We are proud to announce the winner of the Judy Goddard Award for 2025, Elaine A. Powers. A retired biologist, actor and singer, and a conservationist with a passion for reptiles, Elaine is the author of over 25 science-based children’s stories, many of them set in the American Southwest. Her book, Dinosaurs Roamed Arizona, was a 2025 Pima County Public Library Best Books of the Southwest Winner. Other of her recent works feature rattlesnakes, desert tortoises, and roadrunners, as well as creatures from other areas of the world.
Elaine states, “I have always loved science, but the musician in me loves rhythm and entertainment, so science needs to be fun. Thus, you will find science woven into adventure tales and rhyming stanzas, which have been shown to support cognitive development in children and grow their language skills.”
Elaine was a 2024 Summer Writer- in -Residence with the Pima County Public Library where she consulted with aspiring writers. Originally from Peoria, Illinois, she has lived in Oro Valley, Arizona for the past 15 years.
Read more: http://www.librariesltdaz.org/judy-goddard-award/