Jennifer Donnelly facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jennifer Donnelly
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Publicity photo for Revolution, 2010
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| Born | August 16, 1963 Port Chester, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Education | B.A., English Literature |
| Alma mater | University of Rochester |
| Period | 2002–present |
| Genre | Historical fiction, young adult fiction |
| Notable works |
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| Notable awards | Carnegie Medal 2003 LA Times Book Prize 2003 |
Jennifer Donnelly (born August 16, 1963) is an American author. She is well-known for her books, especially for young adults. Her most famous young adult book is the historical novel A Northern Light.
A Northern Light was also published in the U.K. under the title A Gathering Light. In 2003, it won the Carnegie Medal there. This award celebrates the best children's book of the year. Later, for the Medal's 70th anniversary, it was chosen as one of the top ten winning books of all time. Time Magazine also named it one of the 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time in 2015.
Contents
About Jennifer Donnelly's Life
Early Years and Education
Jennifer Donnelly was born in Port Chester, New York. Her family has roots in Ireland. Her great-grandparents moved from Dublin, Ireland to New York. They settled in the Adirondack Mountains. This area later became the setting for her book A Northern Light. Jennifer spent her childhood in Rye and Port Leyden, New York.
She went to the University of Rochester. There, she earned a degree in English Literature in 1985. She also studied in England at Birkbeck College, University of London.
Jennifer Donnelly's Books and Career
Starting Her Writing Journey
Jennifer Donnelly moved to Brooklyn, New York, when she was 25. Her first book, Humble Pie, was a picture book for younger children. It was published in 2002. That same year, she released her first novel for older readers. This was The Tea Rose, the first book in a trilogy.
The Tea Rose series is set in London in the late 1800s. The second book, The Winter Rose, continues the story. It follows the Finnegan family from London to Africa and California. The third novel, The Wild Rose, explores new characters. It takes readers from London just before World War I to Arabia in 1918.
Famous Young Adult Novels
Her second novel, A Northern Light, was published in 2003. This book is based on a real-life event that happened in the Adirondack Mountains in 1906. It has been praised for its historical detail.
In 2004, A Northern Light won the Carnegie Medal in Britain. In the U.S., it won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for young adult literature. It was also a runner-up for the Printz Award. This award recognizes the best book for young adults.
Her next young adult novel was Revolution. It tells the story of two teenage girls. One lives in modern-day Brooklyn. The other lives in Paris during the French Revolution. The book was published in 2010. It was nominated for a Carnegie Medal. Many "best-of" lists included it. The audiobook version was also highly praised.
Fantasy and Fairy Tale Retellings
From 2014 to 2016, Disney published Jennifer Donnelly's four-book Waterfire Saga. This series includes Deep Blue, Rogue Wave, Dark Tide, and Sea Spell. These books have won several awards. A song called "Open Your Eyes" by Bea Miller was inspired by a chant in Deep Blue.
Jennifer worked with Disney again in 2017. She wrote Beauty and the Beast: Lost in a Book. This original story goes along with the 2017 Beauty and the Beast movie. It explores the friendship between Belle and the Beast. The book was on the New York Times bestseller list for four months.
She returned to historical fiction with Fatal Throne in 2018. This book is about King Henry VIII and his six wives. Jennifer joined six other authors for this project. Each author wrote from the perspective of Henry or one of his wives. Jennifer wrote the part of Anne of Cleves, Henry's fourth wife.
In 2019, Jennifer Donnelly started a new series with Scholastic Publishing. The first book was Stepsister. It picks up where the classic Cinderella story ends. It follows Cinderella's stepsister, Isabelle. The story explores if there can be hope for a girl often seen as "ugly." In 2020, she published Poisoned. This book is a retelling of the Snow White fairy tale.
In 2023, she released Molly's Letter. This is the first in a series of shorter stories called Rose Petals. These stories are set in the same world as her Tea Rose series.
Awards and Recognitions
Jennifer Donnelly has won many awards for her books.
Awards for A Northern Light (2003)
- Carnegie Medal
- Los Angeles Times Book Prize
- Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book
- American Library Association-YALSA Top Ten Best Book For Young Adults
- Booklist Editors' Choice
- Time Magazine Top 100 YA Books of All Time
Awards for Revolution (2010)
- New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association Book of the Year
- ALA Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production Honor
- American Booksellers Association Indies Choice Young Adult Book of the Year
- ALA-YALSA Top Ten Best Book For Young Adults
- Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
- School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
- Carnegie Medal nominee
Awards for Other Books
- Deep Blue (2015): Green Book Award
- Fatal Throne (2018): American Library Association-YALSA 2019 Best Fiction for Young Adults
- Stepsister (2019): American Library Association-YALSA 2020 Best Fiction for Young Adults
- Poisoned (2020): American Library Association-YALSA 2021 Best Fiction for Young Adults
List of Books
- Humble Pie (2002)
- The Tea Rose (2002)
- A Northern Light (2003)
- The Winter Rose (2008)
- Revolution (2010)
- The Wild Rose (2011)
- Deep Blue (2014) – Waterfire Saga
- Rogue Wave (2015) – Waterfire Saga
- Dark Tide (2015) – Waterfire Saga
- These Shallow Graves (2015)
- Sea Spell (2016) – Waterfire Saga
- Lost in a Book (2017) – Beauty and the Beast
- Fatal Throne (Anna of Cleves Chapter) (2018)
- Stepsister (2019)
- Poisoned (2020)
- Molly's Letter (2023) – Rose Petals series
See also
In Spanish: Jennifer Donnelly para niños
