October's Author of the Month is Gary Paulsen. Stop by thelibrary to check out one of the Gary Paulsen books below. Author Profile (from Contemporary Authors Online) Writings by the Author (from Contemporary Authors Online) |
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Gary Paulsen
- official site for the bestselling author of Hatchet, Brian's Winter,
and other adventure books for young readers, as well as Winterdance.
Learning about
Gary Paulsen - includes reviews, a list of articles, information about
the author, and other resources.
Author Profile <back to
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Gary Paulsen
1939-
Nationality: American
Source: Contemporary Authors Online. The Gale Group, 2000.
Updated: 12/06/2000
A prolific writer in several genres, Gary Paulsen is acclaimed as the author
of powerful young-adult fiction. Usually set in wilderness areas, Paulsen's
books for young adults feature teenagers who arrive at self-awareness by way
of experiences in nature--often through challenging tests of their own survival
instincts. A former resident of northern Minnesota, Paulsen writes from his
own experience of the outdoors, which includes dogsled racing in the Alaskan
Iditarod, hunting, and trapping. Tracker, for instance, tells the story of a
thirteen-year-old boy who must hunt alone for the first time to put meat on
the table. Paulsen describes the spiritual relationship that develops between
the hunter and his prey and how the deer's acceptance of death helps the boy
come to terms with his grandfather's imminent death. Dogsong is a story of a
boy's coming of age on the northern tundra. Eugene J. Lineham in Best Sellers
praises Paulsen's writing style, noting: "There is poetic majesty in the
descriptions without a touch of condescension to the young." Commenting
on his childhood in Authors & Artists for Young Adults, Paulsen remarked,
"I was an 'army brat,' and it was a miserable life. School was a nightmare
because I was unbelievably shy, and terrible at sports. I had no friends, and
teachers ridiculed me. . . . One day as I was walking past the public library
in twenty-below temperatures . . . I went in to get warm and to my absolute
astonishment the librarian . . . asked me if I wanted a library card. . . .
When she handed me the card, she handed me the world."
In Paulsen's novel Hatchet, the pilot of a single-engined plane has a heart
attack and dies, crashing his plane in the Canadian wilderness. Brian Robeson,
the sole passenger, must put aside his troubled thoughts about his parents'
divorce and try to survive with just the hatchet that his mother had given him
as a parting gift. Brian uses his hatchet in numerous ways, such as striking
it against a rock to make sparks for a fire and using it to sharpen sticks for
tools. The tension surrounding Brian's struggle to survive is enhanced by Paulsen's
"staccato, repetitive style," according to a Kirkus Reviews contributor,
who notes Hatchet is a "plausible, taut, . . . [and] spellbinding account."
Comparing Paulsen to best-selling authors Robert Cormier and Paula Fox, Christian
Science Monitor's Stephen Fraser claims that Hatchet "deserves special
attention. Written in terse, poetic prose, it is an adventure story in the best
tradition."
Dancing Carl deviates from Paulsen's adventure stories and focuses on interpersonal
relationships. When two twelve-year-old boys first meet Carl, the enigmatic
man in the flight jacket, they think he is an alcoholic and a bum. They quickly
learn that Carl is much more than that; he takes over the skating rink with
the power of his presence, and over the course of the winter, he becomes the
topic of the whole town's conversations. With his dance-like movements he expresses
his emotions, and the people who watch are made to feel things too, such as
repentance for a violent act, happy memories of someone who just died, Carl's
pain and terror of his war experience, and Carl's love for a woman. "Readers
will come away with a sense of having met an intriguing person," according
to Jane E. Gardner in School Library Journal. "Filled with poetry and with
life," praises Dorcas Hand in Horn Book, "[Dancing Carl] is not only
an insightful, beautifully written story for children but for readers of any
age."
Another book that touches on the subject of war and its effect on lives is Sentries,
a collection of stories about four young people who are given the opportunity
to make their lives a success during peacetime and three young men whose lives
are destroyed by choices made during war. The peacetime tales relate the stories
of a girl who chooses between her Indian heritage and the white world, a migrant
worker who commits to working with beet harvesters, a daughter who proves that
she is as capable as any son, and a gifted rock musician who creates a new music.
These stories are juxtaposed with tales expressed through four battle hymns
set during World War II and the Vietnam War. The purpose of these veterans'
tales of mental and physical suffering and the looming threat of nuclear war
are to ensure that readers do not take their choices and opportunities for granted
and to encourage them to be sentries to protect their rights and freedoms. The
juxtaposition of the war and peacetime chapters "conveys, better than philosophizing,
the interconnections of life," according to New York Times Book Review's
Doris Orgel. Noting that Sentries "is strange [and] hard to pigeonhole,"
Orgel finds that although the protaganists do not interact and the combined
tales do not create a novel, the "stories produce a unified effect."
And, Voice of Youth Advocates' Evie Wilson hails Paulsen for his "literary
excellence" in his selection of stories that serve to remind us of the
potential of "the formidable human waste nuclear war promises."
Paulsen's novels continue to reflect the author's interest in nature and the
people who derive their sustenance from the outdoors. In The Cookcamp, a young
boy learns some valuable lessons about life and love from his grandmother, who
works as a cook for a deep-woods road crew. "This short novel has almost
unbelievable poignancy," comments Patty Campbell in New York Times Book
Review. Susan M. Harding, writing in School Library Journal, concurs by noting
that The Cookcamp offers a "depth of imagery and emotion" which makes
the book "superb for readers just old enough to look back."
In books like Nightjohn and Mr. Tucket, Paulsen draws on history for literary
inspiration. The twelve-year-old heroine of Nightjohn is a slave who awaits
the day when she will be designated a "breeder" by her master. As
Sarny tries to deal with this unpleasant eventuality, she surreptitiously takes
reading lessons from an older slave named John. John pays a high price for being
Sarny's teacher--two of his toes are cut off--but he is eventually able to escape
and establish an underground school. In Mr. Tucket, fourteen-year-old Francis
Tucket has a number of hair-raising adventures when he is captured by the Pawnee
after drifting away from his family's Oregon-bound wagon train. After Francis
escapes from the tribe, a one-armed fur trader named Jason Grimes continues
the young teen's frontier education.
The traumas that go hand-in-hand with coming of age are also present in The
Car, Paulsen's 1994 novel about a teen who deals with emotional upheaval by
working on a car kit. Terry pours the frustration and anger he feels about his
parents' separation into long hours with his tools, building the convertible
his father never finished. In his review of The Car for School Library Journal,
Tim Rausch calls the author's characters "interesting to [young adults]
. . . the action is brisk."
Rosa and Traci of Sisters/Hermanas have little in common--at least on the surface.
Rosa is an illegal immigrant who turns to prostitution in order to survive;
Traci is a well-liked Middle Schooler whose biggest concerns revolve around
cheerleading tryouts and new clothes. Both teens, however, are deeply obsessed
with beauty and its impact on their future happiness. The two young women's
lives ultimately intersect at a mall, where both girls are forced to face some
unpleasant realities. This tale of culture clash and youthful dreams is especially
unique in that the entire text appears in both English and Spanish. Summing
up the novel for Los Angeles Times Book Review, Yvonne Sapia terms the work
"brief, ambitious, and told quite poetically."
In a series of Westerns, Paulsen features Al Murphy, a New Yorker in his early
thirties who heads west with the army after the Civil War and becomes a lawman.
David Whitehead of Twentieth-Century Western Writers describes Murphy: "Although
he is a lawman's lawman, whose actions are dictated more by instinct than conscious
thought, Murphy soon proves to be more than just another gun-fast hero. In Paulsen's
hands, he is as close to human--with all the foibles and contradictions that
this entails--as any fictional character is likely to get." Murphy introduces
the character as he enforces the law in a Colorado town. When a girl is raped
and murdered, Murphy's efforts to identify and capture the killer force him
to consider his position in the community, which views him as a necessary evil.
Murphy's hunches often amount to nothing, which, according to Whitehead, "serves
only to make his dogged attempts at solving the crime all the more credible."
Whitehead further praises the final resolution and the well-drawn cast of minor
characters. The identity of the killer is revealed in Murphy's Gold, in which
Murphy is still haunted by memories of the victim. The plot centers on the romantic
possibilities between Murphy and Midge, the cafe owner, and Murphy's attempts
to locate a Chinese woman's missing husband. In Murphy's War, Murphy has left
the Colorado town and is keeping the peace in Fletcher, Wyoming. Tensions mount
as he comes into conflict with a power-hungry storekeeper and a wealthy rancher
intent on avenging the lynching death of his son.
Paulsen's own colorful life is the basis for the author's 1993 book titled Eastern
Sun, Winter Moon: An Autobiographical Odyssey. Among the events chronicled are
Paulsen's journey by car across the country to meet his long-absent father,
his family's unsettling life in the Philippines, and the dissolution of his
parents' marriage. While noting that the memoir lacks introspective depth, Tim
Winton in Los Angeles Times Book Review nevertheless finds the book to be "no
less powerful and dignified for its painful silences."
"I write because it's all I can do," Paulsen once commented. "Every
time I've tried to do something else, I cannot." The author continues to
write--even though the task is often daunting to him--because he wants his "years
on this ball of earth to mean something. Writing furnishes a way for that to
happen. . . . It pleases me to write--in a very literal sense of the word."
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Family: Born May 17, 1939, in Minneapolis, MN; son of Oscar (an Army officer)
and Eunice Paulsen; married third wife, Ruth Ellen Wright (an artist), May 5,
1971; children: two children from first marriage, James Wright from third marriage.
Education: Attended Bemidji College, 1957-58; and University of Colorado, 1976.
Politics: "As Solzhenitsyn has said, 'If we limit ourselves to political
structures we are not artists.'" Religion: "I believe in spiritual
progress."
Addresses: Home: Leonard, MI. Agent: Jonathan Lazear, 430 First Ave., N., Suite
516, Minneapolis, MN 55401.
AWARDS
Central Missouri Award for Children's Literature, 1976;
* The Green Recruit was chosen one of New York Public Library's Books for the
Teen Age, 1980, 1981, and 1982, and Sailing: From Jibs to Jibing was chosen
in 1982;
* Dancing Carl was selected one of American Library Association's Best Young
Adult Books, 1983, and Tracker was selected in 1984; Society of Midland Authors
Award, 1985, for Tracker; Parents' Choice Award, Parents' Choice Foundation,
1985;
* Dogsong was chosen one of Child Study Association of America's Children's
Books of the Year, and was a Newbery Honor Book, 1986;
* Hatchet was named a Newbery Honor Book, received a Booklist Editor's Choice
citation, both 1988, and received the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book
Award, 1989;
* The Voyage of the Frog received Parenting magazine's Reading-Magic Award,
the Teachers' Choice Award from International Reading Association (IRA), and
a Best Book of the Year citation from Learning magazine, all 1990;
* The Winter Room was named a Newbery Honor Book, received the Judy Lopez Memorial
Award, and received a Parenting magazine Best Book of the Year citation, all
1990; The Boy Who Owned the School: A Comedy of Love won a Parents' Choice award,
1991; ALAN Award, 1991;
* Woodson received the Western Writers of America Spur award, a Booklist Editor's
Choice citation, and the Society of Midland Authors Book Award, all 1991;
* The Haymeadow received the Western Writers of America Spur Award, 1993;
* Harris and Me was named one of Booklist's Books for Youth Top of the List,
1993;
* Nightjohn and Dogteam received Children's Choice for 1994 citation from IRA/Children's
Book Council, 1994;
* Sisters/Hermanas was a PEN Center USA West Children's Literature Award finalist,
1994.
CAREER
Has worked variously as a teacher, electronics field engineer, soldier, actor,
director, farmer, rancher, truck driver, trapper, professional archer, migrant
farm worker, singer, and sailor; currently a full-time writer. Military service:
U.S. Army, 1959-62; became sergeant.
WRITINGS BY THE AUTHOR:<back
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NOVELS
* The Implosion Effect, Major Books (Canoga Park, CA), 1976.
* The Death Specialists, Major Books, 1976.
* The Foxman, Thomas Nelson (Nashville, TN), 1977.
* Winterkill, Thomas Nelson, 1977.
* Tiltawhirl John, Thomas Nelson, 1977.
* C. B. Jockey, Major Books, 1977.
* The Night the White Deer Died, Thomas Nelson, 1978.
* Hope and a Hatchet, Thomas Nelson, 1978.
* (With Ray Peekner) The Green Recruit, Independence Press (Independence, MO),
1978.
* The Spitball Gang, Elsevier/Nelson, 1980.
* The Sweeper, Harlequin (Tarrytown, NY), 1981.
* Compkill, Pinnacle Books (New York City), 1981.
* Clutterkill, Harlequin, 1982.
* Popcorn Days and Buttermilk Nights, Lodestar Books (New York City), 1983.
* Dancing Carl, Bradbury (Scarsdale, NY), 1983.
* Tracker, Bradbury, 1984.
* Dogsong, Bradbury, 1985.
* Sentries, Bradbury, 1986.
* The Crossing, Paperback Library, 1987.
* Hatchet, Orchard Books, 1987.
* Murphy (western), Walker & Co. (New York City), 1987.
* The Island, Orchard Books, 1988.
* Murphy's Gold (western), Walker & Co., 1988.
* Murphy's Herd (western), Walker & Co., 1989.
* Night Rituals, Donald I. Fine, Inc., 1989.
* The Boy Who Owned the School: A Comedy of Love, Orchard Books, 1990.
* Canyons, Delacorte (New York City), 1990.
* Kill Fee, Donald I. Fine, Inc., 1990.
* Woodsong, illustrated by Ruth Wright Paulsen, Bradbury, 1990.
* The Cookcamp, Orchard Books, 1991.
* Monument, Delacorte, 1991.
* The River, Delacorte, 1991.
* The Winter Room, Dell (New York City), 1991.
* A Christmas Sonata, Delacorte, 1992.
* Clabbered Dirt, Sweet Grass, paintings by R. Paulsen, Harcourt (New York City),
1992.
* The Haymeadow, Doubleday (New York City), 1992.
* Dogteam, Delacorte, 1993.
* Murphy's Stand (western), Walker & Co., 1993.
* Nightjohn, Delacorte, 1993.
* Sisters/Hermanas, Harcourt, 1993.
* The Car, Harcourt, 1994.
* Legend of Red Horse Cavern, Dell, 1994.
* Rodomonte's Revenge, Dell, 1994.
* Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod, Harcourt, 1994.
* Call Me Francis Tucket, Delacorte, 1995.
* Danger on Midnight River, Delacorte, 1995.
* Hook 'Em, Snotty! Delacorte, 1995.
* The Tent: A Tale in One Sitting, Harcourt, 1995.
* The Rifle, Harcourt, 1995.
* Murphy's Ambush, Walker & Co., 1995.
* The Tortilla Factory, Harcourt, 1995.
* Murphy's Trail, Walker (New York City), 1996.
* Brian's Winter, Delacorte (New York City), 1996.
* Worksong, Harcourt, 1997.
* Sarny: A Life Remembered, Bantam, 1997.
* Tucket's Ride, Delacorte, 1997.
* Sarney, a Life Remembered, Delacorte, 1997.
* The Schernoff Discoveries, Delacorte, 1997.
* The White Fox Chronicles, Delacorte, 2000.
SHORT STORIES
* The Madonna Stories, Van Vliet & Co., 1989.
NONFICTION
* (With Raymond Friday Locke) The Special War, Sirkay, 1966.
* Some Birds Don't Fly, Rand McNally (Chicago, IL), 1969.
* The Building a New, Buying an Old, Remodeling a Used, Comprehensive Home and
Shelter Book, Prentice-Hall (New York City), 1976.
* Puppies, Dogs, and Blue Northers: Reflections on Being Raised by a Pack of
Sled Dogs, Harcourt, 1976.
* Farm: A History and Celebration of the American Farmer, Prentice-Hall, 1977.
* (With John Morris) Hiking and Backpacking, illustrated by R. Paulsen, Simon
& Schuster (New York City), 1978.
* Successful Home Repair: When Not to Call the Contractor, Structures, 1978.
* (With Morris) Canoeing, Kayaking, and Rafting, illustrated by John Peterson
and Jack Storholm, Simon & Schuster, 1979.
* Money-Saving Home Repair Guide, Ideals (State College, PA), 1981.
* Beat the System: A Survival Guide, Pinnacle Books, 1983.
* Eastern Sun, Winter Moon: An Autobiographical Odyssey, Harcourt, 1993.
* Father Water, Mother Woods: Essays on Fishing and Hunting in the North Woods,
Delacorte, 1994.
* Pilgrimage on a Steelride: A Memoir about Men and Motorcycles, Harcourt, 1997.
JUVENILE
* Mr. Tucket, Funk & Wagnall (New York City), 1968.
* (With Dan Theis) Martin Luther King: The Man Who Climbed the Mountain, Raintree
(Milwaukee, WI), 1976.
* The Small Ones, illustrated by K. Goff and with photographs by W. Miller,
Raintree, 1976.
* The Grass Eaters: Real Animals, illustrated by Goff and with photographs by
Miller, Raintree, 1976.
* Dribbling, Shooting, and Scoring Sometimes, Raintree, 1976.
* Hitting, Pitching, and Running Maybe, Raintree, 1976.
* Tackling, Running, and Kicking--Now and Again, Raintree, 1977.
* Riding, Roping, and Bulldogging--Almost, Raintree, 1977.
* The Golden Stick, Raintree, 1977.
* Careers in an Airport, photographs by Roger Nye, Raintree, 1977.
* The CB Radio Caper, illustrated by John Asquith, Raintree, 1977.
* The Curse of the Cobra, illustrated by Asquith, Raintree, 1977.
* Running, Jumping, and Throwing--If You Can, photographs by Heinz Kluetmeier,
Raintree, 1978.
* Forehanding and Backhanding--If You're Lucky, photographs by Kluetmeier, Raintree,
1978.
* Downhill, Hotdogging, and Cross-Country--If the Snow Isn't Sticky, photographs
by Willis Wood and Kluetmeier, Raintree, 1979.
* Facing Off, Checking, and Goaltending--Perhaps, photographs by Melchior DeGiacomo
and Kluetmeier, Raintree, 1979.
* Going Very Fast in a Circle--If You Don't Run out of Gas, photographs by Kluetmeier
and Bob D'Olivo, Raintree, 1979.
* Launching, Floating High, and Landing--If Your Pilot Light Doesn't Go Out,
photographs by Kluetmeier, Raintree, 1979.
* Pummeling, Falling, and Getting Up--Sometimes, photographs by Kluetmeier and
Joe DiMaggio, Raintree, 1979.
* Track, Enduro, and Motocross--Unless You Fall Over, photographs by Kluetmeier
and others, Raintree, 1979.
* (With Art Browne Jr.) TV and Movie Animals, Messner (New York City), 1980.
* Sailing: From Jibs to Jibing, illustrated by R. Paulsen, Messner, 1981.
* Voyage of the Frog, Orchard Books, 1989.
* Harris and Me: A Summer Remembered, Harcourt, 1993.
* The Rock Jockeys, Bantam, 1995.
* My Life in Dog Years, Bantam, 1998.
"CULPEPPER ADVENTURES" SERIES
* The Case of the Dirty Bird, Dell, 1992.
* Dunc's Doll, Dell, 1992.
* Culpepper's Cannon, Dell, 1992.
* Dunc Gets Tweaked, Dell, 1992.
* Dunc's Halloween, Dell, 1992.
* Dunc Breaks the Record, Dell, 1992.
* Dunc and the Flaming Ghost, Dell, 1992.
* Amos Gets Famous, Dell, 1993.
* Dunc and Amos Hit the Big Top, Dell, 1993.
* Dunc's Dump, Dell, 1993.
* Amos's Last Stand, Dell, 1993.
* The Wild Culpepper Cruise, Dell, 1993.
* Dunc's Undercover, Dell, 1993.
* Dunc and Amos and the Red Tattoos, Dell, 1993.
* Dunc and the Haunted House, Dell, 1993.
* Cowpokes and Desperadoes, Dell, 1994.
* Prince Amos, Dell, 1994.
* Coach Amos, Dell, 1994.
* Amos and the Alien, Dell, 1994.
* Dunc and Amos Meet the Slasher, Dell, 1994.
* Dunc and the Greased Sticks of Doom, Dell, 1994.
* Amos's Killer Concert Caper, Dell, 1995.
* Amos Gets Married, Dell, 1995.
* Amos Goes Bananas, Dell, 1995.
* Dunc and Amos Go to the Dogs, Dell, 1995.
* Amos Gets Married, Bantam Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers, 1995.
* Amos Binder, Secret Agent, Yearling Books, 1997.
"GARY PAULSEN WORLD OF ADVENTURE" SERIES
* Escape from Fire Mountain, Dell, 1995.
* Rock Jockeys, Dell, 1995.
* Captive! Demco Media, 1996.
* Skydive! Yearling Books, 1996.
* The Treasure of El Patron, Dell, 1996.
PLAYS
* Communications (one-act play), produced in New Mexico, 1974.
* Together-Apart (one-act play), produced at Changing Scene Theater, 1976. Also
author, with Roger Barrett, of Athletics, Ice Hockey, Motor-Cycling, Motor Racing,
Skiing, and Tennis, all 1980. Also author of Meteorite-Track 291, The Winter
Stories, Murphy's War, The Meatgrinder, and screenplay A Cry in the Wind. Contributor
of more than 200 short stories and articles to periodicals.
MEDIA ADAPTATIONS
Dogsong (filmstrip with cassette), Random House/Miller-Brody, 1986; Dancing
Carl was first a narrative ballet for two dancers with original music by John
Collins and choreography by Nancy Keller--a seven-minute version of it was aired
on Minnesota Public Television.Bantam has adapted the following titles to audio:
Monument, 1993, and Brian's Winter, 1996. Numerous other titles have been adapted
to audio, including A Christmas Sonata, The Island, Mr. Tucket, The Night the
White Deer Died, Sisters/Hermanas, Tracker, and The Winter Room, all 1995; The
Foxman, Murphy's Ambush, and The Rifle, all 1996; and Captive!, Danger on Midnight
River, Escape from Fire Mountain, The Legend of the Red Horse Cavern, and Skydive!,
all 1997.
FURTHER READINGS ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
BOOKS
* Authors & Artists for Young Adults, Volume 17, Gale, 1995.
* Paulsen, Gary, Pilgrimage on a Steelride: A Memoir about Men and Motorcycles,
Harcourt, 1997.
* Paulsen Gary, Puppies, Dogs, and Blue Northers: Reflections on Being Raised
by a Packof Sled Dogs, Harcourt, 1996.
* Salvner, Gary, M., Presenting Gary Paulsen, Twhayne (New York City), 1996.
* Something about the Author, Volume 79, Gale, 1995.
* Twentieth-Century Children's Writers, 4th edition, St. James Press, 1995.
* Twentieth-Century Western Writers, 2nd edition, St. James Press, 1991.
* Twentieth-Century Young Adult Writers, St. James Press, 1994. PERIODICALS
* Best Sellers, July, 1985.
* Christian Science Monitor, November 6, 1987, p. B5.
* Horn Book, August, 1983, pp. 446-47.
* Kirkus Reviews, August 1, 1987, pp. 1161-62; September 15, 1997, p. 1443.
* Library Journal, February 15, 1993.
* London Review of Books, May 23, 1996, p. 28.
* Los Angeles Times, December 12, 1987.
* Los Angeles Times Book Review, March 21, 1993, pp. 1, 11; February 27, 1994,
pp. 2, 13.
* New York Times Book Review, June 29, 1986, p. 30; May 22, 1988; May 5, 1991,
pp. 22-23; November 10, 1996, p. 46.
* School Library Journal, May, 1983, p. 84; May, 1994, pp. 131-32; July, 1995,
p. 50; June, 1997, p. 24.
* Voice of Youth Advocates, October, 1986, p. 148; June, 1994; February, 1996,
p. 375; February, 1997, p. 332.
* Writer's Digest, January, 1980.*
CITATION
Contemporary Authors Online. The Gale Group, 2000. Reproduced in Biography Resource
Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: The Gale Group. 2001. (http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC)
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