About Me
Hello, friends! My name is Rebecca E. Hirsch, and I’m an award-winning children’s author and former working scientist.
I grew up playing in the woods, earned a doctorate in the life sciences, and worked in laboratories as a plant biologist before writing my first book for kids (Top 50 Reasons to Care About Polar Bears). I have gone on to publish 100 children’s books, nearly all of them about science and nature.
I write from my home in State College, Pennsylvania, where my husband and I raised our three daughters, and where I now bake bread, grow gardens, wrangle chickens, and walk in the woods with my dog. I also visit schools, sharing stories of scientific discovery and teaching the craft of writing.
Longer Bio
I am the award-winning author of 100 books for children. My books have received numerous starred reviews, appeared on many “Best of” lists, and been awarded the Riverby Award for Natural History Writing, Green Prize for Sustainable Literature, and Green Earth Book Honor.
I started my career in the life sciences. I researched how plants sense their environment, earned a doctorate in cell & molecular biology from the University of Wisconsin, and worked at Penn State University as an American Cancer Society postdoctoral fellow. Throughout this time, I took courses and did volunteer work to follow my side interest: understanding how kids learn science.
Instead of becoming a professor or research biologist, I focused my career on sharing my curiosity about science and nature with young readers. I became a children’s science writer.
I belong to the National Association of Science Writers and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. I am represented by Sarah Stephens at Red Fox Literary.
I live in State College, Pennsylvania, where my husband, jazz composer Rick Hirsch, and I raised our three daughters, and where I now grow gardens, bake bread, wrangle chickens, and take long walks in the woods with my dog.
When I’m not working on my newest book, I love to visit schools, sharing stories of scientific discovery and teaching the craft of writing.
The front yard of my childhood home in rural Pennsylvania. I grew up with nature right outside my door.
