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141 ratings | 59 reviews | avg rating:4.52

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Tonya Duncan Ellis

Goodreads Author

Born

in Louisville, The United States

Website

http://www.tonyaduncanellis.com

Twitter

TonyaDEllis

Genre

Children's

Member Since

November 2016

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Tonya Duncan Ellis is author of THEY BUILT ME FOR FREEDOM (HarperCollins, Balzer + Bray, 2024) and the SOPHIE WASHINGTON children’s chapter series. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), the Authors Guild, and the Brown Bookshelf’s Highlights Foundation-sponsored Amplify Black Stories storyteller cohort. Tonya has spoken and taught at writing conferences at the Highlights Foundation and for SCBWI in New York City and for SCBWI Houston and Austin, TX chapters. A former journalist and freelance magazine writer, she lives in Houston, Texas.

www.tonyaduncanellis.com
Facebook: @tonyaellisbooks
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Combine Editions
Tonya Duncan Ellis’s books

Average rating: 4.41 · 2,494 ratings · 496 reviews · 23 distinct works • Similar authors

	Sophie Washington: Queen of the Bee 4.36 avg rating — 1,048 ratings — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	They Built Me for Freedom: The Story of Juneteenth and Houston's Emancipation Park by Tonya Duncan Ellis (Goodreads Author), Jenin Mohammed (Illustrator) 4.50 avg rating — 221 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: The Snitch 4.41 avg rating — 177 ratings — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: My BFF 4.56 avg rating — 146 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Things You Didn't Know About Sophie 4.11 avg rating — 141 ratings — published 2013 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Secret Santa 4.30 avg rating — 114 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Code One 4.58 avg rating — 92 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Mismatch 4.64 avg rating — 86 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Mission: Costa Rica 4.52 avg rating — 88 ratings — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sophie Washington: Class Retreat 4.28 avg rating — 83 ratings — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Tonya Duncan Ellis's Blog

Things I Changed to Land a Book Deal

Landing a traditional publishing book deal is not for the faint of heart. Less than one to two percent of writers achieve this goal. Realizing my dream to move from self-publishing to traditional publishing felt impossible until I started taking the steps listed below:

I stopped –Worrying about judgment from others. I realized that the longer I kept my work to myself, the longer it would take for i

Series by Tonya Duncan Ellis

Sophie Washington (14 books)
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Tonya Duncan Ellis (Goodreads Author)

4.40 avg rating — 2,265 ratings

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Tonya Ellis has read Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9 hours, 48 min ago · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read The Manual for Good Wives by Lola Jaye (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 27, 2026 10:49AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Manual for Good Wives by Lola Jaye. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Manual for Good Wives by Lola Jaye <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read Good-bye Stacey, Good-bye (The Babysitters Club, #13) by Ann M. Martin	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 24, 2026 03:39PM · like
Tonya Ellis has read Will's Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 23, 2026 02:26PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Will's Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Will's Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read I Survived the Attacks of September 11th, 2001 by Lauren Tarshis	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 08:37AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Survived the Attacks of September 11th, 2001 by Lauren Tarshis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Survived the Attacks of September 11th, 2001 by Lauren Tarshis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916 by Lauren Tarshis	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 08:37AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916 by Lauren Tarshis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916 by Lauren Tarshis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 08:36AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read I Survived the Great Alaska Earthquake, 1964 by Lauren Tarshis	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 08:35AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Survived the Great Alaska Earthquake, 1964 by Lauren Tarshis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Survived the Great Alaska Earthquake, 1964 by Lauren Tarshis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read I Survived the Attack of the Grizzlies, 1967 by Lauren Tarshis	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 08:34AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Survived the Attack of the Grizzlies, 1967 by Lauren Tarshis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Survived the Attack of the Grizzlies, 1967 by Lauren Tarshis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Tonya Ellis has read Logan Likes Mary Anne! (The Baby-Sitters Club, #10) by Ann M. Martin	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 19, 2026 06:10AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Logan Likes Mary Anne! by Ann M. Martin. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Logan Likes Mary Anne! by Ann M. Martin <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by Tonya Duncan Ellis (?)

“get good grades”
― Tonya Duncan Ellis, Sophie Washington: Queen of the Bee

2 likes

“That’s easy for her to say. She’s old, so nobody cares about how she looks.”
― Tonya Duncan Ellis, Sophie Washington: The Snitch

1 likes

“Moooom! I was here first, and now she wants to change the channel,” he whines.”
― Tonya Duncan Ellis, Sophie Washington: Queen of the Bee

1 likes

See all Tonya Duncan Ellis's quotes »

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Making Connections: 5079. - SOPHIE WASHINGTON: QUEEN OF THE BEE by Tonya Duncan Ellis	3	7	Dec 31, 2017 06:42AM
Making Connections: 5081. - SOPHIE WASHINGTON: THE GAMER by Tonya Duncan Ellis	3	6	Dec 31, 2017 06:43AM
Making Connections: 5078. - SOPHIE WASHINGTON: THE SNITCH by Tonya Duncan Ellis	11	18	Jan 20, 2018 07:24PM
Making Connections: 5080. - SOPHIE WASHINGTON: THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT SOPHIE by Tonya Duncan Ellis	6	11	Jan 28, 2018 01:11PM
Genre Specific Re...: Children's Review Group 6 (closed)	60	48	Jun 19, 2018 08:51AM
Genre Specific Re...: Children's Books Review Group 11/2018 (Closed)	120	48	Jan 20, 2019 02:33AM
Making Connections: 5520. Sophie Washington: Mismatch by Tonya Duncan Ellis	1	10	Jul 23, 2019 07:11PM
Making Connections: 6530. Sophie Washington: Treasure Beach by Tonya Duncan Ellis	3	37	Jan 18, 2023 07:13PM
Genre Specific Re...: Children's Book Review Group 7 (reviewing)	68	68	Jun 14, 2023 05:03AM
Cozy Mysteries : * When You’re Not Reading a Cozy	2344	1350	11 hours, 16 min ago