Jen Bryant

Last updated
Jen Bryant
BornJennifer Fisher
(1960-05-13) May 13, 1960 (age 64)
Easton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
OccupationChildren's and young adult writer and poet
GenreNon-fiction, picture books, biographies, novels, poetry
Website
www.jenbryant.com

Jen Bryant (born 1960) is an American poet, novelist, and children's writer.

Contents

Bryant has won several awards for her work, including the Robert F. Sibert International Book Medal for The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus, the NCTE Orbis Pictus Award, and the Charlotte Zolotow Honor Award for A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, and the Schneider Family Book Award for Six Dots: A Story of Young Louis Braille.

Two of her books, The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus and A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, have been awarded Caldecott Honors for Melissa Sweet's artwork.

Early life and education

Bryant (née Jennifer Fisher) was born in Easton, Pennsylvania and grew up in Flemington, New Jersey. [1] Bryant grew up next to a funeral home, where her father and grandfather were undertakers. She was fascinated by the manual typewriter her father used and would "try and copy whatever material happened to be lying around: drafts of obituaries. And what are obituaries, really, but one's life summed up in a paragraph or two? Good ones leave an impression of the person as an individual. I suppose as I practiced typing them, I must have absorbed some of the craft behind the writing of these little ‘biographies'." [2]

She graduated from Hunterdon Central Regional High School in Flemington, New Jersey, in 1978 [1] and attended Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where she received her bachelor's degree in French and minored in German and secondary education.

Career

After graduating from Gettysburg College, Bryant taught French and German at Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly, Virginia, where she also coached their cross country teams. [3]

After moving with her family to Chester County, Pennsylvania, Bryant began to write poetry, to study independently with poet Tina Barr, and to host poetry readings in local independent bookstores. Encouraged and mentored by authors Eileen Spinelli and Jerry Spinelli, she began to write picture books and novels in verse and to submit them to publishers. She continued to teach and to write while obtaining a M.A. in English from Arcadia University in 1999, where she was mentored by poet David Keplinger.

In 1999, Bryant taught writing and children's literature at West Chester University in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and delivered lectures and workshops for schools and colleges. She continued writing poetry for adults and novels and picture books for children, eventually focusing on children's literature. Bryant's writing for children has been recognized with the Robert F. Sibert International Book Medal, the NCTE Orbis Pictus Award, the Charlotte Zolotow Honor Award, and the Schneider Family Book Award.

In May 2013, along with Julia Chang Bloch and David Gergen, Bryant received an honorary doctorate degree from Gettysburg College, her alma mater. [4] She currently serves on the Board of Trustees for Gettysburg College. [5]

Personal life

Bryant lives with her family in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. [6]

Published works

Non-fiction picture book biographies

Middle-grade and young adult biographies

Novels in verse

Novels in prose

Poetry

Magazines and anthologies

Bryant's poems and articles have appeared in Highlights magazine and Image , and others. Her work is anthologized in Rush Hour: A Journal of Contemporary Voices (Delacorte Press); You Just Wait, The Poetry Friday Anthology; The Poetry Anthology for Middle School (all Pomelo Press); and One Minute Till Bedtime (Little, Brown).

Translations and adaptations

Several children's books by Bryant have been translated into Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and Hebrew. Six Dots, her biography of inventor Louis Braille, is available in a print braille edition.

A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin was adapted for the stage by the Seattle Repertory Theatre.

Awards and honors

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Murphy (author)</span> American author (1947–2022)

James John Patrick Murphy was an American author. He wrote more than 35 nonfiction and fiction books for children, young adults, and general audiences, including more than 30 about American history. He won the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 2010 for his contribution in writing for teens.

Susan Campbell Bartoletti is an American writer of children's literature whose work includes Kids on Strike! and Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow.

Russell A. Freedman was an American biographer and the author of nearly 50 books for young people. He may be best known for winning the 1988 Newbery Medal with his work Lincoln: A Photobiography.

Deborah Hopkinson is an American writer of over seventy children's books, primarily historical fiction, nonfiction and picture books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikki Grimes</span> American writer and illustrator (born 1950)

Nikki Grimes is an American author of books written for children and young adults, as well as a poet and journalist.

<i>Minn of the Mississippi</i> Book by Holling C. Holling

Minn of the Mississippi is a children's book written and illustrated by Holling Clancy Holling. First published in 1951, it received a Newbery Honor award the following year.

<i>Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitlers Shadow</i> 2005 non-fiction childrens book by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Hitler Youth: Growing up in Hitler's Shadow is a non-fiction children's book written by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, and published in 2005. It received the Newbery Honor medal in 2006.

Earl Bradley Lewis is an American artist and illustrator. He is best known for his watercolor illustrations for children's books such as Jacqueline Woodson’s The Other Side and Jabari Asim’s Preaching to the Chickens: The Story of Young John Lewis.

Penny Colman is an American author of books, essays, stories, and articles for all ages. In 2005, her social history, Corpses, Coffins, and Crypts: A History of Burial, was named one of the 100 Best of the Best Books for the 21st Century by members of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

Neal Porter is an American children's book editor. He is the founder of Neal Porter Books, an imprint of Holiday House.

The Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children recognizes books which demonstrate excellence in the "writing of nonfiction for children." It is awarded annually by the National Council of Teachers of English to one American book published the previous year. Up to five titles may be designated as Honor Books. The award is named after the book considered to be the first picture book for children, Orbis Pictus, by John Amos Comenius, which was published in 1657. The award has recognized one book annually without exception since it was inaugurated in 1990.

Shelley Tanaka is a Canadian editor of numerous young adult novels, an author of non-fiction for children, a translator, and a writing teacher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Candace Fleming</span> American childrens writer (born 1962)

Candace Groth Fleming is an American writer of children's books, both fiction and non-fiction. She is the author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize-honored The Family Romanov and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award-winning biography, The Lincolns, among others.

Patricia Marie Cummings is an American writer and illustrator of children's books.

Melissa Sweet is an American illustrator and writer of nearly 100 books for children and young readers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tanya Lee Stone</span> American author (born 1965)

Tanya Lee Stone is an American author of children's and young adult books. She writes narrative nonfiction for middle-grade students and young adults, as well as nonfiction picture books. Her stories often center women and people of color.

Jason Chin is an author and illustrator of children's books. His books, which usually deal with science and nature, were the recipients of a Caldecott Medal, a Sibert Honor and a Orbis Pictus Award.

Mara Rockliff is an American author of children's books specializing in works based on true stories. Her book Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved a Mystery that Baffled All of France won an Orbis Pictus Honor from the National Council of Teachers of English. The American Library Association selected her book Sweet Justice: Georgia Gilmore and the Montgomery Bus Boycott for a Sibert Honor. She also received the Golden Kite Award for Me and Momma and Big John.

The Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children, established in 2014 and organized by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), is an annual American literary award for children's fiction books. According to NCTE, the "award recognizes fiction that has the potential to transform children’s lives by inviting compassion, imagination, and wonder."

Barb Rosenstock is an American author and illustrator of children's literature books. In 2015, her book The Noisy Paint Box, illustrated by Mary Grandpré, received a Caldecott Honor,The Secret Kingdom and Otis and Will discover the deep won Orbis Pictus Honor, and Through the Window won Sydney Taylor Honor and the California Library Association Beatty Award as well as numerous national and state recognitions.

References

  1. 1 2 Staff. "Flemington native's book The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus wins national awards", Hunterdon County Democrat , February 6, 2015. Accessed September 5, 2022. "The author is the former Jennifer Fisher of Flemington, a 1978 graduate of Hunterdon Central High School."
  2. "Jen Bryant: an Award-Winning Career Influenced by Dr. Seuss, Obituaries, and Libraries". Mackin VIA. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  3. "Jen Bryant: For the Press". Jen Bryant's website. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  4. "Jen Bryant, Honorary Doctorate". Gettysburg College. Archived from the original on March 11, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  5. "Gettysburg College Board of Trustees". Gettysburg College. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  6. "Jen Bryant: For the Press". Jen Bryant's website. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  7. "The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus | ALA". www.ala.org. Retrieved 2024-10-27.
  8. "The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus | ALA". www.ala.org. Retrieved 2024-10-27.