A critically acclaimed poet and children's book author, Elizabeth Spires won a 1996 Whiting Award for her volume Worldling and has been praised for her poems that use quotidian moments to ruminate upon universal themes such as happiness, mortality, travel, parent-child bonding, and life stages. Spires's children's books include With One White Wing and Riddle Road: Puzzles in Poems and Pictures. These companion picture books offer very young children a chance to guess at rhyming riddles, using the illustrations and the snatches of poetry as clues. The Mouse of Amherst is perhaps Spires's best known children's book. The brief but beguiling tale is narrated by Emmaline, a mouse who has taken up residence behind the wall in Emily Dickinson's room. Intrigued by Dickinson's labors at her desk, Emmaline finally discovers the poet's talents when a sheet of paper falls to the floor. The inspired mouse responds with her own poetry, and a friendship is struck.
Portrait by Jerry Bauer
