Siy, Alexandra

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Siy, Alexandra

Personal

Born in Clarksville, NY; married; children. Education: Attended University of Colorado; State University of New York at Plattsburgh, B.A. (biology); State University of New York at Albany, M.S. (science education).

Addresses

Home and office—NY. E-mail—[email protected].

Career

Writer. Taught high school biology in New Haven, CT; has also worked as a janitor, waitress, bookkeeper, swimming teacher, secretary, lifeguard, landscaper, copywriter, and research technician.

Member

Authors Guild.

Awards, Honors

Parents' Choice Silver Honor designation, 2001, for Footprints on the Moon; three books in "Global Villages" series earned Notable Trade Books in the Field of Social Studies designations, National Council for the Social Studies/Children's Book Council; Outstanding Science Trade Book Selectors' Choice, National Science Teachers Association, Orbis Pictus Honor Book designation, and finalist, American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Excellence in Science Books, all 2006, all for Mosquito Bite; One Hundred Titles for Reading and Sharing designation, New York Public Library, Outstanding Science Trade Book Selectors' Choice, National Science Teachers Association, and Best of the Best designation, Chicago Public Library, all 2007, all for Sneeze!

Writings

Footprints on the Moon, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 2001.

(And photographer) Mosquito Bite, electron microphotographs by Dennis Kunkel, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 2005.

(And photographer) Sneeze!, electron microphotographs by Dennis Kunkel, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 2007.

One Tractor: A Counting Book, illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers, Holiday House (New York, NY), 2008.

Contributor to anthologies, including Sports Shorts and What a Song Can Do.

"CIRCLE OF LIFE" SERIES; NONFICTION

Ancient Forests, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1991.

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1991.

Hawaiian Islands, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1991.

Native Grasslands, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1991.

The Great Astrolabe Reef, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1992.

The Brazilian Rain Forest, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1992.

"GLOBAL VILLAGES" SERIES; NONFICTION

The Efe: People of the Ituri Rain Forest, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1993.

The Waorani: People of the Ecuadoran Rain Forest, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1993.

The Penan: People of the Borneo Jungle, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1993.

The Eeyou: People of Eastern James Bay, Dillon Press (New York, NY), 1993.

Sidelights

A former high school biology teacher, Alexandra Siy is the author of a number of award-winning nonfiction books, including Mosquito Bite and Sneeze!, both featuring black-and-white photographs by Siy and electron microphotographs by Dennis Kunkel. In addition, Siy has written One Tractor: A Counting Book, a work for early readers.

In Mosquito Bite, a group of children playing hide-and-seek on a summer night are hunted by a female Culex pipiens mosquito. As Siy describes one child's search for his friends, she also provides detailed information about the mosquito's life cycle and development as well as the health problems the insect poses. The work garnered strong reviews, and several critics complimented the pairing of Siy's narrative and Kunkel's digitally colored micrographs. According to a contributor in Kirkus Reviews, Kunkel's photos "make irresistible eye candy—rendered even more fascinating by Siy's clear, specific descriptions," and Patricia Manning, writing in Booklist, remarked that the work "is fascinating for its photography and the informative text and captions."

Siy examines nine causes of sneezing and describes the body parts responsible for the explosive reflex in Sneeze!, a "lively, charming, beautifully designed and illustrated book," according to Christopher Arlyn in Science and Children. The work includes Siy's photographs of children in mid-sneeze, as well as Kunkel's micrographs of pollen grains, the flu virus, and other irritants. A Kirkus Reviews critic stated that Sneeze! "has

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it all—from explosive humor and drama to fascinating pictures," and Anne Chapman Callaghan in School Library Journal commented that Siy's "text is chatty and inviting."

A youngster engages in a series of wild adventures in One Tractor, a "clever one-to-ten counting book," according to a contributor in Kirkus Reviews. Inspired by a set of toys, the boy battles a fire and builds a road with the help of his mouse pal and a trio of pirates. Siy's tale allows young readers "an opportunity to recognize the kind of imaginative play they engage in every day," Hazel Rochman noted in her Booklist review of One Tractor.

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 2005, Karin Snelson, review of Mosquito Bite, p. 1802; July 1, 2007, Hazel Rochman, review of Sneeze!, p. 47; March 1, 2008, Hazel Rochman, review of One Tractor: A Counting Book, p. 73.

Horn Book, September-October, 2005, Danielle J. Ford, review of Mosquito Bite, p. 608; November-December, 2007, Danielle J. Ford, review of Sneeze!, p. 702.

Kirkus Reviews, June 15, 2005, review of Mosquito Bite, p. 691; June 15, 2007, review of Sneeze!; January 15, 2008, review of One Tractor.

School Library Journal, December, 2005, Patricia Manning, review of Mosquito Bite, p. 134; September, 2007, Anne Chapman Callaghan, review of Sneeze!, p. 220; February, 2008, Ieva Bates, review of One Tractor, p. 96.

Science and Children, January, 2008, Christopher Arlyn, review of Sneeze!, p. 67.