Children love Spinelli's books because he knows what it is to be a kid. His more than 22 books, including Maniac Magee and Wringer which were Newbery winners, come alive for youngsters because, as he says, "When my characters speak in my books, I hope that my readers hear something of themselves."
Alice Blumenthal McGinty is an American writer of children's books. McGinty was born in 1963 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She attended Indiana University and the University of Illinois. McGinty is Jewish. She is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.