Ally Condie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ally Condie
|
|
|---|---|
.jpg)
Condie at 2025 LA Times Festival of Books
|
|
| Born | November 2, 1978 Cedar City, Utah, U.S. |
| Occupation |
|
| Education | Brigham Young University (BA) Vermont College of Fine Arts (MFA) |
| Genre | Dystopian fiction, children's literature, young adult fiction |
| Notable works | Matched trilogy |
| Children | 3 sons and a daughter |
Allyson Braithwaite Condie, born on November 2, 1978, is a popular author. She writes exciting books for young adults and middle schoolers. Her book Matched was a huge hit! It was a number one bestseller and stayed on the New York Times list for over a year.
Its follow-up books, Crossed and Reached, were also very popular. Matched was even picked as one of the best books for teens in 2011. It was also named one of Publishers Weekly's Best Children's Books of 2010. You can find all three books in more than 30 languages around the world.
Ally Condie also wrote Atlantia, which was another New York Times bestseller. Her middle grade novel, Summerlost, came out in 2016. Summerlost was even a finalist for the Edgar Award in 2017. This award is for the best mystery books for young people.
Ally Condie is also involved in helping young writers. She started the WriteOut Foundation. This group runs writing camps for teens in rural areas. She is also on the board of Yallwest, which helps make books available to children. Plus, she helps with Go Jane Give, a group that collects donations for refugees.
Contents
Ally Condie's Life Story
Ally Condie was born in Cedar City, Utah. When she was only four years old, she started telling stories. Her babysitter would write down these tales about a unicorn. As she grew up, Ally kept a regular journal and a poetry journal.
Early Life and Education
In high school, Ally Condie was a runner. She ran cross country and track. She still loves distance running today. She didn't do much creative writing in high school or college. Later, she became a high school English teacher.
Ally went to Brigham Young University. She earned a degree in English Teaching there. She taught high school English in Utah and New York.
Becoming an Author
After her first child was born, Ally stopped teaching to focus on her family. This is when she started writing again. She began publishing young adult books with a small publisher in Utah. Her first book, Yearbook, came out in 2006.
This was followed by two more books in the Yearbook series: First Day (2007) and Reunion (2008). She also wrote two standalone novels: Freshman for President (2008) and Being Sixteen (2010).
Ally Condie felt comfortable writing for teens. This was because of her experience as a teacher and coach. She also enjoys reading young adult books herself. She wanted to write books that she would recommend to her own students.
Family and Influences
As of 2017, Ally lived with her husband and four children in Pleasant Grove, Utah. They had three sons. Their oldest son was diagnosed with autism in 2011. In 2012, the family adopted a daughter from China.
In 2017, Ally Condie earned a Master's in Fine Arts Degree. She got this from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She later went through a divorce in 2019. She returned to her maiden name, Braithwaite. She married her second husband, David, in August 2023.
Ally Condie is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The beautiful Utah landscape and her Christian beliefs often inspire her writing. While dealing with her divorce, she wrote her first book for adults, The Unwedding.
The Matched Trilogy
The young adult novel Matched was published in November 2010. It quickly became a bestseller. Ally Condie took the book to a larger publisher, Penguin Random House. This helped it reach readers all over the world.
The second book, Crossed, came out in November 2011. The final book, Reached, was published in November 2012. These books are part of the dystopian young adult genre. This type of story has become very popular with young readers.
Summerlost Novel
Summerlost is a standalone novel by Ally Condie. It marked a change for her from writing young adult books to middle grade books. Ally has said that the characters and setting of Summerlost were inspired by her own childhood. She grew up in Cedar City, Utah. The fictional "Iron Creek" in the book is based on "Coal Creek" in Cedar City.
Ally Condie's Books
Yearbook Series
- Yearbook (2006)
- First Day (2007)
- Reunion (2008)
Matched Trilogy
- Matched (2010)
- Crossed (2011)
- Reached (2012)
The Darkdeep Trilogy
This series was written with Brendan Reichs.
- The Darkdeep (2018)
- The Beast (2019)
- The Torchbearers (2020)
Standalone Novels
- Freshman for President (2008)
- Being Sixteen (2010)
- Atlantia (2014)
- Summerlost (2016)
- The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe (2019)
- The Only Girl in Town (2023)
- The Unwedding (2024)
Anthologies
- The Moms' Club Diaries: notes from a world of playdates, pacifiers, and poignant moments (2008)
Upcoming Books
Ally Condie has plans for at least one new young adult novel. The title has not been announced yet.
See also
In Spanish: Ally Condie para niños
- List of dystopian literature
