American children's author known for his numerous picture book collaborations with Artist Lane Smith. His best-known works include the Trucktown series and the Time Warp Trio.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts from Michigan's Albion College and his Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from New York's Columbia University.
His popular non-serial children's works include Math Curse and The Stinky Cheese Man.
He and his five brothers grew up in Michigan and Indiana. His marriage to Jerilyn Hansen produced a son and a daughter.
He and fellow children's author Kate DiCamillo were both appointed the Library of Congress's National Ambassador for Young People's Literature in 2008 and 2014, respectively.
