Kathy Brodsky (born January 8, 1945) is an American author and poet. She has written seventeen books, sixteen of which are children's books, and one that is a collection of 65 poems reflecting her observations and insights about life. She was the writer-in-residence at the Pierce School in Bennington, New Hampshire, and at the Harold Martin School in Hopkinton, New Hampshire.
Brodsky is a presenter for the Children's Literacy Foundation and has spoken at writer's conferences around the United States, and she has made guest appearances at libraries and schools across New England. According to the WorldCat global catalog of library collections, Brodsky's works are held by 111 libraries worldwide.
Some of Brodsky's books have been published in a Braille edition for readers who are blind or visually impaired. One of her titles has been translated into Spanish.
Brodsky's books have won multiple awards, including two national honors from the Green Book Festival, Book of the Year from Creative Child Magazine, and a top 10 listing from the International Literacy Association and Children's Book Council's Children's Choice Reading List. Each year 12,500 school children from throughout the United States read newly published children's and young adult books and vote for their favorites. Brodsky was selected for this list in 2014.
Her books have been featured and reviewed in Publishers Weekly, The Huffington Post, Orange County Register, Edmonton Sun, The Guardian, New Hampshire Union Leader, Concord Monitor, Cape Cod Times, Monadnock Ledger-Transcript, The Portsmouth Herald, The Amherst Citizen, Foster's Daily Democrat, and The Telegraph.
Brodsky is a psychotherapist, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker specializing in individual, women's, couples, and family issues. She has been quoted for her expertise as a therapist in The Wall Street Journal, The Sunday Independent (South Africa), the New Hampshire Union Leader, and Parenting NH.
Psychotherapy career Prior to attending graduate school at Simmons College School of Social Work in Boston, Brodsky worked at Massachusetts General Hospital at a walk-in clinic connected to the psychiatry department. Later, as part of her clinical social work training in grad school, she worked at a youth guidance center in Framingham, Massachusetts, followed by a year counseling veterans at the VA Hospital in Bedford, Massachusetts.
After earning her MSW in 1970, Brodsky worked for five years as a therapist for the Greater Manchester, NH, Mental Health Center, an outpatient and acute residential treatment facility, where she was responsible for intake and therapy for adolescents and adults. Starting in 1976, Brodsky was a therapist at Child and Family Services of New Hampshire, a non-profit agency, where she counseled individuals; she later began helping couples, often prior to divorce, deal with their next phase of life.
Following her eight-year tenure at Child and Family Services, Brodsky was named the citywide school and family education liaison, helping families of children with special needs in Manchester – the largest and most diverse public school district in the state, with 14,000 students. In 1987, she opened her private counseling and therapy practice, which she continues to this day.
Writing career Brodsky began her writing career with a poetry book, Moments in our Lives: A Woman's Eye View, published in 2004. The book consists of a series of poems capturing her experiences as a woman and a therapist. According to The Laconia Daily Sun, these poems "reveal joys, strength and courage in dealing with stressful personal situations." Florence Henderson wrote of the book, "Brodsky's poems are a delight. They are full of humor, compassion, and insight into women's joy, frustration, and sadness." Brodsky also recorded Moment of our Lives for audio listening.
Brodsky's writing focuses on simple, everyday events that bring to mind larger issues in the world. Her first volume of essays, Moments in our Lives, illustrates universal life events and experiences – memories of childhood, the joys of pets, and walks in the woods.
Children's Stories After Moments in our Lives, Brodsky turned to writing children's books. The stories are all told in rhyming verse, and the poems aim to entertain while integrating social messages about the important issues children deal with in their lives. The Laconia Daily Sun writes that Brodsky's work "features lovable characters and their lively adventures concluding with questions designed to engage readers and activities meant to enjoy individually or in a group." While each of Brodsky's stories has its own protagonist, the characters from her other books make appearances in each other's stories, allowing for recurring supporting characters in all Brodsky's books.
"And rhythm is important," Brodsky told book reviewer Ella Johnson, in a 2011 interview. "Each of my books started as a poem. What I like about poetry is that it's very succinct. Each character in my books comes from either something someone has said to me or something I've seen."
Brodsky's stories reflect her lifelong interest in animals and nature. The characters in them include dogs, cats, pigs, horses, and a talking tree. All stories have discussion questions at the back of the book, so that teachers and parents can talk about the major themes of each book, turning each story into an opportunity for further discussion. The stories cover issues that include peer pressure, healthy eating, and self-confidence.
According to WorldCat, psychological themes found in Brodsky's books include the subjects: self-actualization, self-esteem, self-realization, change, identity, and individual responsibility.
"Because I am a therapist, my books all have very positive messages," Brodsky told the New Hampshire Union Leader in a 2017 interview. Her books focus on topics such as being true to who you are, accepting others who are different, the advantages of unusual friendships and adjusting to change, she told the newspaper.
In a review in the Children's Book Review, Hannah Coloson writes that Brodsky's stories "gently promote conversations about the issues today facing children and families, like childhood obesity, bullying, and the amount of time children spend plugged in."
Inspiration for Brodsky's writing Brodsky attributes her 50+ years as a clinical social worker as a partial inspiration for her writing. In an interview with author Rebecca Rule, Brodsky said the stories her clients have told her "often reveal great courage, inner strength and joy." Brodsky said she has witnessed the human struggle to "overcome personal difficulties that started in childhood." "My books for children have messages in them that come from my social work experience...differences, friendship, loyalty, and social action," Brodsky told journalist Michael Cousineau in a 2008 interview in the New Hampshire Sunday News. "I feel very strongly that all of us can be productive and contribute, even if we may be different in some way."
"Kids go through so many changes in their young lives, and my books help teach them how to grow stronger through those difficult times," Brodsky told journalist Kimberly Houghton in a 2017 interview.
Brodsky's books also highlight the importance of safety and kindness — two things that she believes are critical for children to learn at a young age.
My Bent Tree A walk in her neighborhood inspired her first children's story, My Bent Tree. She was walking her dog and saw a crooked pine scarred by an old lightning strike. It reminded Brodsky of her own childhood encounter with polio, as well as her many clients' challenges with adversity, yet "reveal great courage, inner strength and joy" by overcoming those challenges. The poem became a reflection upon early life experiences marking us permanently, but also becoming aspects of our lives that help us to grow into who we become.
In 2018, for a 10th anniversary edition, My Bent Tree was published in a bilingual Spanish/English version - Mi Árbol Doblado / My Bent Tree.
In addition to telling the importance of embracing diversity and overcoming hardships, My Bent Tree also concerns issues of environmentalism. The book received an award at the Green Book Festival, which honors "books that contribute to greater understanding, respect for, and positive action on the changing worldwide environment." It has additionally been showcased by the Children's Book Council. The Girl Scouts magazine The Studio featured My Bent Tree in its article discussing how inspiration can come from anywhere. The Girl Scouts magazine also awarded a Brownie Badge to My Bent Tree under the category "My Best Self" for promoting self-esteem awareness.
My Bent Tree was recorded as a talking book by the Perkins School for the Blind for its students to listen to Brodsky's writing. The Perkins School also published this book in Braille.
While writing My Bent Tree, Brodsky commissioned artist Cameron Bennett to provide full-color illustrations for the story. The two have since collaborated on all of her picture books. Bennett's illustrations are created with acrylic paint on canvas. As a 10th anniversary edition, My Bent Tree was published as a bilingual Spanish-language version - Mi Árbol Doblado / My Bent Tree in 2018.
The Inside Story Brodsky's third book, The Inside Story, began as an off-hand comment from a friend. Brodsky asked if her friend would like Brodsky to mail some letters for her, and the friend responded, "they'll be very happy." This led Brodsky to imagine happy letters, excited to go where they are going. Rebecca Rule writes in her review that it is a story "about what happens on those occasions (rare these days, it seems) when one writes and mails a personal letter, told from the point of view of an envelope." This gave Brodsky an opportunity to broach the idea of change and how children can best understand and cope with it. Brodsky explains: "Even though the story is an adventure about recycling and the mail system, I think the main theme is about change. Change is difficult for all of us. Kids often deal with change -- in school, in their families, in their neighborhoods." For its discussion of recycling, the book received a national citation from the Green Book Festival in San Francisco.
Just Sniffing Around
Her fourth book, Just Sniffing Around, was dedicated to her French mastiff Cali, who died in 2008. The book opens with a picture of Cali, as well as a poem entitled "We are so Lucky to Have Each Other." The illustrations in the book are modeled from Cali. Just Sniffing Around tells the story of a curious dog and the challenges of raising him. The discussion questions in the book focus on the responsibility of pet ownership, as well as the roles dogs play within the lives of their human companions. Pamme Boutselis of Parenting NH magazine writes that the book emphasizes "the special qualities that Brodsky feels these incredible four-legged beings bring to our lives."
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