Why so moody, broody Trudy? As families embrace the farm-to-table food movement, more and more people are housing chickens on their balconies and in their backyards. Children growing up in urban environments surrounded by rural animals experience both the benefits and humor of farm life. Chickens provide farm-fresh eggs year-round, but they can also be noisy and stubborn, just like Trudy. Sylvia has one moody chicken who will not give up her eggs! Exciting and entertaining illustrations accompany this informative story about one annoying chicken-why she is like that and how Sylvia, eventually, cheers her up! An author’s note introduces the reader to the real chicken that inspired this story.
Jane Sutton grew up in Roslyn, New York-a village on Long Island-and began writing stories and poems at a young age. She revealed her humorous side through her writing, and she was elected class comedienne in high school. She received a bachelor of arts in comparative literature from Brandeis University, graduating magna cum laude. Shortly after completing her degree, Sutton began her writing career. She created reading comprehension tests while serving as a program assistant at a state mental hospital in Wingdale, New York. She later became a staff writer for Mid-Hudson Leisure, a supplement to the NY Daily News, and a copywriter for a medical instrumentation company in Lexington, Massachusetts. Sutton would go on to write and publish nine children’s books. In addition to writing books, Sutton has worked as a special-education tutor at Diamond Middle School in Lexington, Massachusetts, and as an academic-support tutor at Fisher College in Boston. She also tutors students at the elementary-school level. Her experience in teaching and writing inspires her to give presentations in bookstores, libraries, schools, and senior living centers. Sutton is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She also volunteers with FISH of Lexington (Friendly, Independent, Sympathetic Help) and Brandeis Magazine. Sutton enjoys dancing, riding her bike, traveling, hiking, creating elaborate birthday cards, and writing and staging family plays for special occasions. She lives with her husband, who is an educator and science author, in Lexington, Massachusetts.