Josie and the Trouble With Trash

Beth has been a teacher, educational consultant, curriculum specialist, staff developer and administrator for over 30 years. At her current school, P.S. 321, she collaborates closely with Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University. Beth has been a Lucretia Crocker Fellow for the state of Massachusetts and has consulted extensively for New Visions for Public Schools. As a supervisor of literacy and curriculum, Beth guides the pedagogical aspects of the Josie series.

Josie Meets a Jaguar is co-authored by the Bruno/Handman family--Beth, Kenny, Antonia, and Benjy. The series is inspired by the enthusiasm of the students from P.S. 321, where Beth is Assistant Principal and Benjy and Antonia attended elementary school. Kenny works coordinating environmental campaigns. Benjy teaches ESL and and outdoor skills for children. Antonia works for Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives as a grant writer and communications coordinator. The family is from Brooklyn, New York.

Antonia is a Political Science major at SUNY Binghamton. She has won awards from the Brooklyn Poet Laureate, the CUNY N.Y.C. Annual Poetry Festival and the Random House Writing Competition. In High School, Antonia wrote with Girls Write Now, A New York City-based organization that works with aspiring young women writers. She has been the President of her campus chapter of DemocracyMatters. Antonia sets the tone of the Josie series and creates characters that elementary school kids can relate to.