Laurie Halse Anderson is the New York Times bestselling author. She writes for children of all ages. Her work has earned her numerous awards. Two of her books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists. Laurie was honored with the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award for her “significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature.”
Anderson was born on October 23, 1961 in Potsdam, New York. It is close to the border of Canada. Her parents, Frank and Joyce, now live in Florida. She was born Laurie Beth Halse.
As a child her second grade teacher showed her how writing was done. She used to read all the time. She was awful at math like most creative people are. Historical fiction was her favorite when she was little, and as a teenager she most enjoyed science fiction and fantasy. Throughout this stage, she stayed in love with foreign cultures and languages.
Her senior year of high school, she got the heck out of her parents' house. She attended Onondaga Community College for two years. Then she worked on a dairy farm, milking cows, while at college. She transferred to Georgetown University in 1981. She graduated from there in 1984 with a B.S.L.L. in Languages and Linguistics.
In 1996, her first book, Ndito Runs, was published. Later that year, Turkey Pox came out. Ndito was inspired by an NPR story about Kenyan Olympic marathon runners. Turkey Pox was inspired by Meredith, who actually came down with chicken pox on Thanksgiving, though no snow plow drivers came to the family's rescue. In 1998, No Time For Mother's Day was published, featuring the same characters as Turkey Pox.
Since 1993, Laurie had been rewriting Fever 1793, originally titled Bitter Drops. She took a break and wrote Speak. Speak won many awards. Laurie finished Fever 1793 and it was published in 2000.
Twisted was published in 2007. This became Laurie’s third novel on the New York Times bestseller list.
Laurie now lives in northern New York, with her childhood sweetheart, now husband, Scot. She has four beautiful children and a dog. When not enjoying her family and her large garden, she spends many, many hours writing in a woodland cottage designed and built just for that purpose by her Beloved Husband. She also likes to train for marathons, hike in the mountains, and try to coax tomatoes out of the rocky soil in her backyard. She is quite sure that she leads a charmed life and is deeply grateful for it.
Anderson was born on October 23, 1961 in Potsdam, New York. It is close to the border of Canada. Her parents, Frank and Joyce, now live in Florida. She was born Laurie Beth Halse.
As a child her second grade teacher showed her how writing was done. She used to read all the time. She was awful at math like most creative people are. Historical fiction was her favorite when she was little, and as a teenager she most enjoyed science fiction and fantasy. Throughout this stage, she stayed in love with foreign cultures and languages.
Her senior year of high school, she got the heck out of her parents' house. She attended Onondaga Community College for two years. Then she worked on a dairy farm, milking cows, while at college. She transferred to Georgetown University in 1981. She graduated from there in 1984 with a B.S.L.L. in Languages and Linguistics.
In 1996, her first book, Ndito Runs, was published. Later that year, Turkey Pox came out. Ndito was inspired by an NPR story about Kenyan Olympic marathon runners. Turkey Pox was inspired by Meredith, who actually came down with chicken pox on Thanksgiving, though no snow plow drivers came to the family's rescue. In 1998, No Time For Mother's Day was published, featuring the same characters as Turkey Pox.
Since 1993, Laurie had been rewriting Fever 1793, originally titled Bitter Drops. She took a break and wrote Speak. Speak won many awards. Laurie finished Fever 1793 and it was published in 2000.
Twisted was published in 2007. This became Laurie’s third novel on the New York Times bestseller list.
Laurie now lives in northern New York, with her childhood sweetheart, now husband, Scot. She has four beautiful children and a dog. When not enjoying her family and her large garden, she spends many, many hours writing in a woodland cottage designed and built just for that purpose by her Beloved Husband. She also likes to train for marathons, hike in the mountains, and try to coax tomatoes out of the rocky soil in her backyard. She is quite sure that she leads a charmed life and is deeply grateful for it.