Blue Balliett (born 1955 in New York) is an American author, who lives with her husband, three children, a grandson, and a cat. She is best known for her award-winning novel for children, ''

Chasing Vermeer ''Chasing Vermeer'' is a 2004 children's art mystery novel written by Blue Balliett and illustrated by Brett Helquist. Set in Hyde Park, Chicago near the University of Chicago, the novel follows two children, Calder Pillay and Petra Andalee. Aft ...

''. She was born Elizabeth Balliett, but her family started calling her Blue shortly after her birth. ''Chasing Vermeer'', released by

Scholastic Press Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

in 2004, is her best-known and most highly praised book. Illustrated by Brett Helquist, it concerns the fictitious theft of a painting by 17th-century Dutch artist Jan Vermeer. The book was a bestseller and won a number of accolades and awards, including the 2005

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

in the Best Juvenile category. In addition, she was awarded the

Agatha Award The Agatha Awards, named for Agatha Christie, are literary awards for mystery and crime writers who write in the traditional mystery subgenre: "books typified by the works of Agatha Christie . . . loosely defined as mysteries that contain no expli ...

in 2004 in the category Best Children's or Young Adult. A sequel, ''

The Wright 3 ''The Wright 3'' is a 2006 children's mystery novel written by Blue Balliett and illustrated by Brett Helquist. It was released in April 1, 2006, and is the sequel to Balliett's 2004 children's novel ''Chasing Vermeer''. It chronicles how Calder, ...

'', was released in April, 2006, and a third, '' The Calder Game'', was published two years later, in April 2008. ''The Danger Box'' was published in August 2010. Her next book, '' Hold Fast'' was published in 2013. Soon after, in 2015, Balliett published ''Pieces and Players''. ''Out of the Wild Night'' was published in 2018. Balliett has also published two oral histories involving Nantucket ghost stories in the 1980s, which have been consolidated into one book, "Nantucket Ghosts" released by

Down East Books Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns the book distributing comp ...

in 2006. Before releasing Chasing Vermeer, she taught third grade at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. During her tenure, she coordinated with NASA astronaut and University of Chicago alumnus

John M. Grunsfeld John Mace Grunsfeld (born 10 October 1958) is an American physicist and a former NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of five Space Shuttle flights and has served as NASA Chief Scientist. His academic background includes research in high energy astr ...

(S.M., '84, Ph.D., '88) to send her pupils' literature and creative artwork into space during a routine Hubble Space Telescope mission on the Columbia space shuttle."Alumnus will travel with Lab Schools’ project to Hubble Space Telescope"
''University of Chicago Chronicle'' Vol. 21 No. 10, Feb. 21, 2002.

References

External links

Official Web Site

Scholastic Scholastic may refer to: * a philosopher or theologian in the tradition of scholasticism * ''Scholastic'' (Notre Dame publication) * Scholastic Corporation, an American publishing company of educational materials * Scholastic Building, in New Y ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balliett, Blue 1955 births Living people American children's writers Edgar Award winners Writers from New York City Writers from Chicago Agatha Award winners American women children's writers American women novelists 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Illinois