Carolyn Meyer (born June 8, 1935) is an American author of

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

s for children and young adults. The typical genre for her work is

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literatur ...

, one of her more popular projects being the ''

Young Royals ''Young Royals'' is a Swedish teen drama romance television series created by Lisa Ambjörn, Lars Beckung, and Camilla Holter for the streaming service Netflix. Set at the fictional elite boarding school Hillerska, the plot primarily follows ...

'' series, each novel of which tells the story of a different crown princess (duchess, in the case of Catherine de Medici, and

lady ''Lady'' is a term for a woman who behaves in a polite way. Once used to describe only women of a high social class or status, the female counterpart of lord, now it may refer to any adult woman, as gentleman can be used for men. "Lady" is al ...

, in the case of

Anne Boleyn Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the Wives of Henry VIII, second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and execution, by beheading ...

) of her home country; either

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. For example, one of Carolyn Meyer's works is ''Duchessina'', which is the story of the troubled childhood and young adulthood of the Italian duchess

Catherine de' Medici Catherine de' Medici (, ; , ; 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Italian Republic of Florence, Florentine noblewoman of the Medici family and Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 by marriage to Henry II of France, King Henry II. Sh ...

up to her meeting with Crown Prince Henry of France. One recent novel in the ''Young Royals'' is ''Victoria Rebels'', which is about the teenage

Princess Victoria of Kent Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days, which was longer than tho ...

and her budding relationship with

Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband of Queen Victoria. As such, he was consort of the British monarch from Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, th ...

Early life

Born June 8, 1935, as an only child in

Lewistown, Pennsylvania Lewistown is a borough in and the county seat of Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the principal city of the '' Lewistown, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area'', which encompasses all of Mifflin County. It lies along the Juniata R ...

, Meyer began her first "novel," ''Humpy the Caterpillar and Gladys the Snail: A True Life Romance'' at age eight. However, she completed only three chapters.

Career

Meyer's latest work published is ''Beauty's Daughter: The Story of Hermione and Helen of Troy'', published October 2013. Her previous published work was ''The True Adventures of Charley Darwin'', focusing on the life of

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

, quite a leap from her usual subjects, for she has gone from royalty, to European artists, and now to scientists. ''The True Adventures of Charley Darwin'' is unusual in that it breaks from Meyer's formula of always having a female narrator, as Charley narrates his own story. The

hardcover A hardcover, hard cover, or hardback (also known as hardbound, and sometimes as casebound (At p. 247.)) book is one bookbinding, bound with rigid protective covers (typically of binder's board or heavy paperboard covered with buckram or other clo ...

version of this book was published on January 26, 2009. Before ''Darwin'' came ''In Mozart's Shadow'', a historical novel about

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

and narrated by his older sister,

Maria Anna Mozart Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia "Marianne" Mozart (30 July 1751 – 29 October 1829), nicknamed Nannerl, was a highly regarded musician from Salzburg, Austria. In her childhood, she developed into an outstanding keyboard player under the tutelage ...

, nicknamed Nannerl, released in 2008.Details for ''In Mozart's Shadow'' at Amazon booksellers
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Awards and Recognition

Carolyn Meyer has received numerous accolades throughout her career, underscoring her significant contributions to young adult literature.

"Mary, Bloody Mary"

* Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award (2002) * Awarded in the Intermediate division for *Mary, Bloody Mary*. * Source: arnes & Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mary-bloody-mary-carolyn-meyer/1102475524) * American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults (2000) * Recognized as one of the Best Books for Young Adults. * Source: LAhttps://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklists/bestbooksya/2000bestbooks) * American Booksellers Association Pick of the Lists * Selected for the ABA Pick of the Lists. * Source: arnes & Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mary-bloody-mary-carolyn-meyer/1102475524) * National Council for the Social Studies–Children's Book Council Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies * Honored as a Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies. * Source: arnes & Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mary-bloody-mary-carolyn-meyer/1102475524)

"Marie, Dancing"

* Book Sense Pick * Selected as a Book Sense Pick. * Source: arnes & Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/marie-dancing-carolyn-meyer/1100156626)

Early Career Recognition

* American Library Association Notable Book Citations * 1971: *The Bread Book* * 1976: *Amish People* * 1979: *C.C. Poindexter* * Source: ncyclopedia.comhttps://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/meyer-carolyn-1935) * Children’s Book Showcase Award (1977) * Awarded for *Amish People* by the Children's Book Council. * Source: ncyclopedia.comhttps://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/meyer-carolyn-1935) * Best Books Citation by The New York Times (1977) * Recognized for *Eskimos: Growing Up in a Changing Culture*. * Source: ncyclopedia.comhttps://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/meyer-carolyn-1935) * Pennsylvania School Librarians Association Author of the Year (1990) * Honored as Author of the Year. * Source: SLAhttps://www.psla.org/assets/docs/awards/Previous%20Winners%20-%20Outstanding%20PA%20Authors%20%2B%20Illustrators%20%281%29.pdf)

Personal life

Mother to three grown sons, she resides in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

. Her husband, E.A. "Tony" Mares, a New Mexico poet, essayist and historian, and professor at the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; ) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, it is the state's second oldest university, a flagship university in th ...

, died January 30, 2015.

Novels

References

External links

*
Interview
at publisher Harcourt * {{DEFAULTSORT:Meyer, Carolyn 1935 births 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers American young adult novelists American historical novelists Living people Writers from Albuquerque, New Mexico People from Lewistown, Pennsylvania Novelists from Pennsylvania American women writers of young adult literature American women historical novelists Writers of historical fiction set in the early modern period