What do windmills and a 1421 flood in Holland, Shakespeare and pickpockets, several American women who didn’t behave themselves, and a dozen African Americans fired up by Revolutionary rhetoric – have in common? They are all the subjects of books written by Gretchen Woelfle – picture books and historical fiction, environmental nonfiction, and biographies. She’s won two Eureka! awards from the California Reading Association; and awards from the Children’s Literature Council, the L.A. Museum of Tolerance and the PEN Center, to name just a few. When Gretchen is not traveling the world hunting for new stories, she lives in Los Angeles writing more biographies of unconventional characters.

Publications:
Answering the Cry for Freedom: Stories of African Americans and the American Revolution, Boyds Mills/Calkins Creek, 2016
Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence, Carolrhoda/Lerner, 2014
The Wind at Work: An Activity Guide to Windmills, Chicago Review Press, 1997, 2013 (2nd edition)
Write On, Mercy! The Secret Life of Mercy Otis Warren Boyds Mills/Calkins Creek, 2012
All the World’s A Stage: A Novel in Five Acts, Holiday House, 2011
Jeannette Rankin: Political Pioneer, Boyds Mills/Calkins Creek 2007
Animal Families, Animal Friends, NorthWord Books, 2005
Katje, the Windmill Cat, Candlewick Press, 2001
Stories From Where We Live: The Great Lakes, Milkweed Editions, 2003
Stories From Where We Live: The California Coast, Milkweed, 2001
Stories From Where We Live: The Great North American Prairie, 2001
Stories from Where We Live: The North Atlantic Coast, Milkweed, 2000