Children's author Tony Abbott was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1952. Bookswere an important part of his childhood. His mother was an elementary schoolteacher and his father was a returning World War II paratrooper who wouldlater earn his Ph.D. in American history at Georgetown University. Readingabout events in history fed the imaginations of Tony and his older brotherRick, and they played what they read with their friends in the neighborhoodsurrounding Cliffview Road in Cleveland.
The Abbott family relocated to Fairfield, Ct., in 1961, when Dr. Abbottsecured a position as a professor of American history at FairfieldUniversity in Fairfield, Ct. There Tony completed his early education andwas graduated from public high school in 1970. Tony attended the Universityof Connecticut in Storrs first as a music major, later switching topsychology, and finally graduating as an English major in 1974.
After traveling in Europe and working at a series of bookstores andlibraries, Tony was hired by an information services publisher in 1979. Tonymet his future wife, Dolores, while working at a university library. Theywere married in 1981. By the time he became a full-time children's writer in1996, Tony had risen to the rank of executive vice president in what hadbecome one of the first internet publishing companies.
But on the side, Tony had always been a writer. Early in the morning, lateinto the night, he always had a need to put words on paper. Poetry and dramawere his focus until the birth of his first daughter. Like many new fathers,he read volumes to his newborn and as he did, his ideas for children'spicture books began to form. Although one manuscript came close, it nevermade it to publication. As his daughter's reading level matured, so didTony's ideas for stories. In 1992 he began working on an adventure storyinspired by an ad seeking ghost writers for Hardy Boys novels. Luckily forthe aspiring novelist, help was at hand.
That year, Tony took a series of writing classes from Connecticut author,Patricia Reilly Giff. Under the guidance of this accomplished writer andteacher, who would later earn a Newbery Honor for her novel, Lily'sCrossing, Tony developed his first complete manuscript. Danger Guys was published in 1994 by HarperCollins Children's Books, and Tony's publishing career was up and running.
Six installments of the "Danger Guys" series were followed by other series:"Time Surfers", "The Weird Zone", "Don't Touch that Remote!", and "The Secrets ofDroon". His books have been translated into Spanish, Italian, Russian, andKorean.
Tony and his family live in Trumbull, Ct., where he is an active member ofhis community. He is director of education at his church, where he writesand directs the annual Christmas pageant. He is a member of the ConnecticutReading Council, Read to Grow, the Connecticut Press Club, and the Societyof Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. He enjoys visiting schools andspeaking at professional conferences.
Tony believes that a love of reading leads to a rich, fulfilling life andthat reading helps children develop inner resources upon which they can drawin times of stress. He believes that humor and integrity are key componentsof happiness, and that by reading we all can gain insight into how we canpersonally achieve these in our own lives.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
