Diane Z. Shore

Georgia Connections

• Marietta, Cobb County

Notes of Interest

Diane Z. Shore is the prize-winning author or co-author of six books for young readers including "This is the Dream" (2006), a compelling, boldly illustrated book that chronicles episodes before, during and after the civil rights movement in Amerca. It has been chosen for inclusion on the inaugural list of "25 Books All Young Georgians Should Read" in 2010 by the Georgia Center for the Book.

Diane Z. Shore was born in 1958 in Mattoon, Illinois, and now lives with her family in Marietta. She is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University with two bachelor's degrees. She worked as a CPA for nearly six years and as an auditor for Equifax for another three years before getting married. and raising a family. "Luckily I didn't have to go back to work after having kids," she writes. After nearly a decade of writing and rejections, she published her first book, "Bus-a-Saurus Bop," in 2003. It's the wacky story of a creature -- a cross between a school bus and a dinosaur -- that gobbles up kids at the beginning of the school day and spews them back out at the end, and it won a 2004 Children's Choice Award from the Children's Book Council.

It was followed by "Rosa Loves to Read" (2004), "Look Both Ways" (2005)," This is the Feast" (2008) and "How to Drive Your Sister Crazy" (2008). Several of her books have been translated into German and French. She is now a full-time author and read-aloud advocate who is in demand for school appearances and workshops.

"This is the Dream" was co-written with Jessica Alexander and illustrated by James Ransome. Critics called it "a soaring tribute to the accomplishments of the civil rights movement," and it gives young readers a graphic look at how symbols of injustice were used as well as how they have changed. The co-authors write that the book "celebrates the power of nonviolent change. It is a simple look at the way things used to be, the steps that ordinary people took to change those things, and the way they are today in America. The journey is not over, however; imperfections and inequalities remain in our society, and there is always room in the world for the kind of bravery that takes nonviolent action to create a better place."

Further Reading

Diane Z. Shore's Web Page