Kate DiCamillo (born March 25, 1964) is an author known for her award-winning children's books. Her works include: Because of Winn-Dixie (Newbery Honor book 2000; released as a film in 2005), The Tiger Rising (National Book Award finalist 2001), and The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread (Newbery Medal winner 2004).

DiCamillo was born in Merion, Pennsylvania (near Philadelphia). She was often sick as a child, and suffered from mumps, measles, chicken pox (twice), pneumonia, as well as other ailments. She was so sick that she suffered through several cold Pennsylvania winters inside an oxygen tent. Her family moved to Florida, because doctors thought the warm weather would be better for her health. It is unclear if her health benefited, but the move South proved fruitful for her career (both Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tiger Rising are set in Florida).

DiCamillo is known as a disciplined writer. Before becoming an author full-time, she had a routine of waking at 4:00 A.M. every morning to write before heading off to work at a children's book store. Even after winning the Newbery award, she remains diligent. She is said to write at least two pages a day, five days a week. After Despereaux, her next book will be a collection of short stories for adults.

External links

• Kate DiCamillo's Home Page