"Brings everything to life."
— Tess, age 9, Chicago reader on The Great Chicago Fire
"A winning blend of comedy, superheroics, inspirational women from history, and puzzle-solving."
— Kirkus Reviews for MASK
“A stunning, fast-paced yarn that champions smarts,
problem-solving, women, and the importance of family.
Great role models for girls."
— Common Sense Media 5-star review for The Detective’s Assistant
Growing up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I always saw my parents reading books and newspapers. So I quickly learned that words were powerful and storytelling was important.
When I was in the fourth grade (rocking the freckles in the photo here!) I knew I wanted to be a writer. My teacher, Miss Tucker, had us craft mysteries in the spirit of Encyclopedia Brown, and the bravest of us read them out loud to the class each Friday. I was hooked!
I loved language. I loved interesting people. And I was very nosy. So I worked on school newspapers in middle school, high school, and college, and then I went on to work at daily newspapers in different cities around the country — including The Dallas Morning News and The San Francisco Chronicle. California living was the greatest, and some of my favorite places on Earth are there!
Now I live in Chicago with my own family — three awesome kids, two high-energy dogs, and one fabulous husband. I still love language and interesting people, and I'm still nosy. So I spend a lot of time researching and writing fiction and nonfiction for readers like you.
About the author
Favorite Food
Blueberry pie
Nutella + bananas
Waffles
Saag paneer
Peanut-Butter Crunch cereal
Avocados
Philz Coffee
Salted caramels
Eggplant
Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes
Any kind of cheese
Favorite Activities
RIding my bike
Reading a good book
Going to the library (free books!)
Walking & hiking
Throwing a Frisbee with my dog
Cooking
Swimming in Lake Michigan
Hanging out with friends
Roadtrips with my family
FaceTiming with my mom
And my sibs (they made me say this)
Favorite Places
Big Sur, California
Point Lobos in Carmel
Fort Funston in San Francisco
Cinque Terre, Italy
Petoskey, Michigan
Sleeping Bear Dunes
The Library of Congress
My dining room table
County Donegal, Ireland
Mom & Dad's house
Wherever my book club meets
Favorite Books
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Code Name Verity
Savvy
Anne of Green Gables
The Meaning of Maggie
Any Bad Kitty story
Anything by Frances O'Roarke Dowell
One Crazy Summer
Our Only May Amelia
Anything by Raina Telgemeier
We Don't Eat Our Classmates
Kate Talks to Kidlit authors
Author Of is a conversation around children's literature featuring interviews with writers for young readers. Learn about the inspiration behind their books and the "spark" that made them write their stories. Superpups Kevin and Bella find it fascinating!
AuthorOf.blogspot.com
Contact Kate
Send an email to
Kate@KateHannigan.com
Or contact Kate's agent,
Jennifer Mattson,
at Andrea Brown Literary
