SOURCE CITATION
"Bruce Coville." Major Authors and Illustrators for Children and Young Adults, 2nd ed., 8 vols. Gale Group, 2002. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Thomson Gale. 2007.
Photograph provided by Simon and Schuster.

BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
Bruce Coville is well known as a writer of juvenile fiction and the author of children's best-sellers such as Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher and Jennifer Murdley's Toad. His novels draw heavily on mythic creatures, such as unicorns and dragons, and science fiction traditions, such as aliens and space stations, often with a humorous twist. Coville has also contributed to and edited volumes of short stories, and completed several musical plays for younger audiences.

Memories of his own childhood remain among Coville's most cherished possessions. The author once noted that his early surroundings nurtured his vivid imagination: "I was raised in Phoenix, a small town in central New York. Actually, I lived well outside the town, around the corner from my grandparents' dairy farm, which was the site of my happiest childhood times. I still have fond memories of the huge barns with their mows and lofts, mysterious relics, and jostling cattle. It was a wonderful place for a child to grow up. In addition to the farm there was a swamp behind the house, and a rambling wood beyond that, both of which were conducive to all kinds of imaginative games." It was during this period that Coville began to develop the heightened sensibility usually possessed by writers of fantasy.

Coville's father, not bookish himself, was instrumental in exposing the young Bruce to the delightful world of literature. Coville recounted: "Despite this wonderful setting, much of what went on at that time went on in my head, when I was reading, or thinking and dreaming about what I had read. I was an absolute bookaholic. My father had something to do with this." Coville went on to explain: "He was a traveling salesman, a gruff but loving man, who never displayed an overwhelming interest in books. But if anyone was to ask me what was the best thing he ever did for me I could reply without hesitation that he read me Tom Swift in the City of Gold. Why he happened to read this to me I was never quite certain. But it changed my life. One night after supper he took me into the living room, had me sit in his lap, and opened a thick, ugly brown book (this was the original Tom Swift) and proceeded to open a whole new world for me. I was enthralled, listened raptly, waited anxiously for the next night and the next, resented an intrusion, and reread the book several times later on my own. It was the only book I can ever remember him reading to me, but it changed my life. I was hooked on books."

Young Coville may have loved books, but like many other authors-to-be, the realization that he wanted to be a writer came very abruptly. He commented: "I think it was sixth grade when I first realized that writing was something that I could do, and wanted to do very much. As it happened, I had spent most of that year making life miserable for my teacher by steadfastly failing to respond to the many creative devices she had to stimulate us to write. Then one day she simply (finally!) just let us write--told us that we had a certain amount of time to produce a short story of substance. Freed from writing topics imposed from without, I cut loose, and over several days found that I loved what I was doing. This may not be the first time that I knew I wanted to write, but it's the time that I remember." In addition to writing, Coville himself went on to be a teacher. He held a full-time position at Wetzel Road Elementary School, in Liverpool, New York for seven years starting in 1974.

However, writing was always to be Coville's first love. He was introduced to the possibilities of writing for children by the woman who would later become his mother-in-law. He explained that she "gave me a copy of Winnie the Pooh to read, and I suddenly knew that what I really wanted to write was children's books--to give to other children the joy that I got from books when I was young. This is the key to what I write now. I try with greater or lesser success, to make my stories the kinds of things that I would have enjoyed myself when I was young; to write the books I wanted to read, but never found. My writing works best when I remember the bookish child who adored reading and gear the work toward him. It falters when I forget him."

As he developed into an experienced writer, Coville worked in different genres. He created musical plays such as The Dragon Slayers, first produced at Syracuse Musical Theater in 1982. He contributed to anthologies of fantasy stories, such as Dragons and Dreams. But it was in the area of juvenile fiction, beginning with the publication of The Foolish Giant in 1978, that Coville made a significant mark. That first tale, for younger readers, tells of a mild, clumsy giant who has difficulty being accepted by the ordinary people of his village until he saves them from an evil wizard. In the years since that first book, Coville has published over twenty other tales for young readers, culminating in the appearance of several of his works on children's best-seller lists.

Science fiction is another genre Coville has worked in, and the popularity of books like his "Space Brat" series and 1993's Aliens Ate My Homework can attest to his success. In 1994's I Left My Sneakers in Dimension X, Coville continues the adventures of Rod Albright of Aliens Ate My Homework as the young man and his cousin, Elspeth, are captured and taken to another dimension by a space giant called Smorkus Flinders. Flinders, who is not pretty to look at and has a personality to match, uses the pair to bait the captain of the space ship Ferkel. The two Earthlings are rescued, but things go wrong and the Ferkel is destroyed, stranding captain, crew, and rescuees in the alien Dimension X.

According to a Time for Kids interview, Coville has spent a lot of time wondering what it would be like if aliens were to visit planet Earth. "It would have to be because the see us as dangerous," he told the magazine. "We make them nervous. We are, maybe, the only creatures capable of space travel who are still uncivilized enough to have wars." In a more humorous vein, Coville listed some alien-oriented "Frequently Asked Questions" on his Web site, www.brucecoville.com, including "Can aliens pick their noses?" and "I have a repetitive nightmare where I wake up in the body of a six-legged telepathic blue guy with a giant eyeball. My parents want to know if you'll pay for therapy."

Many of Coville's books are packed with the trappings of traditional mythic imagery: supernatural spirits, tarot cards, unicorns, prehistoric monsters, and futuristic creatures at the outer edge of the universe. He noted: "Myth is very important to me. My picture books have firm roots in basic mythic patterns. Hopefully, the patterns do not intrude, but provide a structure and depth that enhances my work." Coville often combines imaginary creatures with present-day people to create a tale of mystery or adventure. In The Ghost in the Third Row, for example, Nina discovers an actual ghost haunting the theater where she is acting in a murder drama. Nina returns with her friend Chris in The Ghost Wore Gray, where the two try to discover the story behind the spirit of a Confederate soldier who appears in a New York hotel. "Despite the fantasy element of a ghost, this is a mystery," noted School Library Journal contributor Carolyn Caywood, who added that the tale "evokes real feeling."

Some of Coville's most popular books have been those that involve Mr. Elives's Magic Shop. In the first, The Monster's Ring, timid Russell Crannaker buys a ring that gives him the ability to transform into a monster. Published in 1982, this book stood alone until Jane Yolen invited Coville to write a book for the line of fantasy novels she had been hired to edit for Harcourt. Coville returned to the Magic Shop for Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, which people often mistakenly think is the first of the series. In this book, young Jeremy escapes his tormenter Mary Lou, only to find himself in a strange shop where he buys an unusual egg. When the egg soon hatches a baby dragon--that no one else but Mary Lou can see--Jeremy finds himself in the midst of adventure. "The book is filled with scenes that will bring laughter and near tears to readers," Kenneth E. Kowen wrote in School Library Journal. Kathleen Redmond remarked in Voice of Youth Advocates that the story is a good combination of real and fantasy worlds and "is right on target." Coville returns to the magic shop in Jennifer Murdley's Toad, where Jennifer purchases a lonely toad hatched from a witch's mouth. In aiding her pet, Bufo, who seeks his lost love and is chased by the witch, Jennifer herself is turned into a toad and learns to appreciate her inner strengths. Margaret C. Howell of School Library Journal praised Coville's theme as "particularly well handled," and adds that "the story moves well, with realistic characterizations."

Coville believes that a knowledge of mythic patterns and imagery can facilitate children's growth and social understanding. "This 'making sense' is a process that generally takes a lifetime and yet, sadly, it is all too often never even begun," he maintained. "To utilize myth as a guide in this quest one must be familiar with its patterns and structures, a familiarity that is best gained from reading or hearing myth and its reconstructions from earliest childhood on." Coville feels that the literature he himself writes plays a part in exposing young people to the mythological realm. "I do not expect a child to read my picture books and suddenly discover the secret of the universe," he explained. "I do hope that something from my works will tuck itself away in the child's mind, ready to present itself as a piece of a puzzle on some future day when he or she is busy constructing a view of the world that will provide at least a modicum of hope and dignity."

"I feel like a very lucky person," Coville wrote on his Web site. "From the time I was young, I had a dream of becoming a writer. Now that dream has come true, and I am able to make my living doing something that I really love." He said he shared his life in Syracuse, N.Y., with wife Kathy, three children, a dog, three cats and "Dickens, a jet-propelled kitten."

PERSONAL INFORMATION
Born May 16, 1950, in Syracuse, NY; son of Arthur J. (a sales engineer) and Jean (an executive secretary; maiden name, Chase) Coville; married Katherine Dietz (an illustrator), October 11, 1969; children: Orion Sean, Cara Joy, Adam. Education: Attended Duke University and State University of New York at Binghamton; State University of New York at Oswego, B.A., 1974. Politics: "Eclectic." Religion: "Unitarian Universalist." Memberships: Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators; Author's Guild, Dramatist's Guild, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Addresses: Agent--Ashley Grayson, 1342 18th Street, San Pedro, CA 90732.

CAREER
Author and playwright. Wetzel Road Elementary, Liverpool, NY, teacher, 1974-81. Co-host and co-producer of Upstage, a cable program promoting local theater, 1983. Founder of Full Cast Audio, a recording company that makes unabridged recordings of fine children's novels using a full cast. Has also worked as a camp counselor, grave digger, assembly line worker, and toy maker.