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Sharon Creech

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Sharon Creech
picture of Sharon Creech giving a talk at a school
Creech in 2009
Born(1945-07-29)July 29, 1945(age 78)
South Euclid, Ohio,U.S.
OccupationNovelist
GenreChildren's novels,low fantasy,magic realism;poetry
Notable worksWalk Two Moons
Ruby Holler
Notable awardsNewbery Medal
1995
Carnegie Medal
2002
Website
sharoncreech.com

Sharon Creech(born July 29, 1945) is an American writer ofchildren's novels.She was the first American winner of theCarnegie Medalfor British children's books and the first person to win both the AmericanNewbery Medaland the British Carnegie.[1][a]

Biography

Sharon Creech was born inSouth Euclid, Ohio,a suburb of Cleveland, where she grew up with her parents (Ann and Arvel), one sister (Sandy), and three brothers (Dennis, Doug and Tom).[2]She would often visit her cousins in Quincy,Lewis County, Kentucky,which has found its way into many of her books as the fictional Bybanks, Kentucky. Bybanks appears inWalk Two Moons,Chasing Redbird,andBloomability,and there is an allusion to it inThe Wanderer.[2]

At college in the U.S. she became intrigued by story-telling after taking literature and writing courses, and she later became a teacher ofsecondary schoolEnglish and Writing in England and Switzerland.[2]Her first children's novel,Absolutely Normal Chaos,was published only in the U.K., byMacmillan Children's Booksin 1990. Called "comedy about contemporary teen life" byKirkus Reviews,it featured a 13-year-old girl's "complete and unabridged journal for English class".[3]Her first book published in the U.S. wasWalk Two Moons(1994), which won the AmericanNewbery Medalin 1995. Later that year,Absolutely Normal Chaoswas first published in the U.S. by HarperCollins —set in her hometown Euclid, Ohio.[3]

Creech returned to the U.S. in 1998 after 18 years abroad.[4]She is married to Lyle Rigg, a headmaster in New Jersey, and has two grown children, Rob and Karin.[2]

Books

She has written both novels and picture books. She often embeds serious topics into her stories, including such themes as independence, trust, childhood, adulthood, and death, often using humour to soften them.

Books such asLove That DogandHeartbeatwere written in verse, whereas other books likeRuby HollerandWalk Two Moonsare in a narrative style.

Bloomability(1998) features an American girl at aboarding schoolin Switzerland. The setting was inspired byThe American School In Switzerland,where Creech taught English.

She returned to the fictional school exercise inLove That Dog(Harper Collins and Bloomsbury, 2001), theblank versediary of "Jack, a reluctant student, [who] resists poetry assignments from his teacher, Miss Stretchberry."[4]It was a commended runner-up for the British Carnegie Medal.[1][5][b]

Awards

In 1995,Walk Two Moonswon theNewbery Medalfrom theAmerican Library Association,recognizing the year's best children's book by an American author. In the U.K., it won the annualChildren's Book Awardfor long novels, voted by children, and the Reading Association Award. In 1997, it also won the Literaturhaus Award, Austria, and the Young Adult Sequoyah Award, Oklahoma, USA.[6]

Bloomabilitywon the IRA/CBC Children's Choices award in 1999.[7]

The Wandererwon theParents' Choice Award,USA, in 2000, and was a runner-up for the Newbery Medal.[8]It was one of eight books on the Carnegie Medal shortlist in the U.K.[1]

Creech andLove That Dogwere a commended runner-up for the 2001Carnegie Medal,[9]and she won the 2002 Medal from theBritish librarians,recognizingRuby Holleras the year's best children's book published in the U.K.[1][10][11]

Works

Notes

  1. ^CILIPinherited the (British) Library Association children's book awards when it was created by merger of the library and information professionals in 2001. Around that time, the Carnegie Medal restriction to British publishers and British authors (British subjects) was relaxed to permit nomination of all new books published in Britain originally or nearly so (three months as of 2012). The Newbery Medal is still restricted to American citizen or resident authors.
    •Neil Gaimanlater won both Medals forThe Graveyard Book(2009). He is anEnglishexpatriate in the U.S. since 1992.
  2. ^Since 1995 there are usually eight books on the Carnegie shortlist. According to CCSU, there were about 160 commendations of two kinds in 49 years from 1954 to 2002, including Creech andGeraldine McCaughrean(highly commended) for 2001. In effect, Creech andLove That Dogwere second runner-up for that year.

References

  1. ^abcd "Sharon Creech wins CILIP Carnegie Medal"Archived2013-07-20 at theWayback Machine.Press release July 11, 2003. CILIP. Retrieved 2012-08-23.
  2. ^abcd"Sharon Creech Biography".Archived fromthe originalon June 3, 2010.RetrievedSeptember 13,2010.
  3. ^ab "Absolutely Normal Chaos".Kirkus Reviews,September 1, 1995. Online reprint 2010. Retrieved 2012-08-22.
  4. ^ab "Families: A writer who's 13 at Heart".Andrea Sachs.Time,August 27, 2001. Retrieved 2012-08-22.
  5. ^ "Carnegie Medal Award".2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library.Central Connecticut State University(CCSU). Retrieved 2012-08-22.
  6. ^"Sharon Creech Novels".Archived fromthe originalon October 12, 2010.RetrievedSeptember 13,2010.
  7. ^"Sharon Creech Novels".Archived fromthe originalon February 17, 2011.RetrievedSeptember 13,2010.
  8. ^"Sharon Creech Novels".Archived fromthe originalon February 17, 2011.RetrievedSeptember 13,2010.
  9. ^ Press Desk(directory). CILIP. Retrieved 2012-09-23. Quote: "media releases relating to the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Children's Book Awards in date order." (2002 to 2006 releases concern 2001 to 2005 awards.)
  10. ^ (Carnegie Winner 2002)Archived2013-01-29 at theWayback Machine.Living Archive: Celebrating the Carnegie and Greenaway Winners.CILIP.Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  11. ^"Sharon Creech Novels".Archived fromthe originalon September 20, 2010.RetrievedSeptember 13,2010.
  12. ^abcSharon Creech: Selected BibliographyArchived2015-01-17 at theWayback Machineat Ohio reading Road Trip
Library resourcesabout
Sharon Creech
By Sharon Creech
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