Whelan, Gloria
1923—
Place of Birth: Detroit, MI
Place of Principal Residence: Detroit, MI
Biography:
Gloria Whelan was born in 1923 in Detroit, Michigan. At age nine, she had rheumatic heart disease and was forced to spend a whole year on bed rest, which was considered to be the only cure at the time. Her escape from the monotony came in the form of reading, and, since it was during the Great Depression and books were scarce, she often read the same books multiple times. Whelan began making up stories before she could write and dictated them to her baby sitter. She began writing poetry in elementary school, and was the editor of her high school’s paper. Whelan graduated from the University of Michigan and didn’t become a full-time writer until she and her husband moved to the woods of northern Michigan, where they spent thirty years. Whelan enjoys writing about her home state, as well as places overseas, and particularly thrives on the research involved with her writing. She and her husband now live in Detroit, MI and have two children, Joseph and Jennifer.
Selected Works:
- Angel on the Square
- The Impossible Journey
- Chu Ju’s House
- Mackinac Bridge: The Five Mile Poem
- Listening for Lion
Awards:
- 1998 Michigan Author Award
- 2000 National Book Award
- ALA Notable Children’s Book
- LA Best Books for Young Adults
- Great Lakes Booksellers Award
- Society of Midland Authors Juvenile Fiction Award
- Friends of American Writers Award
- Best Books of the Year Bank Street College
- Distinguished Achievement Award from the Educational Press Association of America
- Mark Twain Award
- Young Hoosier Master List
- National Outdoor Book Award
Critical Reception:
Gloria Whelan is the best-selling author of countless novels, short stories, and poetry. Her work encompasses the genres of children’s literature, young adult literature, contemporary fiction, historical fiction, and short stories and poems for adults. Children and adults alike praise her works.
For Summer of the War:
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“Beautifully measured writing captures the smell of lake breezes, the feel of sand between the toes and emotional ache of growing up when change is not a choice. An exception portrayal of how war becomes personal.”
-Kirkus Reviews
For Listening for Lions:
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“Gentle, nostalgic, and fueled with old-fashioned girl power, this involving orphan story will please fans of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic The Secret Garden (1912) and Eva Ibbotson’s The Star of Kazan.”
- Booklist
For St. Petersburg novels:
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“The book’s uncomplicated language and sensitive treatment of political issues make it an excellent, vibrant introduction to the cause and effects of Tsar Nikolai’s fall.”
- Publisher’s Weekly
Relevance of Place to Work:
Many of Gloria Whelan’s adult novels include wilderness setting and images and metaphors of nature. She is drawn by the mystery of nature and the characters it affects. Several of her books take place in Whelan’s favorite Michigan locations such as Mackinac Island.