Joanna Cole is the author of a wealth of children’s books on various subjects. Cole’s fertile imagination has provided beginning readers with jokes and puzzles, humorous tales of the Clown-Around family, and books about science. The winner of countless awards, Cole follows her own widespread interests to write. She is credited with introducing the interesting world of science to young readers through her book series such as the hugely popular “Magic School Bus” books, which inspired its own television program. A careful researcher, Cole is praised for her scientific accuracy, but her books gain most of their effectiveness from her humor and easily understood explanations of difficult technical subjects.