Get to Know Alison

  1. What's your favorite picture book?

    I Want my Hat Back by Jon Klassen. Also love, Whatever by William Bee. Little Pea by Amy Krause Rosenthal. Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen and so many more.

  2. What's your favorite chapter book?

    The Tale of Desperaux by Kate Di Camillo and many others.

  3. What was your favorite book as a child?

    Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. Also, Are you there
    God? It's me Margaret
    . These books spoke to me.

  4. What was your first story about?

    A wild horse and a Himalayan cat.

  5. Do you collect stuff?

    Freckles, ideas, nesting dolls, and hand-painted Dala horses from Sweden.

  6. How would your mother describe you in one word?

    Unforgettable.

  7. What's the most insane question you've ever been asked?

    Can I pick your brain?

  8. What word do you wish you had invented?

  9. Characters always have a flaw. What's the main flaw in your character?

    My sick sense of humor.

  10. What embarrassed you as a kid?

    My weight.

  11. Were you ever teased as a kid?

    Kids used to ask, "If the U.S. adopted the metric system, would you become Alison Centimeters...?

  12. What is your favorite expression?

    "It only takes one bad actor!"

  13. What did you love most about childhood?

    Childhood.

    I also loved to play with my Miss Mouse house, sail on my Dad's boat, eat candy, and ski with my family.

  14. Do you have any hobbies?

    I love to cook, read, and run in the hills with my girlfriends.

  15. What's your favorite food?

    Pizza.

  16. What's your favorite breakfast?

    Almond croissant.

  17. What's your favorite vegetable?

    Heirloom tomatoes from my garden.

  18. Do you own any pets?

    Two rag doll cats: Mario Le Mew and Noel. I also have a British Shorthair named, Coco.

  19. Do you have any pet peeves?

    Whistling.

  20. What's your favorite sport?

    To do: Skiing.
    To watch: Hockey.

  21. What's your favorite thing to do on the weekend?

    Be with my family and friends.

  22. What's your favorite holiday?

    Christmas! I love twinkly lights.

  23. What's the best present you ever received?

    A diamond necklace from Mom and Dad.

  24. What's the best present you ever gave?

    A special necklace for my mom—something she'd always wanted.

  25. What's the funniest thing that's ever happened to you?

    In 5th grade I did the splits in the library and the crotch of my pants ripped. You could see my underwear.

  26. What do you look for in a friend?

    Trust and a wicked sense of humor.

  27. What kind of music do you like?

    Rock n' roll! I also love classical, Broadway, acoustical, and blue grass.

  28. What's your favorite place to go?

    The woods behind my house.

  29. What kind of house do you live in?

    A FUN house with swings hanging from the rafters and trampolines inside and out.

  30. Did you have a favorite stuffed animal when you were little?

    Mortimer. A mouse.

  31. What's your favorite game?

    Balderdash.

  32. How did you know you wanted to become a writer?

    A little voice inside told me.

  33. What was the worst thing that ever happened to you as a child?

    The day my brother chopped down my swing set. He built a "No Girls Allowed" tree fort with the wood. I bumped into a hornet's nest on the way down from the fort and got stings all over my body.

  34. What was the most exciting moment of your life?

    When the 1980 men's hockey team won the gold medal.

Meet Alison Inches