1. If you give a Laura Numeroff a pencil…

2. …she will write a book…

3. …and another book…
…and another book…

4. When Laura Was Little
Laura was born in New York. She was the youngest of three girls. She grew up in a family who loved to laugh, sing, dance, travel, collect stamps, draw, and especially READ! One of Laura’s favorite books was “Stuart Little!”
When she was little her favorite things were her microscope, her box of 64 crayons, thin mint Girl Scout cookies—and her library card!
She also loves her grandma’s chicken noodle soup, watermelon, plus peanut butter and banana sandwiches!

5. “I LOVE LOVE LOVE BOOKS!”
“I also loved
to draw,
read and make up stories. 
I started writing my own stories and drew pictures to go with them. 
I would make a book cover for them and write down the name of a publisher. 
I also spent a great deal of time reading.
The public library was about 5 blocks
from my house
and I went every week.”
~Laura

6. But when Laura was nine…
…she moved to a new school where she didn't fit in. Kids would tease her and make fun of her. They would even say, "Your face would break a mirror" and "You look like a cow."
"The first day," Laura said, "they even threatened to beat me up."
It really hurt her deeply and she never forgot. She hid even more in her books.
"Maybe part of my success comes from that," Laura said.

7. “When I grow up, I want to be…
A fashion designer!
Laura decided to go to college to become a fashion designer like her middle sister Emily. BUT Laura ending up hating it! In her last semester, she decided to take a different class. It sounded fun…
An author?!
She had an assignment to write and illustrate a children's book. Even though Laura wasn’t the tallest in her class, she used her imaginiation to write a story about the tallest girl in the third grade. It was called “Amy for Short!” Don’t you love her outfit?
Laura tried to get it published and after only 4 rejections, a publisher bought it Laura graduated from college with a degree AND a contract for my first book!
Her first nine books are now out of print. Two of them she wrote with her oldest sister. One of them (her favorite), BEATRICE DOESN'T WANT TO, is a story about a girl who hates books!!! This one is coming back out again with new illustrations!

8. “I LOVE LOVE LOVE ANIMALS!”
Laura adopted her “Tuxedo Cats,” Lily and Petunia, from the Amanda Foundation who rescues animals. They look a lot alike; but, they have totally different personalities! One is very shy and the other is her alarm clock!
Sydney, her dog, came to her home, when he was the same size as her cats! He is a great Frizbee catcher and loves to give Laura “high tens” and “kisses!” Do you see a similarity between dog and cats?
Laura loves cats, dogs and horses, but also raccoons, otters, koala bears, llamas and chimpanzees, and…

9. “ I guess I am lucky…” "I feel writing for children is an honor.
I didn’t even know my MOUSE book was a CIRCLE book! Who knew it would be a NEW YORK times bestseller? Who knew I’d be on Oprah and invited to the White House? Who knew MOUSE would be in a PEANUTS cartoon by Charles Schulz? Who knew?
“ I guess I am lucky…”
"I feel writing for children is an honor.
I feel very fortunate to have a silly imagination, to make a living from it, and to make people laugh.
With my success, I also like to help people who are less fortunate.”
Laura donates money from her books to help many children and adults with handicaps and illness. And all because she wondered when she was bored one day what would happen “if you gave a mouse a cookie!”
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