Alice Kuipers facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Alice Kuipers
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Kuipers in 2013
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| Born | 29 June 1979 London, United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom, Canada |
| Alma mater | University of Manchester |
| Period | 2007–present |
| Genres | Young adult, children's |
| Notable works | Life on the Refrigerator Door, 40 Things I Want To Tell You, The Worst Thing She Ever Did (Lost For Words in the U.S.), The Death of Us, Me (and) Me |
| Partner | Yann Martel (2002–present) |
| Children | 4 |
Alice Kuipers (born 29 June 1979) is a British author. She lives in Saskatchewan, Canada. She is famous for her books for young adults.
Her book Life on the Refrigerator Door won many awards, like the Grand Prix de Viarmes and the Redbridge Teenage Book Award in 2008. Famous actors Amanda Seyfried and Dana Delany read it for an audio book. It has also been made into plays in England, France, and Japan.
Other books by Alice Kuipers have also won awards. 40 Things I Want To Tell You won a Saskatchewan Book Award in 2013. The Worst Thing She Ever Did (called Lost For Words in the U.S.) won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Juvenile/YA Crime Book in 2011.
Contents
Early Life and Travels
Alice Kuipers was born in London, England. She was the first of three children. She went to Westminster School in London. Later, she studied psychology at Manchester University. She also earned a Master's degree in Writing from Manchester Metropolitan University.
Her mother is a professor of psychology. Her father works as an advisor for justice systems.
When she was eighteen, Kuipers traveled alone for a year. She visited places like the Cook Islands, New Zealand, Cambodia, Australia, Vietnam, and the U.S. She has said that these travels greatly influenced her writing. She learned not to worry if she took a wrong turn, because something good would come from any path she chose.
In 2003, Kuipers moved to Saskatchewan, Canada. She lives in Saskatoon with her husband, who is also a writer named Yann Martel. They have four young children.
Alice Kuipers' Writing Career
Alice Kuipers' first book for young adults was Life on the Refrigerator Door. It came out in 2007. This book was sold in 28 countries. It won several awards, including the Saskatchewan First Book Award. It was also considered for the Carnegie Medal.
The audio version of the book was read by Amanda Seyfried and Dana Delany. It was made into a play in London, England, in 2014. It was also staged in Paris, France, in 2016. Life on the Refrigerator Door is told through notes and sticky pads. These are written by a mother to her fifteen-year-old daughter during a family crisis.
Her second young adult book, The Worst Thing She Ever Did (or Lost For Words in the U.S.), was published in 2010. It won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Juvenile/YA Crime Book in 2011. This story is about dealing with a sad event from the past. It takes place in London, England.
40 Things I Want To Tell You came out in 2012. It won a Saskatchewan Book Award for Young Adult Literature in 2013. This book is about a teenage girl who writes an online advice column. But she finds it hard to follow her own good advice.
In 2014, three more books by Kuipers were published:
- The Death of Us: A young adult novel about two girls in a car accident.
- The Best Ever Bookworm Book, by Violet and Victor Small: A children's book with pictures by Bethanie Murguia.
- Lost and Curious Things: An interactive ebook.
In 2015, she released a short story called Ten Minutes. It is about a young woman's journey to understand herself better.
Two more books came out in 2016:
- Violet and Victor Write the Most Fabulous Fairytale: Another children's book with Bethanie Murguia.
- Secrets of the Badlands: An interactive ebook.
In 2017, Kuipers released Me (and) Me. This young adult novel is about a rising rock star. She has to make a very difficult choice. This choice splits her world into two different lives.
Kuipers has also written non-fiction articles. These have appeared in magazines and newspapers. She has also written for younger children.
Since 1999, Alice Kuipers has led writing workshops. She has taught in many places, including Hong Kong, the UK, Australia, Canada, and the US. She has also been a speaker at many literary festivals.
In 2008, she won an award called the Saskatchewan Lieutenant Governor's Artists Award '30 Below'. This award is for young artists. In 2010, she was the Writer in Residence at the Saskatoon Public Library. She worked with groups, taught workshops, and visited schools.
Kuipers also worked with a software developer, Rich Lowenberg. They created the first Writing Tips App for iPhone. In 2010, it became the second best-selling educational app in the US and Canada.
Published Works
- Life on the Refrigerator Door (2007)
- "ne t'inquiéte pas pour moi" (2008)
- 'You Today' (Short Story) (2008)
- The Worst Thing She Ever Did (Lost For Words in the U.S.) (2010)
- Writing Tips App for iPhone (co-written with Rich Lowenberg in 2010)
- 40 Things I Want to Tell You (2012)
- Death of Us (2014)
- The Bookworm Book, by Violet and Victor Small (2014)
- Lost and Curious Things (Interactive eBook) (2014)
- 'Ten Minutes' (Short Story) (2015)
- Violet and Victor Write the Most Fabulous Fairytale (2016)
- Secrets of the Badlands (Interactive eBook) (2016)
- Me (and) Me (2017)
Awards
- Life on the Refrigerator Door
- A New York Public Library "Book for the Teen Age" (US) 2008
- Winner of the Redbridge Teenage Book Award (UK) 2008
- Winner of the Sheffield Libraries Choice Book Award (UK) 2008
- Winner of the Grand Prix de Viarmes (France) 2008
- Winner of the Prix Livrentête, (France) 2008
- Winner of the Sweyne Park School Year 7 Book Award (UK) 2008
- Winner of the Saskatchewan First Book Award (Canada) 2007
- Shortlisted for the Coventry Inspiration Book Award (UK) 2008
- Shortlisted for the Oxfordshire Book Awards (UK) 2008
- Shortlisted for the Salt Lake City County Library System Reader's Choice Award (US) 2008
- Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal (literary award) (UK) 2008
- Winner of Saskatchewan Lieutenant Governor's Artists Award for young artists '30 Below' in 2008
- 'You Today'
- Shortlisted for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Literary Awards for Short Stories (Canada) 2009
- Writing Tips App for iPhone (co-written)
- Number 2 bestselling app in the Educational Apps Listings in US and Canada in 2010
- The Worst Thing She Ever Did
- Winner of the Arthur Ellis Award, Best Juvenile/YA Crime Book (Canada) 2011
- White Pine Award of the Ontario Library Association, Official Selection, (Canada) 2011
- Bank Street College of Education's Best Children's Books of the Year selection (Canada) for 2011
- The Canadian Children's Book Centre's Best Books for Kids and Teens, 2011 selection
- 40 Things I Want To Tell You
- Winner of the Saskatchewan Book Award for Young Adult Literature (Canada) 2013
- Young Adult Honour Book for the Canadian Library Association 2013
- The Death of Us
- Nominated for the 2015 SaskEnergy Young Adult Literature Award
- Shortlisted for the Canadian Library Association 2015 Young Adult Book Award
- The Best Ever Bookworm Book, by Violet and Victor Small
- Selected as an Amazon Best Pick for December 2014
- Included in Book Riot's "Favorite Picture Book Art of 2014"
- Violet and Victor Write the Most Fabulous Fairytale
- Part of the Winter 2015 Kids' Indie Next List
Plays Based on Her Work
Life on the Refrigerator Door has been made into a play in three languages.
It was first adapted and directed by Amy Draper in 2014. This play was performed at the Yard Theatre in London, England.
In March 2016, the play was staged in Paris, France. It was called Je T'ai Laisse Un Mot Sur Le Frigo. It was performed at the Théâtre de Paris. This theater building was first built in 1730.
The story was also staged in Japan in June 2016. It was called Reizōko no Ue no Jinsei. It was performed in Tokyo and Nishinomiya.
Authors Who Inspired Her
Alice Kuipers has mentioned several authors who have influenced her work. These include:
- Hermann Hesse
- Fyodor Dostoyevsky
- Emily Brontë
- Elizabeth Strout
- Valerie Martin
- Dr. Seuss
- Mo Willems
- Louisa May Alcott
She has said that the novel she "most loved is called The Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse." She also admires Tennessee Williams for his great dialogue writing.
See Also
