Christine Petrell Kallevig (1955-) Biography

Born 1955, in Grand Forks, ND; Education: University of Kansas, B.A., 1978; graduate study at University of Georgia, 1980. Hobbies and other interests: Origami, gardening, hiking.

Addresses

Office—Storytime Ink International, P.O. Box 470505, Cleveland, OH 44147.

Career

Music therapist in Atlanta, GA, 1978–84; special-education teacher in Thomasville, GA, 1981–84; public speaker and professional storyteller in Cleveland OH, 1990–; writer.

Writings

Folding Stories: Storytelling and Origami Together as One, photographs by Eleanor Draper, Storytime Ink International (Newburgh, IN), 1991.

Holiday Folding Stories: Storytelling and Origami Together for Holiday Fun, photographs by Terey Page, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 1992.

Bible Folding Stories: Old Testament Stories and Paperfolding Together as One, photographs by Eric Skarl, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 1993.

All about Pockets: Storytime Activities for Early Childhood, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 1993.

Carry Me Home Cuyahoga: An Historical Novel, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 1996.

Fold-along Stories: Quick and Easy Origami Tales for Beginners, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 2001.

Please Pass Grandma's Leg: The Case of the Sacked Potatoes, Storytime Ink International (Broadview Heights, OH), 2004.

Sidelights

Author and origami artist Christine Petrell Kallevig has combined experience and knowledge gained through a variety of job experiences in her current children's books, dubbing her innovative story-telling technique "storigami." In addition to working as a storyteller, Kallevig is the author of several origami-illustrated storybooks, among them Fold-along Stories: Quick and Easy Origami Tales for Beginners. In this 2002 book, designed for teachers, librarians, and other storytellers, Kallevig briefly describes the process of making the origami figures that fill her pages, then relates several short stories that are guaranteed to captivate young audiences. "Optional follow-up activities and a list of sources that combine stories and origami makes [Foldalong Stories] … a useful book," noted School Library Journal reviewer Mary Lankford.

Kallevig told SATA: "I was an avid reader long before I ever tried to write a creative thought of my own. And then I was a journal and short-story writer long before I began teaching, just as I was a teacher long before I began telling stories to large groups of people. I learned to knit and sew at an early age, long before I knew anything about origami, but mysteriously, all of these past vocations and obsessions have now blended together to define my current work. I illustrate stories with the progressive folds of origami models, traveling nationwide, telling and folding, teaching and creating. I am honored to do this work and endeavor to spread joy and open minds to creative possibilities during every visit."