Michelle Magorian facts for kids

Michelle Magorian (born 6 November 1947) is an English author. She writes books for children. She is famous for her book Goodnight Mister Tom. This book won an award in 1982. It has also been made into a movie and a play. Two other well-known books by her are Back Home and A Little Love Song. Michelle Magorian lives in Petersfield, Hampshire, in the UK.

About Michelle Magorian

Michelle Magorian was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire. Her father was from Ireland. When she was seven, she lived in Singapore and Australia for two years. As a child, she loved spending time at the Kings Theatre, Southsea.

Becoming an Actress and Writer

Michelle always wanted to be an actress. She studied acting for three years at the Rose Bruford College. Then, she spent two years learning mime in Paris. After that, she became a professional actress. She toured all over the country, acting in many plays. Her least favorite role was playing Orinoco in The Wombles musical!

While acting, she was secretly writing stories. When she was 24, she became interested in children's books. She decided to write one herself.

The Story Behind Goodnight Mister Tom

Her first book was Goodnight Mister Tom. The idea for the book came from the colors in a song. She thought of brown as an old, earthy color. Green made her think of youth. The character William Beech came to her mind. She imagined a slim beech tree, which gave her the idea for a slim young boy.

Some details for the story came from her mother. Her mother told stories about being a nurse during World War II. Michelle took four and a half years to write the book. This was because she was also working in the theatre.

Success of Goodnight Mister Tom

After finishing the book, she shared it in a writing class. It was published in 1981 and became very popular. Michelle won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize for the book. She was also a runner-up for the Carnegie Medal. This award is for the best children's book by a British author. She also won the International Reading Association Children's Book Award.

Goodnight Mister Tom was made into a film in 1998. It has also been adapted into a musical.

Other Books and Awards

After Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle wrote Back Home (1984). This book is also about a child during World War II. Goodnight Mister Tom was about a boy from London living in the countryside. Back Home is about a girl returning to Britain after five years in the United States.

Her third novel was A Little Love Song. It is about a young woman finding independence and love during wartime. Most of Michelle's other books are also set in the mid-20th century. Many of them are about theatres.

She has written several more novels, including Cuckoo in the Nest (1994) and Just Henry (2008). She has also written poetry and short stories.

In 2007, she received a special award from Portsmouth University. Her book Just Henry won the 2008 Costa Book Award in the Children's Book category.

Books by Michelle Magorian

• Goodnight Mister Tom (1981)
• Back Home (1984)
• Waiting for My Shorts to Dry (1989)
• Who's Going to Take Care of Me? (1990)
• Orange Paw Marks (1991)
• A Little Love Song (1991); also called Not a Swan in the US
• In Deep Water (1992)
• Jump (1992)
• A Cuckoo in the Nest (1994)
• A Spoonful of Jam (1998)
• Be Yourself (2003)
• Just Henry (2008)
• Impossible (2014)

Films Based on Her Work

See also

In Spanish: Michelle Magorian para niños

Goodnight Mister Tom