Author Visits - Elizabeth Levy

Elizabeth Levy got a rave review from an elementary school librarian over on LM_NET. I'd never heard of this fabulous author so I had to check her out. Sure, she's written over 80 books (her Fletcher series is illustrated by Caldecott Award-winning Mordicai Gerstein) . Sure, she's witty, engaging, intentional. But have you seen the website?! Nothing fancy but perfectly, aerodynamically designed to let her Readers get to know her and let schools know how they could have one of the best author visits ever! It really made me wish more author websites were like hers.
Organized into a Home page, About, Books, Presentations and Links (one of which is ALA!), this site is chock full of easy-to-read and manage information about Levy, her books and her craft. In her About section, she talks about getting to travel and meet all the kids who have connected to her stories. She posted a drawing of the beloved Fletcher that a student from India drew. Her Books section is so easy to navigate it's criminal. Beautifully organized into grade-level fiction, non-fiction and adaptations (in which we find she adapted Return of the Jedi and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids! Hey! Hey! Hey!)
I have this much experience writing and publishing anything (this much = zilch), but I do know that one side effect of being an author is promoting yourself and your work. And, I'll tell you what, the easier you can make that for schools and libraries, the easier you can make that for yourself. Because, let's be honest. You write a children's book that either adult parents will buy or adult teachers and librarians will hustle, I mean, suggest. In either equation, until you get down through the kiddo rumor mill of what an awesome, must-read book you've written, the adults play a large role. Elizabeth Levy's website is a great example of how to present yourself, your books, your genre, your character. Now, whoever hires Levy will feel comfortable and confident that, at least based on the website, they are inviting a fabulous author into their school. And from the handful of reviews I've read, they won't be disappointed.
Any other authors out there with amazing websites?! I should post a TARGET on LM_NET. Hmmm ...