Joyce Hansen facts for kids

Joyce Viola Hansen (born October 18, 1942) is an American author and a former schoolteacher. She is well-known for her books written for children and young adults. Many of her stories are historical fiction or non-fiction books about African-American history.

The Life of Joyce Hansen

Joyce Hansen was born in The Bronx, New York City. Her birthday is October 18, 1942. Her father, Austin Victor, was a photographer. Her mother was Lilian Dancy Hansen.

Education and Teaching Career

Joyce Hansen went to Pace University and earned a bachelor's degree in English in 1972. Later, she received a master's degree in English from New York University in 1978.

For 22 years, she worked as a teacher in New York City public schools. She retired from teaching in 1995. Her time as a teacher greatly influenced her writing.

How Teaching Inspired Her Writing

Joyce Hansen noticed that some of her students were not very interested in reading. They also struggled with understanding what they read. She wanted to make learning more fun and easier for them.

For example, when she taught about the Civil War, her students found it hard to understand. To help them, she started writing young adult books about slavery and the Civil War. She used her own experiences to make her stories feel real. This helped her students connect with the topics.

After she retired, she moved to South Carolina with her husband and continued to write. In 2019, she attended a special literary event at the University of South Carolina.

Joyce Hansen's Fiction Books

Joyce Hansen has said that she writes to make more young people interested in reading. She also wants to write stories for kids who don't often see themselves in books.

Early Novels and Sequels

Her first novel was The Gift-Giver, published in 1980. It was about a group of friends living in the Bronx. She later wrote two more books that continued the story: Yellow Bird and Me (1986) and One True Friend (2001).

Historical Fiction Works

Besides stories about modern city life, Hansen has written many historical fiction books. These books are often about African-American history, including stories about slavery and the Civil War.

Her first historical fiction book was Which Way Freedom? (1986). This book was recognized as a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. It tells the story of a Black teenager who serves with the Union Army during the Civil War. This book was the first in a series of three. The other books were Out From This Place (1998) and The Heart Calls Home (1999).

Two more of her novels also received Coretta Scott King Honor Book awards. These were The Captive (1994) and I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly: The Diary of Patsy, a Freed Girl (1997). The second book is part of the popular Dear America series.

Joyce Hansen's Non-Fiction Books

Joyce Hansen has also written several non-fiction books for young people. These books explore African-American history and African history.

Biographies of Influential Women

Her 1998 book, Women of Hope: African Americans Who Made A Difference, shares short life stories of thirteen important Black women. Some of these women include neurosurgeon Alexa Canady, astronaut Mae Jemison, and activist Fannie Lou Hamer. The book was praised for being "inspirational" and good for both art and history.

Stories of African-American History

With Gary McGowan, Joyce Hansen wrote Breaking Ground, Breaking Silence: The Story of New York's African Burial Ground (1998). This book was also named a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. It tells about the discovery and digging up of a burial ground in New York City in 1991. This was a burial place for enslaved people and free blacks.

Hansen and McGowan also wrote Freedom Roads (2003). This non-fiction book is about the Underground Railroad. It was described as "well-written" and "imaginatively arranged."

In 2004, Hansen published African Princess: The Amazing Lives of Africa's Royal Women. This book profiles six important royal women from Africa. Some of them are Hatshepsut, Amina, and Elizabeth of Toro. A review in The New York Times called the book "meticulously researched" and full of "detail, drama and intrigue."

Selected Works

Fiction

• The Gift-Giver (1980) ISBN: 9780899198521
• Home Boy (1982) ISBN: 9781413491449
• Yellow Bird and Me (1986) ISBN: 9780618611164
• Which Way Freedom? (1986) ISBN: 9780802735515
• Out From this Place (1988) ISBN: 0802768164
• The Captive (1994) ISBN: 9780590416245
• I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly: The Diary of Patsy, a Freed Girl (Dear America series, 1997, 2011) ISBN: 9780545280907
• The Heart Calls Home (1999) ISBN: 0802786367
• One True Friend (2001) ISBN: 9780618609918
• Home is with Our Family (2010) ISBN: 9780786852178

Non-fiction

• Between Two Fires: Black Soldiers in the Civil War (1993) ISBN: 9780531111512
• Breaking Ground, Breaking Silence: The Story of New York's African Burial Ground (with Gary McGowan, 1998) ISBN: 9780805050127
• Women of Hope: African Americans Who Made A Difference (1998) ISBN: 9780590939737
• Freedom Roads: Searching for the Underground Railroad (with Gary McGowan, 2003) ISBN: 9780812626735
• African Princess: The Amazing Lives of Africa's Royal Women (illustrated by Laurie McGaw, 2004) ISBN: 9780786851164