Tom Ratliff
Tom teaches Connecticut History and Principles of Education at Central Connecticut State University. He also teaches in the Online Program for the Community Colleges of Connecticut. He is currently writing a book about Connecticut history for middle school-aged students.
Contact Tom.
Order You Wouldn't Want to Be a Civil War Soldier from Amazon.
Current Projects
I just finished writing the text for another project for Scholastic Books, You Wouldn't Want to Be a Worker on the Brooklyn Bridge.
I am also working on a story about the Flood of 1955, which devastated large parts of Connecticut.
My serialized story, The Drinking Gourd was read by a dozen elementary schools in Salina, Kansas the Salina Journal newspaper sponsored a contest with a $200.00 prize. The winners, Miss Anita Sutton's 3rd grade class at the Soderstrom Elementary School in Lindsborg, Kansas donated the money to the library in Greenburg, Kansas which was destroyed last year by a tornado.
When I was young I had no idea what I wanted to be: at various times I wanted to be a cowboy, a doctor, a famous army general, and an independently wealthy person who was permanently on vacation.
In high school I always wondered in English class how the teachers seemed to know what an author was thinking when he or she wrote something in a certain way. Secretly I believed that you couldn't really tell why someone wrote something unless you could actually ask them. And since many of the authors were long dead I had my doubts that my teachers knew what they were talking about. One reason I wanted to become a writer was to prove my teachers wrong.
I write because I love to pretend—create characters and situations, and have fun seeing how the characters solve the problems that I create for them. I also enjoy sharing my love of history—my goal as a writer and as a teacher is to get everyone to love history the way I do. I have made many converts over the years (including a certain co-author who will remain nameless), and hope to continue this streak for many years to come.
I live in Plainville, Connecticut with my son Christian. I enjoy reading historical fiction and mysteries, and would like to try my hand at writing one some day. I am currently working on a book about my experiences in Vietnam, but I have only written a few pages and it might take years for the book to be finished.
From the Midwest Book Review, May, 2004:
"Civil War Soldier: Looks at America’s bloodiest war from the perspective of what it was like to serve from both sides. The book explores everything from enlistment to medical treatments for injuries. This is a delicate subject to approach when writing a book for children and in my opinion Thomas Ratliff has done a superb job of getting the facts across in a serious yet entertaining way that is not threatening. I found it to be an enjoyable read filled with little known facts about the life of a soldier during service."
My latest project is a graphic (illustrated) version of Huckleberry Finn, which is being published by Salariya Book Company of London, through Barron's Educational Series Graphic Classics. The story is being illustrated by the Bulgarian artist Penko Gelev, who has extensive experience in this genre. This is an exciting project and one that I am happy to be a part of. The book is due out in July of 2008 although since we missed all the deadlines I suspect it might not see bookstores until September.
TOMONYMS
I have just completed my next two stories: Artemis: Huntress of the Seas, a story set on a whaling ship, which is being illustrated by Miranda Norris. A second story, Starlight: A Pony Express Story, is a fictionalized account of the Pony Express. I am also experimenting with using digital photography to illustrate one of my earlier stories about the Colt Fire in Hartford in 1864.
I have also started working on a series of NIE history pages about Abraham Lincoln for the bicentennial of his birth which will be celebrated in 2009.
Drawn by Miranda Norris
My serialized stories are being marketed nationally through the Newspaper Association of America and are currently appearing in newspapers in New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.
Learn More about Tom's serialized stories.
Last Updated on 10/4/08
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