An Na (born 1972) is a
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
-born
children's book
Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. In addition to conventional literary genres, modern children's literature is classified by the intended age of the reade ...
author. She gained success with her first novel ''
A Step From Heaven'', published by
Front Street Press in 2001, which won the annual
Michael L. Printz Award
The Michael L. Printz Award is an American Library Association literary award that annually recognizes the "best book written for teens, based entirely on its literary merit". It is sponsored by ''Booklist'' magazine; administered by the ALA's ...
from the
American Library Association
The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world.
History 19th century ...
recognizing the year's "best book written for teens, based entirely on its literary merit".
[ It was also a finalist for the ]National Book Award
The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. ...
, Young People's Literature, and later found its way onto numerous "best book" lists.
Life
Na grew up in San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
,Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
from Amherst College
Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...
.Vermont College of Fine Arts
Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) is a private graduate-level college affiliated with California Institute of the Arts. It offers Master's degrees in a low-residency format. Its faculty includes Pulitzer Prize finalists, National Book Award wi ...
. She divides her time between Oakland, California
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
and Warren, Vermont
Warren is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,977 at the 2020 census. The center of population of Vermont is located in Warren. It is set between the two ranges of the Green Mountains, with approximately 2 ...
, and makes frequent visits to middle schools to talk about her works and encourages young Asian-American
Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants).
Although this term had historically been used for ...
students to become artists and harness their creativity.
Influences
Na cites Frank McCourt's ''Angela's Ashes
''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, but focuses primarily on his life in Li ...
'' and Sandra Cisneros's '' The House on Mango Street'' among the influences on her writing and also admires the work of Madeleine L'Engle
Madeleine L'Engle (; November 29, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was an American writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and young adult fiction, including ''A Wrinkle in Time'' and its sequels: '' A Wind in the Door'', '' A Swiftly Tilting Planet'' ...
and of her first writing teacher, Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson (born February 12, 1963) is an American writer of books for children and adolescents. She is best known for '' Miracle's Boys'', and her Newbery Honor-winning titles '' Brown Girl Dreaming'', '' After Tupac and D Foster'', ''F ...
.
Works
* '' A Step From Heaven'' (2001)
* ''The Fold
The Fold is an American indie rock band from Chicago, Illinois, United States. The Fold formed in 2002, and promptly began work on their album '' This Too Shall Pass'' for Tooth & Nail Records. They have released four full-length studio albums ...
'' (2008)
* ''Akbar : The Great Emperor of India''
* ''Wait For Me'' (2017)
* ''The Place Between Breaths'' (2018)
See also
References
Teaching Multicultural Literature, Workshop 4, Authors and Literary Works, Biography
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Na, An
1972 births
American children's writers
American writers of Korean descent
Michael L. Printz Award winners
Amherst College alumni
Vermont College of Fine Arts alumni
Living people
Date of birth missing (living people)
People from Washington County, Vermont
Writers from Oakland, California
American writers of young adult literature
American women children's writers
21st-century American women writers
21st-century American novelists
American women writers of young adult literature