Joan Bauer Condensed

Born:	July 12, 1951, Oak Park, Illinois
Grew Up In:	River Forest, Illinois
My Family:	Father was a salesman; mother was a high school English teacher and knock-out jazz pianist; grandmother had been a professional storyteller and was the biggest creative influence on my life; I am the oldest of three sisters. When my mother remarried years ago, I got a superb new dad and a wonderful blended family. Grand total: four sisters, two brothers, nine nephews, three nieces, and I don't know how many dogs. I am married to a marvelous man and we have one excellent grown daughter and a fine son-in-law. My extended family (including the Bauers) has spread across Illinois, Virginia, Alaska, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Tennessee, Michigan, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Germany, and Israel.
Education:	Roosevelt Grammar School, River Forest, Illinois; River Forest Junior High; Oak Park River Forest High School; Walther Lutheran High School; college courses over the years; no degree
School Stuff:	Good at writing and drama. Bad at gym; took me a year to finish the apron I was sewing in Home Ec
Interests Then:	Playing the flute, Girl Scouts, baking, listening to comedians; in high school, loved Latin, drama, and playing the guitar-wrote my own songs
Interests Now:	Cooking, museums, jazz and classical music, theater, reading, exploring New York, walking everywhere
Real Life Heroes:	Martin Luther King and Jimmy Carter
Pets Through the Ages:	Tweety, my parakeet; Oscar, my turtle; Tiger, my cat, who I had to give away due to allergies; Love, my best cat, who made me sneeze, but I didn't care; Brennan, my hamster, who would despair at the sight of Love; my daughter's gerbils, Lassie and Laurie, Laura and Ashley; Gambit, my dog, who I still miss everyday.  But now I have a Max, a wheaten terrier (see my blog.)
Wanted to Be:	A writer, a comedienne, a comedy writer
Began Writing Professionally:	When I was 30-right before my daughter was born--magazine articles on parenting.
Live Now In:	Brooklyn, NY with my husband and Max.
Favorite Color:	Green
Favorite Book:	To Kill A Mockingbird
Favorite Word:	Hope
Favorite Beast:	Firefox (Want to see the firefox of Brooklyn? My husband took this picture)
Favorite Food:	Coconut cake with too much frosting
My Novels:	Elelven in all. Squashed, Thwonk, Sticks, Rules of the Road, Backwater, Hope Was Here, Stand Tall, Best Foot Forward, Peeled, Close to Famous and Almost Home (See Books)
Next Book:	It's a secret.