K. A. Applegate
Author of The One and Only Ivan
About the Author
Katherine Applegate was born in Michigan on July 19, 1956. She writes science fiction, young adult romances, and pop-up books. She is the author of the Making Waves, Making Out, and Roscoe Riley Rules series. She writes the Animorphs, Everworld, and Remnants series under the pen name K. A. show more Applegate. She also writes under the pen names of C. Archer, Catherine Kendall and Elizabeth Benning. She has received numerous awards including a Golden Duck Award (Eleanor Cameron Award for Middle Grades) for The Message in 1997, the SCBWI 2008 Golden Kite Award for Best Fiction and the Bank Street 2008 Josette Frank Award for Home of the Brave, and the 2013 Newbery Medal and the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award (Illinois) for The One and Only Ivan. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by K. A. Applegate
Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla (2014) — Author — 517 copies, 28 reviews
Tan Lines: Sand, Surf, and Secrets; Rays, Romance, and Rivalry; Beaches, Boys, and Betrayal (Summer) (2008) 132 copies, 5 reviews
Disney's Christmas With All the Trimmings: Original Stories and Crafts from Mickey Mouse and Friends (1994) 19 copies
The Portable Emerson 19 copies
Newbery Award Favorite Library 8 Book Box Set : Charlotte's Web, The One and Only Ivan, Ella Enchanted, Dragonwings (2020) — Contributor — 18 copies
ANIMORPHS Set #32-37 (#32-The Separation, #33-The Illusion, #34-The Prophecy, #35-The Proposal, #36-The Mutation, #37-The Weakness) (1999) 16 copies
The Capture (Animorphs Graphix #6) 6 copies
Animorphs Set 19-22 (#19 - The Departure, #20 - The Discovery, #21 - The Threat, #22 - The Solution) (1998) 6 copies
Animorphs Boxed Set #11: Books 41-44 4 copies
ANIMORPHS: MEGAMORPHS, 4 Volumes: 1, 2, 3, 4: The Andalite's Gift / In the Time of Dinosaurs / Elfangor's Secret / Back to Before (2000) 3 copies
Animorphs #15: Escape 3 copies
Animorphs Boxed Set: The Conspiracy / The Separation / The Illusion / The Prophecy / The Proposal / The Mutation (2000) 3 copies
Animorphs Boxed Set #12: Books 45-48 3 copies
Hondenstad 2 copies
Explore the World's of K.A. Applegate: Animorphs, 1: The Invasion, Everworlds, 1: Search for Senna, Remnants, 1: The Mayflower Project (2002) 2 copies
Animorphs #53 - The Answer 1 copy
Animorphs #51 - The Absolute 1 copy
Animorphs #50 - The Ultimate 1 copy
Animorphs #33 - The Illusion 1 copy
Animorphs #38 - The Arrival 1 copy
Animorphs #39 - The Hidden 1 copy
Discover The Destroyer (Everworld #5) by Applegate, K.A. (January 1, 2000) Mass Market Paperback 1 copy
Animorphs #36 - The Mutation 1 copy
Book One: Ending 1 copy
Animorphs #37 - The Weakness 1 copy
Animorphs #6 - The Capture 1 copy
Animorphs #40 - The Other 1 copy
Animorphs #34 - The Prophecy 1 copy
Animporhs - The Attack 1 copy
Animorphs #29 - The Sickness 1 copy
Animorphs #30 - The Reunion 1 copy
Animorphs #8 - The Alien 1 copy
Animorphs #9 - The Secret 1 copy
Animprohs #12 - The Raction 1 copy
Animorphs #41 - The Familiar 1 copy
Animorphs #7 - The Stranger 1 copy
Animorphs #42 - The Journey 1 copy
Animorphs # 43 - The Test 1 copy
Animorphs #48 - The Return 1 copy
Animorphs #2 - The Visitor 1 copy
Animorphs # 4 - The Message 1 copy
Animorphs #5 - The Predator 1 copy
Animorphs #35 - The Proposal 1 copy
Old Moore's Horoscopes and Daily Astral Diaries: Aquarius (Old Moore's 2001 horoscope) (2000) 1 copy
Tas vienintelis Aivenhas 1 copy
Animorphs Series Boxed Set 1 copy
Ever World 1 copy
Animorphs: The First Journal 1 copy
White Fang 1 copy
Animorphus Series 38 Titles! 1 copy
Land of the Lost 1 copy
The One and Only Ivan, Bob, and Ruby Collection: The One and Only Ivan, The One and Only Bob, and The One and Only Ruby (2025) 1 copy
Endling #2 1 copy
Endling - Weggefährten und Freunde: Spannende Fantasy für Mädchen und Jungen ab 11 (Die Endling-Trilogie, Band 2) (2020) 1 copy
Perro y cachorro / Katherine Applegate ; ilustrado por Charlie Alder ; [traducido por Juan Crisóbal Álvarez] 1 copy, 1 review
Animorphs Book Set 1 copy
The Animorphs series 1 copy
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Applegate, Katherine Alice
- Other names
- Applegate, Katherine
Archer, C.
Benning, Elizabeth
Blair, L.E.
Kendall, Katherine
Kincaid, Beth (show all 11)
Michaels, Katherine
Plumb, A.R.
Pollari, Pat
Stephens, Nicholas
Young, Alida E - Birthdate
- 1956-07-19
- Gender
- female
- Relationships
- Grant, Michael (husband) (4)
- Short biography
- Katherine Applegate is the author of The One and Only Ivan, winner of the 2013 Newbery Medal. Her novel Crenshaw spent over twenty weeks on the New York Times children's bestseller list, and her first middle-grade stand-alone novel, the award-winning Home of the Brave, continues to be included on state reading lists, summer reading lists, and class reading lists.
Katherine has written three picture books: The Buffalo Storm; The Remarkable True Story of Ivan, the Shopping Mall Gorilla (often used as a companion book to The One and Only Ivan for younger readers); and Sometimes You Fly (publishing in spring, 2018). For beginning readers, Katherine wrote Roscoe Riley Rules, a seven-book series.
With her husband, Michael Grant, Katherine co-wrote Animorphs, a long-running series that has sold over 35 million books worldwide.
Katherine lives in Marin County, California, with her family and assorted pets. - Nationality
- USA (birth)
- Birthplace
- Michigan, USA
- Places of residence
- Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
Michigan, USA
Texas, USA
Florida, USA
Irvine, California, USA
Minnesota, USA (show all 8)
Illinois, USA
Pelago, Italy - Associated Place (for map)
- USA
Members
Discussions
Found: YA horse book series in Name that Book (February 2025)
80s-90s preteen series fic; mismatched gal pals; tough girl Roxie or Randi w/ black spiky hair; pink in Name that Book (June 2013)
YA Science fiction novel in Name that Book (August 2010)
Reviews
First sentence: The sign posted outside my lair read: OUR CAT IS A BURGLAR. PLEASE ACCEPT OUR APOLOGIES. Its very existence vexed like a tick in my tail. "OUR" implied ownership. But a feline can never be owned. Admired from afar, perhaps. Never owned. "CAT" brought to mind a spoiled, mewling ball of fluff. But I am not a mere cat. I am a tiger trapped in a kitty costume. I am pure stealth and sinew and swagger. I've lived nine lives and dozens more. And as for "BURGLAR"? Burglars merely show more burgled. I redistribute. I recycle. I rescue. I am the Robin Hood of felines, a force for good. I am Zephyrina, honorable thief.
Premise/plot: Zephyrina, our narrator, is a cat who 'rescues' unwanted toys and brings them to a new home to be given second chances. Pocket Bear, the oldest resident, is a bear who has SEEN and HEARD just about everything--he has been around since the first world war. The other toys come and go--as new chances bring new homes, new owners, and new opportunities for toys. But Pocket Bear and Zephyrina have a good thing going, right, a forever thing. She brings the toys and Pocket Bear leads them all.
The book opens with Zephyrina's newest discovery: Berwon. Berwon may just be as old as Pocket Bear. This extremely super special rare bear may just be the salvation for the owners of the shop--Elizaveta and Dasha. But at what cost? Every toy deserves a happy ending, right?!
My thoughts: Katherine Applegate's newest book is a fantasy novel for young readers. Toys and animals are brought to life. I loved, loved, loved the narration of Zephyrina. I loved the stories of Berwon and Pocket Bear. It had plenty of adventure! There were villains and heroes. It was a satisfying, compelling read! show less
Premise/plot: Zephyrina, our narrator, is a cat who 'rescues' unwanted toys and brings them to a new home to be given second chances. Pocket Bear, the oldest resident, is a bear who has SEEN and HEARD just about everything--he has been around since the first world war. The other toys come and go--as new chances bring new homes, new owners, and new opportunities for toys. But Pocket Bear and Zephyrina have a good thing going, right, a forever thing. She brings the toys and Pocket Bear leads them all.
The book opens with Zephyrina's newest discovery: Berwon. Berwon may just be as old as Pocket Bear. This extremely super special rare bear may just be the salvation for the owners of the shop--Elizaveta and Dasha. But at what cost? Every toy deserves a happy ending, right?!
My thoughts: Katherine Applegate's newest book is a fantasy novel for young readers. Toys and animals are brought to life. I loved, loved, loved the narration of Zephyrina. I loved the stories of Berwon and Pocket Bear. It had plenty of adventure! There were villains and heroes. It was a satisfying, compelling read! show less
First sentence: I want to be one of those brave mice you read about in books. A mouse in a friar's robe brandishing a sword, a mouse in short sleeves paddling a canoe, a mouse in a pullover sweater who saves a princess. But I'm an ordinary field mouse, the size and weight of an average tomato. The only thing I ever wear is slippers.
My thoughts (preview): I have WANTED--no NEEDED--this book since the summer of 2023. I finished Dogtown (the first book) and NEEDED more, more, more. I wanted all show more the books, forever keep them coming. I loved Dogtown so much I read it TWICE within a couple of months. It is my emotional support library book. So obviously I was excited and counting down the months, weeks, and days until it was released.
It did not disappoint.
Premise/plot: Mouse, whom readers first met in the book Dogtown, returns for another adventure set at the Dogtown animal shelter. Buster, a golden retriever with a high return rate or bounce back, is the star of this one. Mouse's goal throughout the book is to help Buster (and Stewie) find their forever home(s). This one does also feature a robot dog, Smoke Alarm (aka Smokey).
"Smokey's problem was that he'd been put together in a factory that also made smoke alarms, and wires got crossed. Buttons got switched. Gears got shifted. In some home somewhere, there was a smoke alarm that barked. And in Dogtown, we had a metal dog with a smoke alarm that went off when you least expected."
Plenty of adventure and HEART packed into this dog adventure.
My thoughts: How does Mouse compare to Chance as a narrator?!?!?! I loved them both. But Mouse loves, loves, loves, LOVES to read. So Mouse's narration is PACKED with book references.
I loved the narration. It is just a WONDERFUL read. I do think it would be an excellent read aloud. show less
My thoughts (preview): I have WANTED--no NEEDED--this book since the summer of 2023. I finished Dogtown (the first book) and NEEDED more, more, more. I wanted all show more the books, forever keep them coming. I loved Dogtown so much I read it TWICE within a couple of months. It is my emotional support library book. So obviously I was excited and counting down the months, weeks, and days until it was released.
It did not disappoint.
Premise/plot: Mouse, whom readers first met in the book Dogtown, returns for another adventure set at the Dogtown animal shelter. Buster, a golden retriever with a high return rate or bounce back, is the star of this one. Mouse's goal throughout the book is to help Buster (and Stewie) find their forever home(s). This one does also feature a robot dog, Smoke Alarm (aka Smokey).
"Smokey's problem was that he'd been put together in a factory that also made smoke alarms, and wires got crossed. Buttons got switched. Gears got shifted. In some home somewhere, there was a smoke alarm that barked. And in Dogtown, we had a metal dog with a smoke alarm that went off when you least expected."
Plenty of adventure and HEART packed into this dog adventure.
My thoughts: How does Mouse compare to Chance as a narrator?!?!?! I loved them both. But Mouse loves, loves, loves, LOVES to read. So Mouse's narration is PACKED with book references.
I loved the narration. It is just a WONDERFUL read. I do think it would be an excellent read aloud. show less
First sentence: I am Ivan. I am a gorilla. It's not as easy as it looks.
ETA: I read this one initially in 2012 (see below review). I reread it in January 2023. I don't know that I could improve upon my initial review. Everything I said in the review below, I stand by. My love for this novel hasn't faded with time.
Want to read one of the best, best books of the year? May I suggest Katherine Applegate's verse novel, The One and Only Ivan. I can't promise that every reader will come to LOVE show more Ivan, Ruby, Stella, Bob, Julia, and George, but you might end up loving them just as much as I did. (Ivan is a gorilla; Ruby and Stella are elephants; Bob is a dog; George and Julia are two of the most sympathetic human characters in the novel.)
So what is it about? It's about a small group of animals on display at Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade. Ivan, the gorilla, is an artist whose works sell in the gift shop. He's been captive almost thirty years. Stella is one of his dearest friends, she's an elephant who knows quite a few tricks. She's a great storyteller, but, many of her stories are bittersweet. She's had a hard life to have such a great memory. Bob, the stray dog, is Ivan's other best friend, he's not really on display--not wild enough, not talented enough--but to Ivan, well, he's the best dog in the world. One day, Mack, the owner, brings someone new: a baby elephant named Ruby. Her arrival changes EVERYTHING for Ivan. For at long last, he has someone to protect.
Within pages, I was hooked. Here is the second poem:
names
People call me the Freeway Gorilla. The Ape at Exit 8. The One and Only Ivan, Mighty Silverback.
The names are mine, but they're not me. I am Ivan, just Ivan, only Ivan.
Humans waste words. They toss them like banana peels and leave them to rot.
Everyone knows the peels are the best part.
I suppose you think gorillas can't understand you. Of course, you also probably think we can't walk upright.
Try knuckle walking for an hour. You tell me: Which way is more fun?
The narrative voice is so strong, so rich, so observant, so right. Here are just a few examples:
Humans speak too much. They chatter like chimps, crowding the world with their noise even when they have nothing to say. (3)
Anger is precious. A silverback uses anger to maintain order and warn his troop of danger. When my father beat his chest, it was to say, Beware, listen, I am in charge. I am angry to protect you, because that is what I was born to do. Here in my domain, there is no one to protect. (10)
It was Julia who gave me my first crayon, a stubby blue one, slipped through the broken spot in my glass along with a folded piece of paper. I knew what to do with it. I'd watched Julia draw. When I dragged the crayon across the paper, it left a trail in its wake like a slithering blue snake. (16)
Humans don't always seem to recognize what I've drawn. They squint, cock their heads, murmur. I'll draw a banana, a perfectly lovely banana, and they'll say, "It's a yellow airplane!" or "It's a duck without wings!" That's all right. I'm not drawing for them. I'm drawing for me. (17)
My visitors are often surprised when they see the TV Mack put in my domain. They seem to find it odd, the sight of a gorilla staring at tiny humans in a box. Sometimes I wonder, though: Isn't the way they stare at me, sitting in my tiny box, just as strange? (23)
Bob's tail makes me dizzy and confused. It has meanings within meanings, like human words. "I am sad," it says. "I am happy." It says, "Beware! I may be tiny, but my teeth are sharp." Gorillas don't have any use for tails. Our feelings are uncomplicated. Our rumps are unadorned. (35)
Homework, I have discovered, involves a sharp pencil and thick books and long sighs. (44)
But hunger, like food, comes in many shapes and colors. At night, lying alone in my Pooh pajamas, I felt hungry for the skilled touch of a grooming friend, for the cheerful grunts of a play fight, for the easy safety of my nearby troop, foraging through shadows. (133)
It's an odd story to remember, I have to admit. My story has a strange shape: a stunted beginning, an endless middle. (144)
The One and Only Ivan is definitely an EMOTIONAL read. It's a book about how humans treat or mistreat animals. It tells the story of several animals: Stella, Ivan, Ruby, etc. In some cases relating how they got to their current "domain" (cage, or prison). For the most sensitive reader, it may prove a little too much in a few poems. Overall, I think it's a great read. Powerful, compelling, beautifully written.
Read The One and Only Ivan
If you love E.B. White's Charlotte's Web
If you love Kathi Appelt's The Underneath
If you love animal stories
If you love gorillas, elephants, dogs
If you love GREAT writing show less
ETA: I read this one initially in 2012 (see below review). I reread it in January 2023. I don't know that I could improve upon my initial review. Everything I said in the review below, I stand by. My love for this novel hasn't faded with time.
Want to read one of the best, best books of the year? May I suggest Katherine Applegate's verse novel, The One and Only Ivan. I can't promise that every reader will come to LOVE show more Ivan, Ruby, Stella, Bob, Julia, and George, but you might end up loving them just as much as I did. (Ivan is a gorilla; Ruby and Stella are elephants; Bob is a dog; George and Julia are two of the most sympathetic human characters in the novel.)
So what is it about? It's about a small group of animals on display at Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade. Ivan, the gorilla, is an artist whose works sell in the gift shop. He's been captive almost thirty years. Stella is one of his dearest friends, she's an elephant who knows quite a few tricks. She's a great storyteller, but, many of her stories are bittersweet. She's had a hard life to have such a great memory. Bob, the stray dog, is Ivan's other best friend, he's not really on display--not wild enough, not talented enough--but to Ivan, well, he's the best dog in the world. One day, Mack, the owner, brings someone new: a baby elephant named Ruby. Her arrival changes EVERYTHING for Ivan. For at long last, he has someone to protect.
Within pages, I was hooked. Here is the second poem:
names
People call me the Freeway Gorilla. The Ape at Exit 8. The One and Only Ivan, Mighty Silverback.
The names are mine, but they're not me. I am Ivan, just Ivan, only Ivan.
Humans waste words. They toss them like banana peels and leave them to rot.
Everyone knows the peels are the best part.
I suppose you think gorillas can't understand you. Of course, you also probably think we can't walk upright.
Try knuckle walking for an hour. You tell me: Which way is more fun?
The narrative voice is so strong, so rich, so observant, so right. Here are just a few examples:
Humans speak too much. They chatter like chimps, crowding the world with their noise even when they have nothing to say. (3)
Anger is precious. A silverback uses anger to maintain order and warn his troop of danger. When my father beat his chest, it was to say, Beware, listen, I am in charge. I am angry to protect you, because that is what I was born to do. Here in my domain, there is no one to protect. (10)
It was Julia who gave me my first crayon, a stubby blue one, slipped through the broken spot in my glass along with a folded piece of paper. I knew what to do with it. I'd watched Julia draw. When I dragged the crayon across the paper, it left a trail in its wake like a slithering blue snake. (16)
Humans don't always seem to recognize what I've drawn. They squint, cock their heads, murmur. I'll draw a banana, a perfectly lovely banana, and they'll say, "It's a yellow airplane!" or "It's a duck without wings!" That's all right. I'm not drawing for them. I'm drawing for me. (17)
My visitors are often surprised when they see the TV Mack put in my domain. They seem to find it odd, the sight of a gorilla staring at tiny humans in a box. Sometimes I wonder, though: Isn't the way they stare at me, sitting in my tiny box, just as strange? (23)
Bob's tail makes me dizzy and confused. It has meanings within meanings, like human words. "I am sad," it says. "I am happy." It says, "Beware! I may be tiny, but my teeth are sharp." Gorillas don't have any use for tails. Our feelings are uncomplicated. Our rumps are unadorned. (35)
Homework, I have discovered, involves a sharp pencil and thick books and long sighs. (44)
But hunger, like food, comes in many shapes and colors. At night, lying alone in my Pooh pajamas, I felt hungry for the skilled touch of a grooming friend, for the cheerful grunts of a play fight, for the easy safety of my nearby troop, foraging through shadows. (133)
It's an odd story to remember, I have to admit. My story has a strange shape: a stunted beginning, an endless middle. (144)
The One and Only Ivan is definitely an EMOTIONAL read. It's a book about how humans treat or mistreat animals. It tells the story of several animals: Stella, Ivan, Ruby, etc. In some cases relating how they got to their current "domain" (cage, or prison). For the most sensitive reader, it may prove a little too much in a few poems. Overall, I think it's a great read. Powerful, compelling, beautifully written.
Read The One and Only Ivan
If you love E.B. White's Charlotte's Web
If you love Kathi Appelt's The Underneath
If you love animal stories
If you love gorillas, elephants, dogs
If you love GREAT writing show less
I've had special trees in my life, none were wishing trees (or raggy trees). But they've stuck in my memory -- there's the magnolia in my grandmother's back yard that I'm always asking if it's still there because in my memory it was sold and cut down (it was sold, but never cut down). The pecan tree in my grandmother's front yard that I used to play under and pick up the nuts. The pine tree my neighbors cut down that I used to read under every single day (this one still hurts).
Red is just as show more perfect as Ivan. I loved this. Like a middle-grade version of The Overstory where the trees have much to teach us if only we'd pay attention and listen. The message is so important, especially given the times we're in (it's become even worse since 2017 when wishtree was first published -- how is that even possible?). show less
Red is just as show more perfect as Ivan. I loved this. Like a middle-grade version of The Overstory where the trees have much to teach us if only we'd pay attention and listen. The message is so important, especially given the times we're in (it's become even worse since 2017 when wishtree was first published -- how is that even possible?). show less
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Awards
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Statistics
- Works
- 448
- Also by
- 6
- Members
- 89,676
- Popularity
- #113
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 1,544
- ISBNs
- 2,157
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- Favorited
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