Shirley Smith Duke is the author of 15 books and writes for children of all ages. No Bows! (Peachtree Publishers) is her first picture book, a story for toddlers about a little girl with her own ideas. Unthinkable, a YA horror book, came out in 2010. Her latest science books are: You Can’t Wear These Genes, Infections, Infestations, and Diseases, Environmental Disasters, Enterprise STEM, Forces and Motion at Work. Gases (Cherry Lake Publishing) is in the Science Lab series and combines reading with science. Shirley has written three new science books and two math books for Rourke that will be out in 2013. Her books are available at Rourke Publishers. She’s also written two science experiment books for the lower grades that are forthcoming. In the past, she’s written eight commissioned books for a Dallas area businessman and has done ghost writing for children’s books. Shirley also writes teacher guides for Peachtree Publishers and began her children’s writing career by writing seven articles for the teen magazine Latingirl. She’s spoken at state and national conferences, including ALA, TLA, NAEYC, and TSRA. She taught science, reading, and ESL for twenty-five years in elementary school, middle school, and high school in San Antonio, Dallas, and Garland. She holds a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's degree in education from Austin College in Sherman, Texas. Shirley's interest in children's books grew from her love of reading and she has been writing for children for the past fourteen years. She participates in the Librarian’s Choices Best Books Committee at Texas Women’s University. Her interests include reading (of course!), cooking, and gardening. She alternates living in Garland, Texas and the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico with her husband.