Peter Lerangis
Encyclopedia
Peter Lerangis is an author of children's
and young-adult fiction.
and The Sword Thief
, two titles in the New York Times–bestselling children's-book series The 39 Clues
, the historical novel Smiler's Bones, the YA dark comedy-adventure novel wtf, the Drama Club series, the Spy X series, the Watchers series, the Abracadabra
series, and the Antarctica two-book adventure, as well ghostwriting for series such as the Three Investigators
, the Hardy Boys Casefiles, Sweet Valley Twins, and more than forty books in the series The Baby-sitters Club
and its various spin-offs. He has also written novels based on film screenplays, including The Sixth Sense
, Sleepy Hollow
, and Beauty and the Beast
, and five video game novelizations in the Worlds of Power
series created by Seth Godin
. As a ghostwriter
he has been published under the name A. L. Singer. He contributed to the second entry in a four-novella collection, Vespers Rising, which was published in April 2011, serving as an introduction to a six-book 39 Clues sequel entitled Cahills Vs. Vespers. For this book series, he will write the third volume, to be published in March 2012.
Lerangis is the son of a retired New York Telephone Company employee and a retired public-elementary-school secretary, who raised him in Freeport
, New York
on Long Island
. He graduated from Harvard University
with a degree in biochemistry
, while acting in musicals and singing with and musically directing the a cappella
group the Harvard Krokodiloes, before moving to New York. He worked there as an actor and freelance
copy editor
for eight years before becoming an author.
In 2003, Lerangis was chosen by First Lady Laura Bush
to accompany her to the first Russian Book Festival, hosted by Russian First Lady Lyudmila Putina
in Moscow. Authors R. L. Stine
(Goosebumps
) and Marc Brown
(the Arthur the Aardvark series) also made the trip with Bush.
Also in 2003, Lerangis was commissioned by the United Kingdom
branch of Scholastic to write X-Isle, one of four books that would relaunch the Point Horror
series there. A sequel, Return to X-Isle, was published in 2004.
In 2007, Scholastic announced the launch of a new historical mystery series called The 39 Clues, intended to become a franchise. Lerangis wrote the third book in the series, The Sword Thief, published in March 2009. On March 3, 2009, Scholastic announced that Lerangis would write the seventh book in the series, The Viper's Nest.
Lerangis lives in New York City
with his wife, musician Tina deVaron, and their sons Nick and Joe.
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
and young-adult fiction.
Career
Lerangis's work includes The Viper's NestThe Viper's Nest
The Viper's Nest is the seventh book in The 39 Clues series. It was written by Peter Lerangis and was released by Scholastic on February 2, 2010. The 39 Clues series is intended for children aged 8–12, and takes the form of a multimedia adventure story spanning 10 books...
and The Sword Thief
The Sword Thief
The Sword Thief is the third book in The 39 Clues series. It was written by Peter Lerangis and was published by Scholastic on March 3, 2009. The Sword Thief follows the first two books in the series, The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan and One False Note by Gordon Korman...
, two titles in the New York Times–bestselling children's-book series The 39 Clues
The 39 Clues
The 39 Clues consists of two series of adventure books, The Clue Hunt and Cahills vs. Vespers, combining reading, online gaming, and card collecting...
, the historical novel Smiler's Bones, the YA dark comedy-adventure novel wtf, the Drama Club series, the Spy X series, the Watchers series, the Abracadabra
Abracadabra
Abracadabra is an incantation used as a magic word in stage magic tricks, and historically was believed to have healing powers when inscribed on an amulet...
series, and the Antarctica two-book adventure, as well ghostwriting for series such as the Three Investigators
Three Investigators
The Three Investigators is an American juvenile detective book series first published as "Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators" but also expanded in Germany. It was created by Robert Arthur, Jr., who believed using a famous figure such as movie director Hitchcock would attract attention....
, the Hardy Boys Casefiles, Sweet Valley Twins, and more than forty books in the series The Baby-sitters Club
The Baby-Sitters Club
The Baby-sitters Club is a series of novels written by Ann M. Martin and published by Scholastic between 1986 and 2000, that sold 17 milllon copies. Many of the novels were ghostwritten, including 43 by Peter Lerangis. However, Ann Martin wrote the first 35 novels.The series is about a group of...
and its various spin-offs. He has also written novels based on film screenplays, including The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense is a 1999 American psychological thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film tells the story of Cole Sear , a troubled, isolated boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and an equally troubled child psychologist who tries to help him...
, Sleepy Hollow
Sleepy Hollow (film)
Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 American period horror film directed by Tim Burton. It is a film adaptation loosely inspired by the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving and stars Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Marc Pickering, Michael Gambon, Jeffrey Jones,...
, and Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
, and five video game novelizations in the Worlds of Power
Worlds of Power
The Worlds of Power books are a series of novelizations of video games for the Nintendo Entertainment System released in the early 1990s. The series was created by Seth Godin and is characterized by the fact that they are mostly "male-oriented titles," that take creative liberties with their source...
series created by Seth Godin
Seth Godin
Seth Godin is an American entrepreneur, author and public speaker. Godin popularized the topic of permission marketing.-Background:...
. As a ghostwriter
Ghostwriter
A ghostwriter is a professional writer who is paid to write books, articles, stories, reports, or other texts that are officially credited to another person. Celebrities, executives, and political leaders often hire ghostwriters to draft or edit autobiographies, magazine articles, or other written...
he has been published under the name A. L. Singer. He contributed to the second entry in a four-novella collection, Vespers Rising, which was published in April 2011, serving as an introduction to a six-book 39 Clues sequel entitled Cahills Vs. Vespers. For this book series, he will write the third volume, to be published in March 2012.
Lerangis is the son of a retired New York Telephone Company employee and a retired public-elementary-school secretary, who raised him in Freeport
Freeport, New York
Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
. He graduated from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
with a degree in biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
, while acting in musicals and singing with and musically directing the a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
group the Harvard Krokodiloes, before moving to New York. He worked there as an actor and freelance
Freelancer
A freelancer, freelance worker, or freelance is somebody who is self-employed and is not committed to a particular employer long term. These workers are often represented by a company or an agency that resells their labor and that of others to its clients with or without project management and...
copy editor
Copy editing
Copy editing is the work that an editor does to improve the formatting, style, and accuracy of text. Unlike general editing, copy editing might not involve changing the substance of the text. Copy refers to written or typewritten text for typesetting, printing, or publication...
for eight years before becoming an author.
In 2003, Lerangis was chosen by First Lady Laura Bush
Laura Bush
Laura Lane Welch Bush is the wife of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. She was the First Lady of the United States from January 20, 2001, to January 20, 2009. She has held a love of books and reading since childhood and her life and education have reflected that interest...
to accompany her to the first Russian Book Festival, hosted by Russian First Lady Lyudmila Putina
Lyudmila Putina
Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Putina is the wife of former Russian President and current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.She married Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin on July 28, 1983; they have two daughters, Maria, born 1985 and Yekaterina...
in Moscow. Authors R. L. Stine
R. L. Stine
Robert Lawrence Stine , known as R. L. Stine, and Jovial Bob Stine, is an American writer. Stine, who is called the "Stephen King of children's literature," is the author of hundreds of horror fiction novels, including the books in the Fear Street, Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, and The...
(Goosebumps
Goosebumps
Goosebumps is a series of children's horror fiction novels written by American author R. L. Stine and first published by Scholastic Publishing. It is a collection of stories that feature semi-homogenous plot structures, with fictional children being involved in scary situations...
) and Marc Brown
Marc Brown (author)
Marc Tolon Brown is an American writer of children's books. He writes as well as illustrates his Arthur books, and is best known for that series and its spin-offs. He currently lives in Hingham, Massachusetts. The names of his two sons, Tolon Adam and Tucker Eliot, have been hidden in all of the...
(the Arthur the Aardvark series) also made the trip with Bush.
Also in 2003, Lerangis was commissioned by the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
branch of Scholastic to write X-Isle, one of four books that would relaunch the Point Horror
Point Horror
Point Horror is series of young adult horror fiction books which include authors such as Richie Tankersley Cusick, Ljane Smith, R. L. Stine, Christopher Pike, Caroline B. Cooney, Diane Hoh, Carol Ellis, Auline Bates, Lael Littke, Barbara Steiner, D. E...
series there. A sequel, Return to X-Isle, was published in 2004.
In 2007, Scholastic announced the launch of a new historical mystery series called The 39 Clues, intended to become a franchise. Lerangis wrote the third book in the series, The Sword Thief, published in March 2009. On March 3, 2009, Scholastic announced that Lerangis would write the seventh book in the series, The Viper's Nest.
Lerangis lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with his wife, musician Tina deVaron, and their sons Nick and Joe.
Awards
- Last Stop, the first book in Lerangis's science fiction/mystery series Watchers, was selected by the American Library AssociationAmerican Library AssociationThe American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
as a 1999 Best Book for Reluctant Readers.
- War, the fourth book in the series Watchers, was selected by the International Reading AssociationInternational Reading AssociationThe International Reading Association is an international professional organization that was created in 1956 to improve reading instruction, facilitate dialogue about research on reading, and encourage the habit of reading....
and the Children's Book Council as a 2000 Children's Choice book.
- Lerangis's 2006 historical novel Smiler's Bones was a Junior Library Guild selection and was named among the New York Public LibraryNew York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
Best Books for Teens 2006 and the Bank StreetBank Street College of EducationBank Street College of Education is located in Manhattan, New York City.-History:Bank Street was founded in 1916 by Lucy Sprague Mitchell as the "Bureau of Educational Experiments"....
Best Books of 2006.