Stand Up and Whistle

When seventh grader Jeannie learns that Keelor Construction plans to exterminate two prairie dog colonies to make way for construction projects, she takes immediate action. From taking part in a protest, to organizing a petition drive, to speaking before city council, Jeannie fights to save the threatened animals. She manages to balance this activism with her schoolwork and auditioning for the school talent show with her best friend, Mary Jo. With support from her friends, schoolmates, family, and other adults, Jeannie learns the power of people acting together, and that anyone can make a difference if they decide to act.

Phyllis Perry of Boulder, CO

Phyllis J. Perry is the award-winning author of more than eighty books for children and adults. Many of her books have been about animals ranging from a field guide of the ocean animals off the coast of Australia, to books about training rescue dogs, to those about tigers, crocodiles, bats, and even mice. As a former teacher in California, New Jersey, and Colorado, she writes books that she that will inform and interest young readers.

Agnieszka Grochalska

Agnieszka Grochalska is an illustrator living and working in Warsaw, Poland. As a child she wanted to be an astronaut or a jet pilot. Eventually she changed her mind and dedicated her keen eye and steady hand to drawing precise and detailed compositions reminiscent of classical storybook illustrations.

She received a MFA in Graphic Arts in 2014, exploring traditional painting, printmaking, and sculpting along the way. Currently she works predominantly in digital medium, striving to make it look as natural as her works drawn traditionally. Her illustrative works were featured in group exhibitions both in Poland and abroad.