Thunder Cake

Patricia Ann Barber, born in Lansing, Michigan in 1944, spent her early years in Williamston and Union City, Michigan. She lived on her grandparents’ farm until 1949, a time she remembers as magical and her grandparents as inspirational.

Her parents divorced when she was three, leading her to spend school years with her mother and summers with her father, cherishing the special relationships with her grandparents. These relationships profoundly influenced her life and work, often depicted through the interaction between young and elderly characters in her books.

In 1949, her family moved to Coral Gables, Florida, and later to Oakland, California, where she lived in the Rockridge District on Ocean View Drive. There, she cherished the diverse community and formed a lasting friendship with Stewart Grinnell Washington.

As a child, Polacco struggled with reading and math, not learning to read until almost 14 due to dyslexia. With the help of a teacher, she received the support she needed and eventually thrived academically.

She went on to university, earning a degree in Fine Art, a graduate degree, and a Ph.D. in Art History. She restored ancient art for museums and later became a mother to Steven and Traci, dedicating herself to their upbringing.

At 41, she began writing children’s books, drawing on her artistic talents and family’s storytelling traditions. Raised on stories from her Ukrainian, Russian, and Irish heritage, she developed a talent for storytelling, which she translated into her writing and illustrations.

Polacco has enjoyed a successful career writing for children. She attributes her imaginative ideas to her childhood, free from television. She emphasizes the importance of listening to one’s inner voice and encourages aspiring writers to do the same.

After living in Oakland for nearly 37 years, she returned to Union City.

Born to parents of Russian and Ukrainian descent on one side and Irish on the other, Patricia Polacco grew up in both California and Michigan. She describes her family members as marvelous storytellers and attributes her love of storytelling to her family.

Studying in the United States and Australia, Patricia Polacco has earned an M.F.A. and a Ph. D. in art history, specializing in Russian and Greek painting, and iconographic history. She is a museum consultant on the restoration of icons. As a participant in many citizen exchange programs for writers and illustrators, Patricia Polacco has traveled extensively in Russia as well as other former Soviet republics.

The mother of a grown son and a daughter, Patricia Polacco currently resides in Michigan, where she has a glorious old farm that was built during the time of Lincoln.

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