Mary Northrup is the reference librarian at Metropolitan Community College Maple Woods, Kansas City, Missouri. She has written for children, teachers, librarians, and writers. Her publication credits include several chapters in Writing and Publishing: The Librarians Handbook (American Library Association, 2010) and the books Short on Time, Long on Learning (Linworth, 2000) and American Computer Pioneers (Enslow, 1998). She has written for Writer s Institute Publications, including four editions of Writer s Guide to Current Children s Books, and is a frequent contributor to its annual Children s Writer Guide. She reviews for LMC: Library Media Connection and EMRO: Educational Media Reviews Online. Her articles have appeared in Book Links, Children s Writer, and other publications. Northrup earned her master s degree in library science at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Her undergraduate degree is in elementary education. She serves on the board of the Missouri Center for the Book.