Library member Carol Weston says that when she was a child, "at night, when other kids picked up their books, I picked up my diary and started scribbling." Following the well-known recommendation to "write what you know," she wrote about being a girl. Weston continues to do so today as an acclaimed children’s author and advice columnist.
With more than 10 books published, including the bestseller Girltalk: All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You and the popular
Melanie Martin series, as well as a column in Girls’ Life magazine, Weston has earned her reputation as the "Dear Abby for girls."
As a child, Weston loved Greek myths, Aesop’s fables, comic books and stories by Roald Dahl. Over time, she developed a love for fiction, majoring in French and Spanish Comparative Literature at Yale University. Carol’s interest in languages and travel is evident in all of her books.
Weston also has some advice to offer for aspiring young writers: "Keep writing, keep journals, and don’t get discouraged... Focus [on] observing people, developing an ear for dialogue, and telling stories with well-chosen words... The point isn’t to write a lot; it’s to write well."
NYSL Books:
- Weston, Carol, Diary of Melanie Martin, or, How I survived Matt the Brat, Michelangelo, and the Leaning Tower of Pizza Juv-F W (2000)
Fourth-grader Melanie Martin writes in her diary, describing her family's trip to Italy and all that she learned.
- Weston, Carol, Melanie in Manhattan Juv-F W Stack 8 (2005)
Eleven-year-old Melanie records in her diary how she rediscovers her hometown of Manhattan, copes with competing for her best friend's attention, enjoys a litter of baby mice, and anxiously awaits email from her Spanish friend, Miguel.
- Weston, Carol, Melanie Martin goes Dutch: the private diary of my almost bummer summer with Cecily, Matt the Brat, and Vincent van Go Go Go Juv-F W (2002)
In her diary, ten-year-old Melanie describes how she and her family, accompanied by her best friend Cecily, travel to the Netherlands, where they have a good time despite Cecily's concern for her mother's health and Melanie's struggles with her little brother and her own attitude.
- Weston, Carol, With love from Spain, Melanie Martin Juv-F W Stack 8 (2004)
While spending spring break in Spain with her family, eleven-year-old Melanie keeps a diary of her experiences improving her Spanish, struggling with her little brother, meeting her mother's former boyfriend, and falling in love with his son.
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