Gillian Cross facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gillian Cross
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| Born | Gillian Clare Arnold December 24, 1945 |
| Occupation | author |
| Nationality | British |
| Education |
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| Genre | children's books |
| Notable awards | Carnegie Medal (1990) |
| Spouse | Martin Cross (m. 1967) |
| Children | 4 |
Gillian Claire Cross (born December 24, 1945) is a British author. She writes many exciting books for young people. She is famous for her stories.
Gillian Cross won the Carnegie Medal in 1990. This was for her book Wolf. She also won the Whitbread Children's Book Award in 1992. This award was for her book The Great Elephant Chase. Many people know her from The Demon Headmaster book series. These books were so popular they became a TV show on the BBC. The first TV series started in 1996. A new series came out in 2019.
Contents
About Gillian Cross
Gillian Clare Arnold was born in London. Her birthday is December 24, 1945. Her parents were James Eric and Joan Emma Arnold. When she was a girl, she went to the North London Collegiate School.
She married Martin Cross on May 10, 1967. They had four children together.
Her Education Journey
Gillian Cross studied at Somerville College, Oxford. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree there in 1969. She later received a Master of Arts degree from the same university in 1972. In 1974, she earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree. This was from the University of Sussex.
Her Writing Career
Before becoming a full-time writer, Gillian Cross had different jobs. She even worked as an assistant for a Member of Parliament.
First Books and Famous Series
Her first book was The Runaway. It was published in 1979. Three years later, in 1982, she started The Demon Headmaster series. This series has eight books. The last book in the series came out in 2019.
In 1982, she also wrote The Dark Behind the Curtain. This was a horror story. It was praised for the 1982 Carnegie Medal. This award is for the best children's book by a British author.
Award-Winning Novels
Her book A Map of Nowhere was also highly praised. This was for the 1988 Carnegie Medal. Two years later, in 1990, she won the Carnegie Medal. This was for her book Wolf. Wolf was also a runner-up for another award. This was the 1991 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize.
In 2014, Gillian Cross became a supporter of a charity called Cord. This charity works in Sudan. Their work inspired her novel After Tomorrow.
Awards and Recognitions
Gillian Cross has won many awards for her books. Here are some of her most important wins:
- In 1990, she won the Carnegie Medal for Wolf.
- In 1992, she won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for 9-11 Years. This was for The Great Elephant Chase.
- In 1992, she also won the overall Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for The Great Elephant Chase.
- In 1992, she won the Whitbread Award for Children's Novel for The Great Elephant Chase.
- In 2014, she won the Bolton Children's Book Award for After Tomorrow.
- In 2014, she won the Coventry Inspiration Book Award for After Tomorrow.
- In 2014, she won the Little Rebels Children's Book Award for After Tomorrow.
Several of her books have been chosen as top picks by the Junior Library Guild. These include The Great American Elephant Chase (1995), New World (1995), and Pictures in the Dark (1997).
