Karen Hesse facts for kids

Karen S. Hesse, born on August 29, 1952, is a famous American author. She writes books for children and young adults. Many of her stories are historical fiction, meaning they are set in the past. She won the important Newbery Medal for her book Out of the Dust in 1997.

Early Life and Education

Karen Hesse was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She went to Towson State College. In 1971, she married Randy Hesse. She also studied at the University of Maryland, College Park. She earned a degree in English. She also studied psychology and anthropology. During her college years, she started writing poetry.

Becoming an Author

After college, Karen Hesse and her husband moved to Brattleboro, Vermont. They had two daughters, Rachel and Kate. Karen worked in publishing and then began writing books for children.

Her first book idea was about meeting Bigfoot, but it wasn't published. Her next idea became her first published novel. It was called Wish on a Unicorn and came out in 1991.

Stories from the Past

Karen Hesse is well-known for her historical fiction. These books help readers imagine what life was like in different times.

• Out of the Dust is a story about a girl named Billie Jo. She lives during the Great Depression in the Dust Bowl. This was a time when huge dust storms swept across parts of America. The book shows how Billie Jo and her father try to keep going after a family tragedy.

• Witness, published in 2001, is a powerful story told in poems. It's about a small Vermont town in the 1920s. The Ku Klux Klan tries to take over the town. The story is told from the viewpoints of many different people who live there. This includes a young Jewish girl, an African American girl, and other townspeople.

• Stowaway (2000) is based on a true story. It's about an 11-year-old boy who secretly boarded Captain James Cook's ship, the Endeavour, in 1768. The book is written like a diary by the boy, Nicholas Young.

• Brooklyn Bridge tells the true story of a family in Brooklyn. They were the ones who created the famous teddy bear in 1903.

Other Exciting Books

Karen Hesse has also written other kinds of stories.

• The Music of Dolphins is about a girl who was raised by dolphins. She then has to learn to live with humans.

Karen Hesse continues to live in Brattleboro, Vermont with her husband.

Awards and Recognition

Karen Hesse has won many important awards for her books.

• In 2002, she became a MacArthur Fellow. This is a special award given to talented people in many fields.

• For Out of the Dust (1997), she won the prestigious Newbery Medal. This award recognizes the best children's book published in America each year. She also won the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction for this book.

• Her book Letters from Rifka (1992) won an International Reading Association Award. It also received a National Jewish Book Award.

• In 2012, Letters from Rifka received the Phoenix Award. This award is given to a children's book published twenty years earlier that didn't win a major award at the time, but is still considered excellent.

List of Works

Here are some of the books Karen Hesse has written:

• 1991, Wish on a Unicorn
• 1992, Letters from Rifka
• 1993, Lester's Dog
• 1993, Poppy's Chair
• 1994, Phoenix Rising
• 1994, Sable
• 1995, A Time of Angels
• 1995, Lavender
• 1996, The Music of Dolphins
• 1997, Out of the Dust
• 1998, Just Juice
• 1999, Come on, Rain
• 1999, A Light in the Storm: the Civil War Diary of Amelia Martin
• 2000, Stowaway
• 2001, Witness
• 2003, Aleutian Sparrow
• 2003, The Stone Lamp: Eight Stories of Hanukkah through History
• 2004, The Cats in Krasinski Square
• 2005 The Young Hans Christian Andersen
• 2008, Spuds
• 2008, Brooklyn Bridge
• 2011, "Nell" (a short story)
• 2012, Safekeeping
• 2016, My Thumb
• 2018, "Night Job"
• 2022, "Granny and Bean"