Born in Austin, Texas, Valerie Gribben grew up in Montgomery, Alabama, in a house containing more than 3,500 books. In addition to reading and writing and finishing high school, Valerie's other interests include painting, piano playing, singing, and acting in community theater groups. Valerie's father reads aloud to her from all kinds of stories-mysteries, comic books, poems, travelogues, and, of course, fairy tales.

Biography provided by the publisher, September 2003.