Wendy Mass

Last updated
Wendy Mass
Born (1967-04-22) April 22, 1967 (age 58)
Livingston, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation Novelist
LanguageEnglish, Spanish
Alma mater Tufts University
Genre Children's literature, Young adult fiction
Notable works
Notable awards Schneider Family Book Award
(2004) A Mango-Shaped Space
Website
wendymass.com

Wendy Mass (born April 22, 1967) is an American author of young adult novels and children's books.

Contents

Her 2003 novel, A Mango-Shaped Space won the American Library Association (ALA) Schneider Family Book Award for Middle School in 2004. [1] Her other notable works include: 11 Birthdays , A Mango-Shaped Space and Every Soul a Star .

Mass's novel Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life was adapted into a feature film in 2011. [2]

Early life

Born in Livingston, New Jersey, Mass's favorite subjects in school were reading and science. Wendy worked at town libraries and bookstores. As a child she would compete with friends to see who could read the most books; this helped develop her writing skills. Her first career vision was to be an astronaut. Mass's first story, co-written by her two siblings, starred a cat that somehow turned into a goat and destroyed her neighborhood.

In high school, Mass worked at a local bookstore and continued to hone her writing skills. She took writing classes and decided on writing for her career.

Education

As an English major at Tufts University, Mass continued to develop her writing skills. Mass mainly wrote short stories throughout college, and after graduation she moved to Los Angeles, where she tried her hand at a multitude of writing businesses, including assisting a literary agent, and at a television casting company, editor of a magazine, and a script reader for a film producer. Mass realized she wanted to inspire pre-teens, teens, and adults by writing books for children, teens, and adults. She moved back to her New Jersey hometown and while writing, worked as a book editor, operating out of New York City and Connecticut. She has a master's degree in creative writing from California State University, Long Beach and a Doctor of Letters degree from Drew University. [3]

Honors and awards

Mass has published 31 novels for children and teens. [4] She won the American Library Association (ALA) Schneider Family Book Award for her children's book A Mango-Shaped Space in 2004. [1] In 2011, she won the Black Eyed Susan Award from The Maryland Association of School Librarians for 11 Birthdays. [5] She won the American Library Association Award (best books for the teenage selection), New York Public, and New York Public Library Best Books for the teenage designation, Great Lakes Book Award and Michigan State award, and has since won 11 state book awards. [4]

Personal life

Mass currently resides in New Jersey with her family. [4]

Works

Non-fiction

Fiction

TV scripts

References

  1. 1 2 "Schneider Family Book Award Recipients". Archived from the original on October 26, 2008.
  2. ↑ "Reviews | Film Threat - Part 47040". Archived from the original on 2019-05-26. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  3. ↑ "Wendy Mass Facts". www.encyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 "About Me | Wendy Mass". Archived from the original on 2024-12-23. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
  5. ↑ "Past Winners". The Maryland Association of School Librarians. Archived from the original on 13 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  6. ↑ "Books". Wendy Mass. Archived from the original on 2024-08-15. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
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