Theodore Langhans Taylor (June 23, 1921 – October 26, 2006) was an American author of more than 50 fiction and non-fiction books for young adult readers, including '' The Cay'', '' The Weirdo'' (winner of the 1992 Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery), '' Timothy of the Cay'', and '' The Bomb''. Taylor died on October 26, 2006, in

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, from complications of a heart attack.

Early life

Taylor was born in Stateville, North Carolina where he lived until he was 10. He then resided in Craddock, North Carolina. He dropped out of high school at age 17 and began writing for a living.

Career

During World War II Taylor served in the United States Merchant Marines. He served in the United States Navy during World War II. Taylor worked as a press agent connected with the American film industry and wrote on the side. Early in his career he wrote fiction and non-fiction works aimed at adults. It was not until The Cay he started writing works aimed at youths.

Notable works

''The Cay''

''The Cay,'' Taylor's story of a racially prejudiced white boy stranded with a black man, has become perhaps the most beloved of his young adult novels. It took only three weeks to complete and has seen worldwide sales of around four million. Taylor based the character of the boy in his book on a childhood friend, named Phillip. "The one thing I remembered about imwas that his mother had taught him to hate black people and to hate them with a passion," Taylor once told a reporter from the ''

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.'' In the book, the boy sheds his racist views as he learns to admire and respect the black man who had rescued him from the ocean, especially after he goes blind. For a short period of time ''The Cay'' was banned and was classified as racist.

''Timothy of the Cay''

In 1993, Taylor wrote and published the follow-up to ''The Cay,'' which he titled ''Timothy of the Cay.'' It describes the life of Timothy before his encounter with Phillip Enright, the narrator of ''The Cay,'' and what happened to Phillip after he was rescued, by which time Timothy had been dead for almost two months.

Other works

Another work by Taylor, ''The Maldonado Miracle'' was adapted into a film starring

Salma Hayek Salma Hayek Pinault ( , ; born Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez; September 2, 1966) is a Mexican and American actress and film producer. She began her career in Mexico with starring roles in the telenovela ''Teresa'' (1989–1991) as well as the ...

.LA Times obituary
/ref> Another work by Taylor, “Rogue Wave”, an adventure story.

References

External links

*
"Theodore Taylor, 85; wrote 'The Cay' and other novels for the young"
Jocelyn Stewart, ''The Los Angeles Times'', October 28, 2006 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Theodore Langhans 1921 births 2006 deaths American children's writers American male novelists People from Statesville, North Carolina Novelists from North Carolina 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists Edgar Award winners 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers United States Merchant Mariners of World War II United States Navy personnel of the Korean War