This year's Margaret Edwards winner is Laurie Halse Anderson. The award honors an author and specific titles for lasting contribution to young adult literature. “Laurie Halse Anderson masterfully gives voice to teen characters undergoing transformations in their lives through their honesty and perseverance while finding the courage to be true to themselves,” said Edwards Committee Chair David Mowery.
She is an interesting writer because she writes very emotionally involving contemporary realistic fiction (Speak, Wintergirls, Twisted, Catalyst, Prom), historical fiction (Fever 1793, Chains) and even nonfiction history (Independent Dames: What You Never Knew About the Women and Girls of the American Revolution). Usually YA authors seem to stick with one genre. In an interview in the journal, Teacher Librarian (Dec.2008, p.70-71), Halse Anderson says, "I write the stories that I can hear in my heart."
I've read several of her books. I have a reserve in with Dayton Metro Library to get an audio version of her latest title, Wintergirls.
You can learn more about this important author by visiting her website
or reading her blogs
2 comments:
Laurie Halse (rhymes with "waltz") Anderson is very much a colorful and well-rounded person. It is interesting to read her biography on her website (a very witty account composed by her daughter - perhaps a future author herself?). A fun experience.
It is fascinating to me to see the scope of her works - from historical fiction to a work on manitees. I must admit that this author was not previously known to me. She has arrived, however, and I look forward to reading some of her works.
Thanks for reminding us how she pronounces her name - I've noticed that she makes a point of trying to let everyone know the correct pronounciation. I always say "waltz" in my head before saying her name aloud :-)
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