Background

Jen Arena (born Jennifer Dussling) was born on May 8, 1970 in Lima, Pennsylvania, United States. She is the daughter of John Dussling and Ricky (Pfeifer) Dussling. She had a big family - seven brothers and sisters.

Education

As a teenager, Jen Arena started working at a children’s-only independent bookstore in Pennsylvania. She also studied at the University of Delaware and received her Bachelor of Arts. Later she received her Master of Arts from the College of William and Mary.

Career

After graduating from college, Jen Arena made her way to New York City, where she took a job as an editorial assistant at a publishing company for many years. She is also a former editorial director of the young readers' division at Random House.

Since then, she has written over fifty books for kids, both fiction and nonfiction, licensed and original, including Bugs, Bugs, Bugs; Pink Snow and Other Weird Weather; Giant Squid; Slinky Scaly Snakes; and One Little Flower Girl. Her books have been published by Knopf, Roaring Brook, Scholastic, Kane Press, Grosset & Dunlap, DK, Two Lions, Bearport Publishing, and Little Brown and translated into French, Spanish, Korean, and Arabic.

Currently, Jen Arena lives in Tampa, Florida.

Achievements

• Jen Arena is best known as the author of children's books on stars, rocks, bugs, snakes, and gargoyles. She has written over 50 books for kids, including her most known ones "Bugs, Bugs, Bugs", "Giant Squid", "Slinky Scaly Snakes", and "One Little Flower Girl".

Works

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  • Giant Squid: Mystery of the Deep

    (Talk about a BIG catch! The 25-foot squid hauled in by a ...)

    1999
  • My Little Golden Book About The White House

    (Now the littlest readers can learn about the White House ...)

    2019
  • Sleep Tight, Snow White

    (A Mother Goose for the new millennium: bedtime rhymes for...)

    2017
  • Stars

    (Offering beginning astronomers all the knowledge that the...)

    1996
  • Pink Snow and Other Weird Weather

    (Have you ever seen a hailstone with a turtle frozen insid...)

    1998
  • Planets

    (An informative introduction for young skywatchers answers...)

    2000
  • Lightning: It's Electrifying

    (Introduces the wonders of electricity and lightning, incl...)

    2002
  • Deadly Poison Dart Frogs

    (Low on the reading scale but high on the ick factor, thes...)

    2008
  • Tall Tale Trouble

    (When Kiki hears a crunching sound in the woods, she is af...)

    1998
  • A Simple Wish

    (Murray, an apprentice fairy godmother, is forced to save ...)

    1997
  • Salsa Lullaby

    (How to get baby to sleep? Mami and Papi will try anything...)

    2019
  • A Very Strange Dollhouse

    (There is something very different about the new girl in s...)

    1996
  • Kermit's Teeny Tiny Farm

    (Kermit's friends want to give him a pitchfork for hay, a ...)

    1996
  • Looking at Rocks

    (From the backyard to the local bank, rock hounds can iden...)

    2001
  • The 100-Pound Problem

    (How, in a boat that only holds 100 pounds, can a boy tran...)

    2000
  • Dinosaur Eggs

    (Several dinosaur hunters went on an expedition in South A...)

    2000
  • My Little Golden Book About the Statue of Liberty

    (Now the littlest readers can learn about how the Statue o...)

    2018
  • Lady Liberty's Holiday

    (Hit the road and see America with the Statue of Liberty! ...)

    2016
  • In a Dark, Dark House

    (Simple words, rebus pictures, and flash cards make learni...)

    2005
  • Giraffes

    (Get to know the tallest animals on earth - giraffes! Gira...)

    2016
  • Gargoyles

    (Describes different kinds of gargoyles, how they are crea...)

    1999
  • Bugs, Bugs, Bugs!

    (Read all about big bad bugs, clever little bugs, and some...)

    1998
  • One Little Flower Girl

    (The perfect gift for every flower girl - with practice pe...)

    2009
  • Don't Call Me Names!

    (When the kids at school tease Skye about his name, he fee...)

    1996
  • The Princess Lost Her Locket

    (Poor little princess! Somehow, somewhere, she's lost her ...)

    1996
  • Besos for Baby: A Little Book of Kisses

    (Everyone has kisses for Baby, from Mami and Papi to perro...)

    2014
  • The Longest Yawn

    (Barry's teacher says that acting is mainly about control....)

    2006
  • Fair is Fair!

    (All the kids get bigger allowances than Marco. And they d...)

    2003
  • Marta! Big & Small

    (Marta is una niña, an ordinary girl... with some extraord...)

    2016
  • 100 Snowmen

    (1 + 1 = 2 snowmen. 3 + 4 = 7 snowmen. 5 + 6 = 11 snowmen....)

    2013
  • Picky Peggy: Nutrition

    (When Mr. Cooper gives Peggy a new baby duck, she promises...)

    2004
  • Slinky, Scaly Snakes 1998
  • The Rainbow Mystery 2002
  • The Magic Carpet Ride 1998
  • Gotcha! 2006
  • Bug Off! 1997
  • Construction Trucks 1998
  • Small Soldiers 1998
  • A Heart for the Queen of Hearts 1998
  • Looking at Rocks 2001

Interests

• gardening, reading, playing volleyball

Connections

Father:

John Dussling

Mother:

Ricky (Pfeifer) Dussling

References

• Contemporary Authors New Revision Series