Brian P. Cleary, is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 humorist, poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, and author

Author

An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...

. He is best-known for his books that explore grammar in humorous ways written for grade-school children.

Education and career

One of nine children, Cleary graduated from Saint Ignatius High School, a private Roman Catholic Jesuit high school for young men in Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...

. He then graduated with a degree in Communications from John Carroll University

John Carroll University

John Carroll University is a private, co-educational Jesuit Catholic university in University Heights, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The university was founded in 1886 by the Society of Jesus as Saint Ignatius College.The university was founded in 1886 by the Society of Jesus, as...

 in 1982, also located in Cleveland.

Since 1982, he has worked for American Greetings Corporation, the world's largest publicly-traded greeting card company, where he is currently the Senior Editor on the Humor Staff. He also tours the country speaking at grade schools.

Writing

Cleary created the best-selling "Words are CATegorical" series for grade school readers, a 17-volume set with more than 2 million copies in print published by Lerner Publishing Group

Lerner Publishing Group

Lerner Publishing Group, based in Minneapolis in the U.S. state of Minnesota since its founding in 1959, is one of the largest independently owned children's book publishers in the United States. With more than 3,500 titles in print, Lerner Publishing Group offers nonfiction and fiction books for...

. He has also written humor essays for national and local magazines and newspapers. His cartoon writings have been published in more than 600 newspapers worldwide.

Cleary's literary influences include Ogden Nash

Ogden Nash

Frederic Ogden Nash was an American poet well known for his light verse. At the time of his death in 1971, the New York Times said his "droll verse with its unconventional rhymes made him the country's best-known producer of humorous poetry".-Early life:Nash was born in Rye, New York...

, Shel Silverstein

Shel Silverstein

Sheldon Allan "Shel" Silverstein , was an American poet, singer-songwriter, musician, composer, cartoonist, screenwriter and author of children's books. He styled himself as Uncle Shelby in his children's books...

, and E.E. Cummings.

Awards

• International Reading Association
  International Reading Association
  The International Reading Association is an international professional organization that was created in 1956 to improve reading instruction, facilitate dialogue about research on reading, and encourage the habit of reading....
  
  /Children's Book Council Children's Choice Award
• American Booksellers Association
  American Booksellers Association
  The American Booksellers Association is a non-profit industryassociation founded in 1900 that promotes independent bookstores in the United States and Canada. The ABA and its members support freedom of speech, literacy, and programs that encourage reading...
  
  Kids' Pick of the List
• Benjamin Franklin Award (First Place)
• Society of School Librarians International Book Awards, Honor Book

"Words are CATegorical" Series

Cleary's best-selling "Words are CATegorical" series include 17 titles, published from 1999 to 2010.

• Dearly, Nearly, Insincerely: What Is an Adverb?
• Hairy, Scary, Ordinary: What Is an Adjective?
• How Much Can a Bare Bear Bear?: What Are Homonyms and Homophones?
• I and You and Don’t Forget Who: What Is a Pronoun?
• A Lime, a Mime, a Pool of Slime: More about Nouns
• Lazily, Crazily, Just a Bit Nasally: More about Adverbs
• A Mink, a Fink, a Skating Rink: What Is a Noun?
• Pitch and Throw, Grasp and Know: What Is a Synonym?
• Quirky, Jerky, Extra Perky: More about Adjectives
• Slide and Slurp, Scratch and Burp: More about Verbs
• Stop and Go, Yes and No: What Is an Antonym?
• To Root, to Toot, to Parachute: What Is a Verb?
• Under, Over, By the Clover: What Is a Preposition?
• Stroll and Walk, Babble and Talk: More about Synonyms
• Straight and Curvy, Meek and Nervy: More about Antonyms
• Skin Like Milk, Hair of Silk: What Are Similes and Metaphors?
• But and For, Yet and Nor : What Is a Conjunction?

"Sounds Like Reading" Series

An 8-book series written for 1st graders and "English as second language" students, published in 2009.

• The Bug in the Jug Wants a Hug
• Stop, Drop, and Flop in the Slop
• The Nice Mice in the Rice
• The Frail Snail on the Trail
• The Thing on the Wing Can Sing
• Whose Shoes Would You Choose?
• The Peaches on the Beaches
• The Clown in the Gown Drives the Car with the Star

"Math is CATegorical" Series

A 5-book series that introduces math concepts to 3rd graders.

• The Action of Subtraction
• The Mission of Addition
• How Long or How Wide? A Measuring Guide
• On the Scale, A Weighty Tale
• Windows, Rings, and Grapes; A Look at Different Shapes

Other Lerner Book Titles

• Eight Wild Nights: A Family Hanukkah Tale (Carolrhoda Picture Books series)
• Peanut Butter and Jellyfishes: A Very Silly Alphabet Book (Millbrook Picture Books series)
• "Mrs. Riley Bought Five Itchy Aardvarks" and Other Painless Tricks for Memorizing Science Facts (Adventures in Memory series)
• Rainbow Soup: Adventures in Poetry
• The Laugh Stand: Adventures in Humor
• Rhyme & PUNishment: Adventures in Wordplay
• The Punctuation Station
• Six Sheep Sip Thick Shakes: And Other Tricky Tongue Twisters"

External links

• The World of Brian P. Cleary
• Lerner Publishing Group official site