Ingram, Scott 1948–

(W. Scott Ingram)

PERSONAL: Born September 27, 1948, in Schenectady, NY; son of William Ingram (a consultant) and Winifred Sellick (a realtor); married; wife's name Carol (an artist), 1976; children: Miles, Abby. Education: University of Connecticut, B.A.; Wesleyan University, M.A. Hobbies and other interests: Bicycling, guitar.

ADDRESSES: Home—Portland, CT. Office—245 Long Hill Rd., Middletown, CT 06457. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Weekly Reader Corp., Stamford, CT, managing editor, 1979–. Member of Board of Education, Portland, CT.

AWARDS, HONORS: Educational Press Awards, 1985, 1988, 1994, and 1995.

WRITINGS:

(With Herschell Gordon Lewis) Symbol of America: Norman Rockwell, Lynell Marketing (Huntingdon Valley, PA), 1982.

Bloody Waters: Terrorizing Shark Tales, illustrated by Ron Rundo, Lowell House (Chicago, IL), 1995.

Beast: Hair-Raising Horror Stories, illustrated by Brian W. Dow, Lowell House (Chicago, IL), 1996.

More Scary Stories for Stormy Nights, illustrated by Eric Angeloch, Lowell House (Chicago, IL), 1996.

Maggot Madness!, illustrated by Ginny Pruitt, Random House (New York, NY), 1997.

Scary Shark Stories, interior illustrations by Eric Angeloch, Lowell House (Chicago, IL), 1997.

(Under name W. Scott Ingram) Oregon, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2000.

(Under name W. Scott Ingram) Jefferson Davis, Blackbirch Press (Woodbridge, CT), 2002.

(Under name W. Scott Ingram) Aaron Burr and the Young Nation, Blackbirch Press (Woodbridge, CT), 2002.

The Battle of Fredericksburg, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Frank Lloyd Wright, Raintree (Chicago, IL), 2003.

Kansas, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2003.

The Song Dynasty, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Writing of "The Star Spangled Banner," World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2004.

Nicolaus Copernicus: Father of Modern Astronomy, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Panama Canal, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

(With Christina M. Girod) The Indian Americans, Lucent Books (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Stock Market Crash of 1929, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2005.

Tsunami!: The 1946 Hilo Wave of Terror, Bearport Pub. (New York, NY), 2005.

Want Fries with That? Obesity and the Supersizing of America, Franklin Watts (New York, NY), 2005.

(With Sabrina Crewe) The 1963 Civil Rights March, Gareth Stevens Publishing (Milwaukee, WI), 2005.

A Basketball All-Star, Heinemann Library (Chicago, IL), 2005.

The Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster, Facts on File (New York, NY), 2005.

A Football All-Pro, Heinemann Library (Chicago, IL), 2005.

Dolphins, Bearport Pub. (New York, NY), 2006.

"TRIANGLE HISTORIES REVOLUTIONARY WAR" SERIES

John Paul Jones, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

The Battle of Yorktown, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

George Washington, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Paul Revere, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Battle of Bunker Hill, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Battle of Long Island, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Battle of Valcour Bay, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

King George III, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

"LIBRARY OF AMERICAN IMMIGRATION" SERIES

Korean Americans, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2007.

Mexican Americans, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2007.

South Asian Americans, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2007.

"IMMIGRATION TO THE UNITED STATES" SERIES

Greek Immigrants, Facts on File (New York, NY), 2005.

Japanese Immigrants, Facts on File (New York, NY), 2005.

Polish Immigrants, Facts on File (New York, NY), 2005.

"HISTORY'S VILLAINS" SERIES

Joseph Stalin, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Adolf Hitler, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Francisco Pizarro, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Attila the Hun, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Kim Il Sung, Blackbirch Press/Thomson Gale (San Diego, CA), 2004.

"AMERICA'S LEADERS" SERIES

The President of the United States, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2000.

The Secretary of Defense, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2002.

The Vice President of the United States, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 2002.

The National Security Advisor, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Secretary of Commerce, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Secretary of Labor, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The Secretary of Treasury, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

The FBI Director, Blackbirch Press (San Diego, CA), 2004.

"LIBRARY OF THE STATES" SERIES; UNDER NAME W. SCOTT INGRAM

Kansas: The Sunflower State, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2002.

Missouri: The Show Me State, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2002.

Oregon: The Beaver State, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2002.

Pennsylvania: The Keystone State, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2002.

California: The Golden State, World Almanac Library (Milwaukee, WI), 2002.

SIDELIGHTS: A prolific author of nonfiction books for younger readers, Scott Ingram writes frequently on topics related to history, civics, and culture. He has written biographies of historical figures ranging from architect Frank Lloyd Wright to a variety of infamous characters, including Attila the Hun, Joseph Stalin, and Adolf Hitler. Ingram has penned a series of Revolutionary War and Civil War histories, written several volumes about U.S. states, and created two series on immigration in the United States. He has also written a series of informative books on the workings of the U.S. presidency and several cabinet-level positions in the administration.

Though many of Ingram's works are designed to be more easily approached by younger readers, other works take more substantive approaches to social problems. In Want Fries with That? Obesity and the Supersizing of America, Ingram covers a wide variety of medical and social issues related to obesity, including health risks, increased likelihood of diseases such as diabetes among the obese, and the often painful social effects of obesity, especially among the young. Among the topics covered by Ingram are the causes of obesity, the meaning of calories, the effects of obesity, and overcoming obesity with exercise, sensible caloric intake, and a commonsense approach to living and eating. Ingram also looks at how advertising, the fast-food industry, and other commercial and social factors have led to increased occurrences of obesity. Several individual case studies offer real-life examples of the effects of obesity. Booklist reviewer Carolyn Phelan called it a "well-organized book" with "timely information" for students and other interested readers. Ingram "consistently maintains a compassionate tone" in his book, which is a "timely, serious look at a national health crisis," commented Joyce Adams in the School Library Journal.

Ingram told CA: "Reading and writing have always been at the center of my life. People who knew me thirty years ago would not be surprised to learn that I make my living with language. As an author, editor, and parent I get a great deal of enjoyment from passing my scary stories under my kids' stern eyes and seeing them make faces as they read something icky that I have invented.

"Oddly enough, I think writing gross stuff has increased my stature with my kids; before this, I was just a regular old dad who wrote news stories for Weekly Reader. Now that they know characters in my stories are filled with worms or eaten by sharks, they think I'm really onto something—they actually talk about my work with their friends. Ahhh … success."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, July, 2004, Ed Sullivan, review of Kim Il Sung, p. 1832; November 15, 2005, Carolyn Phelan, review of Want Fries with That? Obesity and the Supersizing of America, p. 36.

School Library Journal, September, 2002, Donna L. Scanlon, review of Pennsylvania: The Keystone State, p. 246; October, 2002, Carol Wichman, review of Aaron Burr and the Young Nation, p. 186; January, 2003, Elizabeth M. Reardon, review of Jefferson Davis, p. 162; March, 2003, Kristina Aaronson, review of The Battle of York-town, p. 252; March, 2003, Marion F. Gallivan, review of Attila the Hun, p. 252; March, 2004, Dona Ratterree, review of The Battle of Long Island, p. 236; June, 2004, Linda Beck, review of King George III, p. 167; August, 2004, Peg Glisson, review of The Song Dynasty, p. 138; March, 2005, Janice C. Hayes, review of A Basketball All-Star, p. 230; June, 2005, Ann Joslin, review of Nicolaus Copernicus: Father of Modern Astronomy, p. 178; January, 2006, Joyce Adams, review of Want Fries with That?, p. 152; February, 2006, Eva Elisabeth VonAncken, review of Tsunami!: The 1946 Hilo Wave of Terror, p. 120.