Award-winning U.S. author Joanna Cole died on July 12, aged 75, according to a statement from her publisher, Scholastic, sent to CNN. She has written children's books such as "The Magic School Bus" series.

Cole lived in Sioux City, Iowa, and was best known for "The Magic School Bus," a science series that she launched in 1986 with illustrator Bruce Degen.

"What Joanna has meant to the world, what there is in the world because of her, is well known," said Degen. "What she meant to me I can't describe. Everyone who knew her, worked with her, loved her, knows what a loss it is."

The series has 13 core titles and dozens more connected titles. So far, the series has sold millions of books in 13 countries and regions. An animated show of the same name, voiced by Lily Tomlin, also received critical acclaim in the 1990s.

Degen thinks for Joanna the excitement was always in the idea. "What? Why? How? And with 'The Magic School Bus' it was how to explain it so that it is accurate and in a form that a kid can understand and use," said Degen.

People can actually joke around while they are learning. Cole had a rare sense of what could be humorous, Degen added.

"The Magic School Bus" series has won a litany of awards. Netflix relaunched the series in 2017, hiring Saturday Night Live's Kate McKinnon to voice Ms. Frizzle. The company also plans to produce a live-action movie starring Elizabeth Banks.

"Joanna Cole had the perfect touch for blending science and story," said Dick Robinson, chairman, president, and CEO of Scholastic.

"Joanna's books, packed with equal parts humor and information, made science both easy to understand and fun for the hundreds of millions of children around the world who read her books and watched the award-winning television series."

Tributes also flooded in online.

"Thank you Joanna Cole for inspiring multiple generations, I hope to be half the teacher as Ms. Frizzle. Joanna Cole is an icon," tweeted by a netizen.

Another twitter user thanked Joanna Cole for teaching him to take chances, and make mistakes, "For teaching me that if you keep asking questions you'll keep getting answers! And for teaching me that science really can be fun."

"The Magic School Bus" series has been introduced to China in 2010 and has sold more than 50 million sets in China, which is a fond memory for minor readers in China. Also, it is still an enduring work.

On China's social media site Weibo, readers expressed their condolences, and many parents who had seen Cole's book said they learned a lot from reading Cole with their children as well.

Cole's other titles include "The Clown Arounds," "Bony-Legs" and "Best Loved Folktales of the World."

Cole was born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1944. As a child she loved science, and her passion continued into adulthood.

"In my science books, including 'The Magic School Bus' books, I write about ideas, rather than just the facts. I try to ask a question, such as how do scientists guess what dinosaurs were like? Then I try to answer the question as I write the book," she was quoted as saying in Scholastic's statement.

(Cover: Author Joanna Cole [R], and illustrator Bruce Degen [L]. Cole, whose "Magic School Bus" books transported millions of young people on extraordinary and educational adventures, has died at age 75. /Scholastic)