Since Jane Yolen has an impressive catalogue of books, it is hard to believe that her first work was not published until 1963. Having written books of poems, fiction, and non-fiction for children, young adults, and adults alike, Yolen would seem to have had little time for anything else. Yet she still managed to have three children while establishing herself as the "American Hans Christian Andersen," as she was dubbed by her publisher Ann K. Beneduce. Such acclaim, however, is not what Yolen wants for herself. In an essay in Something about the Author Autobiography Series (SAAS) she says, "I just want to go on writing and discovering my stories for the rest of my life because I know that in my tales I make public what is private, transforming my own joy and sadness into tales for the people." Yolen's massive collection has earned her numerous honors, most notably the Golden Kite Award from the Society of Children's Book Writers for The Girl Who Cried Flowers and Other Tales in 1974 and the Christopher Medal in 1978 for The Seeing Stick, and the Caldecott Medal in 1988 for Owl Moon.
