Helen Lester


Helen Lester is an American children's writer, best known for her character Tacky the Penguin in many of her children's stories.
Lester was born in Evanston, Illinois but has moved around the United States making homes in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Minneapolis and finally settling in Pawling, New York with her husband.
As a girl, Lester dreamed of getting married but never of being a writer. She became an elementary school teacher, got married and had two sons. After her sons were born, Lester took time off as a teacher and began writing children's literature. Her works are mainly influenced by her old second-grade students who helped produce characters such as Tacky the Penguin, Pinkerton the Pig, and Fragility the Hippopotamus.
Lester's first children's book was published in 1979 and her writing career took off from there. She has now published more than two dozen books.
Lester has illustrated a few of her own books, but illustrator Lynn Munsinger has produced the illustrations for Lester's books. Lester and Munsinger have collaborated on over a dozen children books.
Beyond writing, Lester spends time traveling the country, visiting schools and encouraging children to write. She has also written Author: A True Story, directed towards young writers and based on her school visits and the editing process as a writer.

Tacky the Penguin

Tacky the Penguin is a series of children's picture books written by Lester and illustrated by Lynn Munsinger. Tacky is a fictional animal character whose individuality and humorous antics make him particularly appealing to young children. He first appeared in Tacky the Penguin, and subsequently in nine more books between 1989 and 2015. Editions of some of the books have been published in Braille, and in Spanish, Swedish, Chinese and Italian. E-book versions and audio-books have also been published. A Tacky the Penguin plush toy was marketed by Merrimakers, Inc. in 2000.

Series summary

In each book, Tacky's loud, boisterous behavior is contrasted with that of his sleek, graceful penguin companions in "Nice Icy Land." and tolerance for the odd bird is rewarded. The illustrations by Lynn Munsinger show Tacky wearing a misbuttoned Hawaiian shirt and a purple plaid bow-tie while all the other penguins have a uniformly dignified tuxedo-like appearance. The other penguins sing sweetly together, but Tacky's voice is loud and off-key. They don't like Tacky until they see his loud un-penguin-like behavior scare away a group of hunters rescuing them all. In each book, Tacky's behavior is disruptive but well-meaning and ultimately helpful, a humorous and endearing combination popular among younger readers. The books are recommended for pre-K to 3rd grade students.

Books

Tacky series