While there, Williams volunteered at the hospital but continued to write as well. 'His perseverance and the pleasure he takes in his accomplishment are just two of the delights of this appealing story,' according to Ellen Fader of The Horn Book.'The graceful watercolors give readers the flavor of life in the southern African country of Malawi.'įrom 1990 to 1993, Williams lived in Deschapelles, Haiti, where her husband worked as a doctor in the district hospital. A galimoto is built to resemble a truck, a car, or a bicycle for example.The story is about Kondi and his effort to make his dream of building such a toy come true. A 'galimoto' is toy that the children in Africa make. When it became a Reading Rainbow Feature, it was one of the most exciting times of her life, she says on her website. In 1990, her first book, Galimoto, was published. She joined a writer's group then, which she still continues to attend once a week. In 1983, she and her family returned to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her first articles and stories were published in magazines for children while she was still in Africa. During her time in Africa, she wrote a lot, and she also took a course on writing for children though the Institute for Children's Literature. She then taught English in an all boys school. She worked for the Peace Corps as a volunteer in a school for deaf children, according to her website. After earning her master's degree she traveled to Malawi, Africa in 1980 with her son Peter and her husband. Williams then realized that her dream was not reachable because she was older than Frank. Her dad informed her that Anne Frank was the youngest author to ever be published, and Frank had been around 12 at the time. Williams began a writers club in sixth grade with the goal of becoming the youngest published author.

Rachel and Jonathan, their two other children, were born in the United States after they returned home. Their second son, Christopher, was born in 1981 in Africa while she was there with the Peace Corps. On June 18, 1978, she married Steven Williams, a physician.They had their first child, Peter, in 1979.

Karen Lynn Williams was born on March 22, 1952, in New Haven, Connecticut to Russell Drake (an optometrist) and Lenora Mary (a homemaker).She earned a BSfrom the University of Connecticut in 1974 and continued her education at the Southern Connecticut State University where she earned a Master of Arts in Deaf Education in 1977.

Circles of hope by karen lynn williams