Conrad J. Storad is the award-winning author or editor of more than 50 science and nature books for children and young adults. His newest titles include the picture books Gator, Gator, Second Grader, Monster in the Rocks, Fang and Stinger (An Arachnid Story), Arizona Way Out West & Wacky. Storad worked at Arizona State University for more than 24 years writing about science and scholarship. He was founding editor for the nationally award winning ASU Research Magazine, and Chain Reaction, an award-winning magazine for young readers. Prior to ASU, Storad worked as a reporter, editor, and general manager for The Barberton Herald newspaper in northeast Ohio. He was a science/medical writer for the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Storad earned a degree in mass media communication from the University of Akron in 1979, and a master's degree in mass communication/science journalism from ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Telecommunication in 1983. He was a Year 2000 inductee to the Cronkite School's Journalism Hall of Fame. Storad is a member of the National Association of Science Writers, Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators, International Reading Association, Libraries Limited, and is an emeritus member of the University Research Magazine Association.