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Robert Norman Munsch CM (born June 11, 1945) is a Canadian children's author.
Munsch was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He graduated with degrees in history and anthropology and studied to become a Jesuit priest, but decided he would rather work with children after jobs at orphanages and daycare centres. In 1975 he moved to Canada to work at the preschool at the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario. In Guelph he was encouraged to publish the many stories he made up for the children he worked with.
Munsch stories are well known for their juvenile, yet catchy, humour. Parents sometimes criticised them as being rude or obscene. Munsch himself is well known for his manic storytelling methods, with exaggerated expressions and well-acted voices; his performances are always loved by kids, of all ages.
His stories do not have a recurring single character. Instead the characters are based on the children to whom he first told the story (including his children). He often performs at children's festivals and appears at elementary schools, sometimes unannounced. He is a bestselling author in both the United States and Canada, and has sold over 30 million books, more than any other Canadian author. In 1999 he became a member of the Order of Canada.