Matt Raymond from the Library of Congress speaks with Judith Viorst, who appeared at the 2010 National Book Festival on September 25, 2010, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Biography

Judith Viorst is the author of several works of fiction and nonfiction for children as well as adults. “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day,” her most famous children’s book, was first published in 1972 and has since sold more than 2 million copies. Viorst received a B.A. in history from Rutgers University, and she is also a graduate of the Washington Psychoanalytic Institute, where she is a research affiliate. She began her career as a poet and has since completed six collections of poems for adults. Her first novel for adults, “Murdering Mr. Monti,” was published in 1994, and her nonfiction book “Imperfect Control,” was published in January 1998. Viorst’s children’s books include “The Tenth Good Thing About Barney,” “The Alphabet From Z to A” and the “Alexander” stories, including “Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday.” Her recent work is “Lulu and the Brontosaurus” (Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing). She lives in Washington, D.C.