If You Were a Minus Sign (Math Fun) - Softcover

Primary math concepts are introduced using creative examples, easy-to-understand text and art illustration.

Trisha Speed Shaskan was born and raised in Winona, Minnesota, where she waterskied on the Mississippi River, played basketball, and skateboarded. She has written more than forty books for children and taught creative writing to children and teens. Trisha received a 2012 Minnesota State Artist's Initiative Grant. She won the 2009 McKnight Artist Fellowship for Writers, Loft Award in Children's Literature/Older Children. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband, Stephen Shaskan, who is a children's book author and illustrator.

I always thought of books like a treasure chest, and the illustrations, like windows to look inside. My mother says, I was born with a pencil in hand...my left hand. I drew before I was able to speak. When I was eight years old, we moved into a new home, a big one. Our hobbies-room in this new home was so white that I had an idea. I decided to make it more colorful and I filled the walls with my characters. The ceiling was the only place that was not touched by my pencils. This was the beginning of my artist's freelance career. Since then, my funny characters have stayed with me everywhere, at grade school first, then at University in Rome where I studied Art and Literature. Now, the characters share the attic where I work, with me and my sweet black dog, Luna.

Christianne Jones is an award-winning author of books for younger children. Her picture book Lacey Walker, Nonstop Talker won a 2013 Gelett Burgess Award and was a Midwest Book Award finalist, and Hello, Goodbye, and a Very Little Lie was listed as one of the 100 best children's books by popular parenting site babble.com. Christianne lives in Mankato, Minnesota, with her husband and three daughters.