SOURCE CITATION
"Pam Muñoz Ryan." Authors and Artists for Young Adults, Volume 47. Gale Group, 2003. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Thomson Gale. 2007.
Photograph provided by Scholastic Inc.

BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
An award-winning author of picture books, Pam Muñoz Ryan blends colorful rhyme as well as concise texts in her books that deal with concepts, such as One Hundred Is a Family and The Crayon Counting Book, with natural history in A Pinky Is a Baby Mouse, Armadillos Sleep in Dugouts, and Hello, Ocean, with culture and history in California, Here We Come!, The Flag We Love, and Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, and with family matters in Mice and Beans and Mud Is a Cake. Ryan has also penned two juvenile novels, Riding Freedom and Esperanza Rising, which feature strong female protagonists confronting life on their own terms. "I have written books for adults, picture books for children, and recently I completed my first novel for older students," Ryan noted on the Scholastic Authors Online Web site. "Maybe it's the teacher in me, but I want to make sure children everywhere are excited about reading, so I visit schools and go to conferences to speak about reading and literacy. I want kids to be hooked on reading and books, like I was."

"I was born and raised in California's San Joaquin Valley," Ryan noted in an autobiographical sketch for the Scholastic Web site. "I grew up with aunts, uncles and grandparents nearby and consider myself truly American because my heritage is part Spanish, Mexican, Basque, Italian, and Oklahoman. My grandparents on my mother's side came to the U.S. from Mexico in the 1930s." Ryan grew up in a large extended family, as she also remarked in her sketch. "I am the oldest of three sisters and the oldest of twenty-three cousins on my mother's side, so many of my childhood memories revolve around big, noisy family gatherings."

A strong influence on the young Ryan was her maternal grandmother, Esperanza Ortega. "I can still see my grandmother crocheting blankets in zigzag rows," Ryan wrote in the author's note to her year 2000 novel, Esperanza Rising. "She made one for each of her seven children, many for her twenty-three grandchildren . . . and for the great-grandchildren she lived to see." Ryan's grandmother would tell her stories of what it was like to come as a young girl to the United States in 1930s from Mexico, leaving her old life of wealth and grandeur for the harsh realities of life in a labor camp. It was in that same labor camp where Ryan's own mother was born.

Equally, Ryan's childhood memories revolve around books and reading. "Growing up, I spent many long, hot valley summers riding my bike to the library. The library became my favorite hangout because my family didn't have a swimming pool and the library was air-conditioned. That's how I got hooked on reading and books." In an interview with Scholastic's Authors Online, Ryan further commented, "I always loved books. I didn't know when I was a young child that I could be an author, because when I went to school we didn't do the great writing activities kids do in school today. I never had an author visit my school, so I didn't know it was something I could be when I grew up."

Ryan did the next best thing to writing after she graduated from college: she went into teaching to share her joy of reading. After teaching for some time and having four children and then returning to the university for a master's degree and working for some time in school administration, Ryan finally hit on her real career. "A friend encouraged me to write a book myself, and that's when I discovered what I really wanted to do with my life. Today, I am a full-time writer and I still spend a lot of time at the library. When I start a new book, if it is nonfiction or historical fiction, the first thing I do is go to the library for research."

A Beginning with Picture Books
Not surprisingly, when Ryan turned her hand to creating children's books she used families as an inspiration. One Hundred Is a Family is a concept book that introduces the numbers from one to ten by groups making up many different families. Ryan then extends this concept to count by tens to one hundred, still employing the family grouping in a celebration of its ever-widening circles of community, relationship, and friendship. Reviewing this debut title in Publishers Weekly, a contributor noted that the "politically correct concept" at the heart of the book was that family was not just about parents and children, but that "every one on earth" can be a family "caring for the fragile universe." The same critic felt that One Hundred Is a Family "rates high on jolliness if low on subtlety." Annie Ayres, writing in Booklist, however found the book "comforting," because it "presents and embraces a world in which every form of family is welcome," both traditional and nontraditional." Ryan has noted that this first picture book is still her favorite. As she commented in her interview for Authors Online, "it talks about diverse families, not just Mom, Dad, and two and a half kids and a dog families."

A different sort of inspiration fueled her next picture book, The Flag We Love. One Memorial Day weekend she saw a flag being used to cover some cases of beer in a local grocery store. This misuse offended her and a letter to the storeowner was not enough. She discovered that there were no picture books dealing with the flag to share with her own young children, so she decided to write one herself. "Sometimes for a writer," Ryan noted on Authors Online, "the best inspiration of all is to realize that you might have an idea for a story that no one has done before." In the resulting book, Ryan blended patriotic verse with the artwork of Ralph Masiello to present a lyrical journey through the history of the Stars and Stripes. Ryan chose both momentous and everyday moments to commemorate this symbol of our nation, from the flying of the flag at Lincoln's funeral to the initial moon landing. "There's no hint of controversy here," wrote Booklist's Carolyn Phelan, "just a bit of flag waving to celebrate the history of the Stars and Stripes." A reviewer for Publishers Weekly felt that the book should "delight Yankee Doodle dandies everywhere, and could help spark discussion on the basic elements of democracy."

More counting is served up in The Crayon Counting Book, "a high-tech approach to a low-tech subject," according to a contributor for Publishers Weekly, in which computer-generated crayons are featured in a "surprisingly animated" counting book. Ryan presents a rhyming text that counts by twos, first with even numbers and then with odd numbers. Ryan noted on her author Web site that she "used as many synonyms for the word `two' as I could squeeze into the text." She also employed a hodgepodge of funny names for the crayons themselves, from iris to fiddlehead to jezabel. The Publishers Weekly contributor called this picture book "slight" but "colorful."

More picture books followed, including A Pinky Is a Baby Mouse and Armadillos Sleep in Dugouts, both with illustrations by Diane de Groat, and California, Here We Come!, with artwork by Kay Salem. A Pinky is a book that introduces children to the correct though little-known names of over a hundred newborn animals, and was inspired by the world famous San Diego Zoo, close to where Ryan lives. A member of the San Diego Zoological Society, the author once read in their monthly bulletin that a baby spiny anteater is actually called a puggle. "When I saw that one word a light bulb went off in my brain," wrote Ryan on her Web site. "It occurred to me that there must be other cute, legitimate baby animal names." Researching the topic, she came up with a list, not only from the San Diego Zoo, but also from the Bug Zoo in Los Angeles, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, and even the Adelaide Zoo in Australia. California, Here We Come!, on the other hand, was commissioned by her publishers. "I agreed enthusiastically, because the more I traveled, the more I realized that many people have peculiar misconceptions about California," Ryan noted on her author Web site. Researching this title, she came up with a plethora of little known facts about her native state, which she integrated into a picture book for older readers. During the research for this book she hit on a topic that would inspire her first novel for younger readers.

Of Novels and Picture Books
Riding Freedom is a historical novel that features Charlotte Parkhurst, a woman who lived her life disguised as a man and ultimately became a stagecoach driver in California. Dubbed One-Eyed Charley in real life, Parkhurst found that being considered a man made life easier for her in the mid-nineteenth century West. Ryan first saw this material as a nonfiction picture book, but her editor at Scholastic thought the novel format would be better suited to the story. "Just relying on the facts alone, I couldn't have asked for a better `bare bones' outline," Ryan noted on her Web site. "An orphan runs away and in order to survive, poses as a stable boy only to become a renowned stagecoach driver! She then is recruited to California during the Gold Rush, and even after losing the sight in one eye, continues driving stages successfully and still posed as a man, goes on to vote in a federal election fifty-two years before any woman." Ryan filled in some of the empty spaces in the life of Parkhurst, supplying how she might have become an orphan and the vile situation at the orphanage that forced her to run away at age twelve. Another fictionalized element is the friend who helped train her to drive stages. The resulting book was praised by critics and lauded by awards committees. Booklist's Hazel Rochman dubbed the effort a "lively historical novel," and further noted that middle-schoolers "will love the horse adventures and the stories of [Parkhurst's] trickery," while a reviewer for Publishers Weekly commented, "With a pacing that moves along at a gallop, this is a skillful execution of a fascinating historical tale."

The exploits of another daring female are recounted in the picture book Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, a fictionalized account of the night that the aviatrix Amelia Earhart flew Eleanor Roosevelt over Washington, D.C., only to have the favor returned by the First Lady when she later drove Amelia around the city in her fast new car. Adapting freely from an actual episode in 1933, Ryan created a "sparkling picture book," according to a contributor for Publishers Weekly. "Ryan's inviting text adds drama and draws parallels between the two protagonists with fictional touches," the same reviewer added, concluding, "A brief but compelling slice from the lives of two determined, outspoken and passionate women." Booklist's Ilene Cooper has similar praise for the book, despite the fact that in reality Roosevelt and Earhart were accompanied by two male pilots on their flight, a fact Cooper felt that young readers might miss in Ryan's notes. However, Cooper concluded that both Ryan and her illustrator Brian Selznick "clearly did their research; and one of the book's chief attributes is its depiction, in both words and pictures, of two strong women--really pioneers."

Ryan returned to the novel for a book inspired by her grandmother's immigrant experiences. Esperanza Flying tells the story of young Esperanza Ortega who, at her home in Aguascaliente, Mexico, has all the luxury and pampering a rich girl could want. Servants and fancy dresses are the usual thing for her, until her father is murdered by bandits and his stepbrothers hold Esperanza's mother virtual hostage, demanding that she re-marry one of them. To let her know they are serious, they even burn down the family home. It is then that Esperanza's mother decides to flee to the United States with the cook and gardener in search of a new life. With daughter in tow, they move to California in the midst of the Great Depression only to join the hordes of others displaced during these years, working as field laborers and living in a labor camp. Esperanza, accustomed to being treated like a little princess, must adapt to these new and harsh conditions. "Set against he multiethnic, labor-organizing era of the Depression, the story of Esperanza remaking herself is satisfyingly complete," wrote Francisca Goldsmith in School Library Journal. Goldsmith further remarked that "this well-written novel belongs in all collections." Lynne T. Burke, reviewing the novel in Reading Today, had similar praise: "Written with an uncommon understanding of the plight of Mexican farm workers, this passionate novel gives a human face to an issue." A critic for Publishers Weekly lauded the "lyrical, fairy-tale style" of narration in this "robust novel." The same reviewer further felt that "Ryan poetically conveys Esperanza's ties to the land by crafting her story to the rhythms of the seasons." And though Booklist's Gillian Engberg sometimes had difficulty with the "heavy-handed" symbolism in the book, she felt that Ryan "writes movingly in clear, poetic language that children will sink into, and the book offers excellent opportunities for discussion." Among numerous awards and honors, Esperanza Rising secured for Ryan the Pura Belpre award, honoring Latino authors whose work portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in a children's book.

Other picture books from Ryan include Hello, Ocean, Mice and Beans, and Mud Is Cake. In the first title, Ryan describes in rhyming couplet a young girl's journey of discovery at the seashore through each of her five senses, while in Mice and Beans the author tells a more earthy cumulative tale of a Rosa Maria who takes a week to prepare for her granddaughter's birthday to be held in her little house. She sets traps all around for the mice that also call her house home, not wanting them to feast on the food meant for Little Catalina and her friends. Each evening she checks her traps, and each evening finds they have disappeared. Thinking she is merely forgetful, she sets more. Then the day of the party she forgets to fill the pinata with candy, or so she thinks. The children break it open and are showered in candy. Later Rosa Maria discovers that the mice have been at work, filling the pinata for her, and decides that a house full of mice is not so bad after all. "Kindheartedness lies at the cores of this story," noted a contributor for Kirkus Reviews. Booklist's Kelly Milner Halls also found the story "charming"; what was especially effective for Halls was "the quiet authenticity of the Hispanic characterizations." "A treat for young listeners," declared School Library Journal's Mary Elam. With Mud Is Cake, Ryan tells the tale of a brother and sister who discover that they can turn mud into cake by using their imaginations. In fact, anything is possible on a rainy day if you can pretend. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly found this tale "winsome," and its "gentle tone--and dream-inspiring potential--makes it a fine choice for lazy rainy days and bedtime."

Being a full-time writer is something that has both its advantages and disadvantages, as Ryan explained in her interview for Authors Online: "The part of my job that's different [from most] is that I don't go somewhere else every day and work with a bunch of other people who do the same thing I do. Teachers have a staff room, and office workers have an employee lounge, and something that I miss is not being able to talk to other people every day about my job. My job is pretty solitary most of the time. I mostly write in the mornings, and I'm usually pretty disciplined about research and writing, especially when I have a deadline! My job is like having one book report or term paper after another. But there are some fun parts of the job, too. I get to travel, and when I travel to conferences I get to meet other writers and illustrators. Sometimes I go to schools and get to speak with children in person. The best part of my job is that I get to work in my slippers."

PERSONAL INFORMATION
Born in Bakersfield, CA; daughter of Don Bell and Esperanza Muñoz; married; children: four. Addresses: Home: Leucadia, CA.; Agent: c/o Author Mail, Scholastic, Inc., 555 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

AWARDS
Early Childhood News Director's Choice Award, and National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)/Children's Book Council (CBC) Notable Children's Trade Book, both 1997, both for The Flag We Love; Children's Choice, International Reading Association (IRA)/CBC, 1997, for The Crayon Counting Book; Pick of the List, American Bookseller, Bank Street Best Books of 1998, and IRA/CBC Children's Choice, all for A Pinky Is a Baby Mouse; Reading Magic Award, Parenting, Most Outstanding Books, 1998, Teachers Choice Award, National Willa Cather Award for Best Young Adult Novel, and Southern California Center for Literature for Young People Award of Merit, all 1999, and California Young Reader Medal, and Arizona Young Reader's Award, both 2000, all for Riding Freedom; Pick of the List, American Bookseller, Best Children's Book list, New York Public Library, Reading Magic Award, Parenting Magazine, ALA Notable Book, and IRA Teacher's Choice Award, all 1999, and Oppenheim Platinum Award, Best Book of the Year list, Los Angeles Times, and Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People, all 2000, all for Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride; Best Book list, Los Angeles Times, Best Books, Smithsonian, and Best Children's Books, Publishers Weekly, all 2000, and Jane Addams Children's Book Award, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Excellence in a Work of Fiction Award, Children's Literature Council of Southern California, Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults, ALA, Judy Goddard/Libraries Limited Arizona Young Adult Author Award, and Pura Belpre Award, all 2001, all for Esperanza Rising.

CAREER
Children's book author. Formerly worked as a teacher and administrator.