Beverly Jenkins facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Beverly Jenkins
Born	1951 (age 73–74) Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Occupation	Novelist
Alma mater	Michigan State University
Period	1994–present
Genre	Historical romance, Contemporary romance

Beverly Jenkins is an American writer born in Detroit in 1951. She writes exciting romance novels. Her books often focus on the lives of African Americans in the 1800s. This is a time in history she feels people don't talk about enough.

Beverly Jenkins was nominated for an NAACP Image Award in 2013. In 1999, she was named one of the top 50 favorite African American writers of the 20th century. This was by the African American Literature Book Club. It was hard for her to get her books published at first. Publishers weren't sure about stories featuring African Americans that weren't about slavery.

Jenkins studied at Michigan State University. She majored in Journalism and English Literature. Today, she lives in Southeastern Michigan.

Growing Up and Loving Books

Beverly Jenkins was born in Detroit in 1951. Her mom was a high school teacher. Her dad was an administrative aide. Beverly grew up surrounded by books and words.

Her mother read to her even before she was born. When Beverly was a baby, her mom bought her soft cloth books. Beverly would chew on them. Her mom would say, "Eat those words, baby. Eat those words."

Beverly loved to read at her local library. She read all kinds of books. These included Alice in Wonderland and Dune. She also enjoyed early romance writers. Beverly started writing early too. She became the editor of her elementary school newspaper. She began college at Michigan State University in 1969.

Becoming a Writer

Beverly Jenkins worked full-time at the Michigan State University library. She worked in the circulation department. During her lunch breaks, she read articles. These were from The Journal of Negro History. This journal is now called The Journal of African American History.

Later, Jenkins and her husband moved to Ypsilanti. She worked at a pharmaceutical company. There, she started writing romance novels just for fun. A coworker suggested she find an agent. So, Jenkins sent her story to Vivian Stephens. Vivian agreed to represent her. Avon published Beverly's first novel, Night Song, in 1994.

Bringing History to Life

Most of Beverly Jenkins's books are historical romances. She calls herself a "kitchen table historian." She thinks of American history like a quilt. Some parts of this quilt are missing. These missing parts are often the stories of minority groups.

Jenkins uses her books to put the quilt back together. She shares parts of Black history that are not often taught in schools. Important parts of African American history include slavery and the Civil Rights Movement. But these are not the only stories.

For example, her first three novels are Night Song, Vivid, and Indigo. They feature characters like a schoolteacher and a cavalry officer. There's also a female doctor and heroes of the Underground Railroad. All these characters were inspired by real history.

Jenkins found ideas for her book Forbidden from two interesting historical facts. First, she read about a fancy African American-run hotel. It was found during an archaeological dig in Virginia City. She also heard a story. It was about a Black woman walking through the desert. She had a cook stove balanced on her head. Jenkins often includes lists of books in her historical romances. This lets readers learn even more if they want to.

Awards and Recognition

Beverly Jenkins has won many awards for her writing. Here are some of them:

• 1996 – Romantic Times Historical Love and Laughter Nominee
• 1999 – Romantic Times Western Historical Romance Winner
• 2000 – Romantic Times Multicultural Romance Winner
• 2007 – Romantic Times Historical Storyteller of the Year Nominee
• 2010 – A Second Helping – Romantic Times Multicultural Fiction Novel Winner
• 2011 – Something Old, Something New – Romantic Times Multicultural Romance Winner
• 2013 – Destiny's Embrace – Romantic Times American-Set Historical Romance Winner
• 2013 – A Wish and a Prayer – NAACP Image Award for Literature Nominee
• 2016 – Forbidden – Romantic Times Historical Romance Winner
• 2017 – RWA Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award