Jordan Sonnenblick always knew he wanted to be three things when he grew up: a teacher, a novelist, and a professional drummer.

After college, Jordan began a 14-year public-school teaching career. (He also played in a wide variety of bands on weekends.) He continued to dream about writing, but never actually got started on a book until his 12th year in the classroom, when he met an 8th-grade student named Emily, whose younger brother had cancer. Jordan promised Emily’s mom he would find a book for Emily to read that would help her to open up and begin to speak about what she was experiencing. However, he couldn’t find such a story, so he wrote one: his first novel, Drums, Girls, & Dangerous Pie.

Sixteen years and twelve books later, Jordan no longer teaches full-time, and those weekend band gigs have sadly fallen by the wayside. Jordan now spends much of the year visiting schools around the country and the world, conducting writing workshops, and sharing his love for the written word. But hey, if you set up a drumset, you might still be able to coax him into playing a bit ...

www.jordansonnenblick.com jordansonnenblick@rcn.com - Request a school visit: https://www.jordansonnenblick.com/school-visits