Tim Grove

Tim Grove writes about American history,  striving to show the complexity of the past and making history accessible to all ages. His most recent book, Star-Spangled, was a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2020. His book First Flight Around the World was a 2016 YALSA excellence in nonfiction finalist. His fourth nonfiction book for ages 10-14 will be published in 2022. His career memoir, A Grizzly in the Mail and Other Adventures in American History, highlights some of the fun projects he worked on as a public historian, educator, and exhibition developer at three Smithsonian museums. He lives in the Washington, D.C. area. 

Facebook: @TimGroveAuthor

Favorite non-reading activity?

If I can count travel as an activity, I love to explore new places whether nearby or far away. Travel stimulates my senses. In a whole new environment, I can focus on where I am and lose any worries. I usually return from travel refreshed and wanting to write.

Is there a work of art that you love. Why? Have you ever visited it in person?

I used to work at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery and one of my favorite portraits in that collection depicts the abolitionist John Brown, by artist Ole Peter Hansen Balling. With a bushy white beard and wild head of hair, John Brown exudes emotion. He was such a fascinating character and the artist has done such a great job of showing his complexity. Plus, if I remember correctly, it was painted while Brown was in prison awaiting his execution.

Is there another profession you would like to try?

I always thought it would be fun to be a landscape architect. It combines my interest in architecture, design, and gardens.

If you could create a museum exhibition, what would be the theme?

For someone who has developed many large exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution that have been visited by millions of people, I have never pondered this question. Probably because I never got to be the person choosing the exhibition topic in the past! I got to work on an exhibition focused on one of the most interesting stories in American history, the Lewis and Clark expedition. That was an amazing experience. I’ve also worked on one that was an entire house brought from Massachusetts, a look at five families who lived in the house in different time periods. I’d probably do an exhibition about a favorite place and how it changed over time.

Do you have another artistic outlet in addition to your writing?

Does music count? I sing in a choir. I’ve dabbled with watercolors over the years. When I needed maps for my most recent book and couldn’t find any that suited my purposes, I decided to draw and color my own. That was a fun creative project. I’ll be drawing the maps for my next book, too.