Gorilla, Andersen Press, 2007.
• Blue Monster Wants It All, illus. by Jenni Desmond, Little Tiger, 2018. ^[8]
• The Monster Storm, illus. by Susan Varley, Andersen Press, Lothrop, 1995.

"Crazy Jobs" series

The "Crazy Jobs" books are illustrated by Paul Korky and published by Orchard Books.

• Annie the Gorilla Nanny, 2005.
• Gabby the Vampire Cabby, 2005.
• Jeff, the Witch's Chef, 2005.
• Lillibet, the Monster Vet, 2005.
• Norman the Demon Doorman, 2005.
• Vanessa, the Werewolf Hairdresser, 2005.
• Bert the Fairies' Fashion Expert, 2005.
• Iddy Bogey the Ogre Yogi, 2005.

Dr. Xargle series

Main article: Dr. Xargle

The Dr. Xargle books are illustrated by Tony Ross. They were published by Anderson in England and E. P. Dutton in the United States.

• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earthlets, 1988 (England)
  • Republished as Earthlets, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1989 (USA)
• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earth Hounds, Translated into Human, 1989 (England)
  • Republished as Earth Hounds, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1990 (USA)
• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earth Tiggers, Translated into Human, 1990 (England)
  • Republished as Earth Tigerlets, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1991 (USA)
• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earth Mobiles, Translated into Human, 1991 (England)
  • Republished as Earth Mobiles, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1992 (USA)
• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earth Weather, Translated into Human, 1992 (England)
  • Republished as Earth Weather, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1993 (USA)
• Dr. Xargle's Book of Earth Relations, 1993 (England)
  • Republished as Relativity, as Explained by Professor Xargle, 1994 (USA)

References

1. "Willis, Jeanne 1959–". Encyclopedia.com . Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
2. "Winnie-the-Pooh sequel details revealed". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
3. Rabinovitch, Dina (7 January 2004). "Author of the month: Jeanne Willis". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
4. Eccleshare, Julia (21 October 2011). "Recommended reads: ages 5–7". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
5. Pauli, Michelle (3 December 2003). "Debut wins Smarties gold medal". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 8 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
6. "The 2005 Cuffies". Publishers Weekly . 13 January 2006. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
7. Flood, Alison (24 September 2008). "Bog Baby brings Willis another award". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on 21 October 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
8. Tolkien, Tom. "Reception Reading List". School Reading List. School Reading List. Retrieved 24 April 2025.

External links

• Children's literature portal

• Author's Website
• Author Profile
• Jeanne Willis at Andersen Press