Abduction!

Born Margaret Ann Schulze on November 11, 1936, Wisconsin native Peg Kehret is a popular author who writes novels for children ages 10 through 15. Peg married Carl Kehret in 1955; they went on to adopt two children, Bob (1959) and Anne (1961). Carl passed away in 2004, but is survived by his two children, four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

Her most well-known work is her memoir titled Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio, which details her struggles with and eventual triumph over poliomyelitis (polio), a debilitating disease that crippled or killed thousands of people each year until the mid-1900s. In 1948, Peg Kehret (age 12) was diagnosed with bulbar polio—the rarest and most aggressive form of the disease—and rapidly lost mobility across her entire body. As she spent time in a rehabilitation facility called the Sheltering Arms, she continued to regress until she struggled to swallow and nearly had to be moved to a ventilator. She was transferred to University Hospital in Minnesota, where she made miraculous steps toward recovery and eventually was able to return to the Sheltering Arms. She made lifelong friends among fellow patients and fought to walk again. Peg won her fight against polio and was released from the Sheltering Arms nine months later. Over a decade later, Peg cried when her children received their first polio vaccinations. Peg continues physical therapy to manage the effects of post-polio syndrome, a condition that affects many polio survivors, often forcing them to return to their walking sticks, braces, or wheelchairs as old symptoms reemerge.

Since Peg was young, she dreamed of becoming a veterinarian or a writer. When she contracted polio and lost movement of her limbs, she lost hope that she’d ever become either. Yet in 1979, her dream of becoming an author came true with the publication of Small Steps. Peg has written 44 books for children, 3 memoirs, 3 adult books, and 6 plays. Her love of animals is evident in most of her children’s novels; animal rescue is a recurring theme. Peg’s novels are often inspired by elements of her life, whether a conversation with a police officer about child abductions—the inspiration behind Abduction!—or from reading newspapers and fan mail. Kehret’s novels often offer lessons; the aim of Abduction! is to educate children about the dangers of child abduction, not only by strangers but also by trusted and familiar adults. Kehret has a passion for building fast-paced suspense in her novels, which effectively captivates young readers.