For more than forty years, the American writer Lois Lowry has been pleasing readers with her stories. She is rightfully considered one of the best authors in the genre of children's and teenage literature. Her books are always in demand and awarded many awards. The name of the author became known to a wide audience after the release in 2014 of the film “Initiate”, shot based on the novel “The Giver”.
A bit about the author
Lois Lowry was born in March 1937 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father is of Norwegian descent, her mother is English, Dutch and German. At first, her parents gave her the name of a Norwegian grandmother, who telegraphed to them that the child should have an American name. And the baby was called Lois. As a child, a shy and reserved child, she loved to read. At 8, she decided that she wanted to become a writer. In addition to her, the family had the eldest daughter Helen. With brother John, who is six years younger than Lois, they often communicate and maintain close relationships.
Childhood
Lois's father, a military doctor, moved with his family from place to place. In 1940, when Lois was three years old, they left for Brooklyn, New York. The girl attended a kindergarten at the University of Berkeley, and in 1942, when her father served on the USS Hope hospital ship in the Pacific, she returned to her mother’s hometown, Carlisle, PA.
After the war, the family moved to their father in the Washington Heights military complex in Tokyo. In Japan, they lived from 1948 to 1950. Lois Lowry attended a special school for children of military and immigrants. The family returned to the United States in Carline, but here they did not stay long and moved to New York. Lois attended Curtis High School on Staten Island, then Brooklyn Heights, where she graduated from high school. In 1954 she entered Brown University, where she studied for only two years.
Personal life
In 1956, Lois married U.S. Navy officer Donald Lowry. The spouses had four children: two daughters Alex and Christine and sons Gray and Ben. Because of her husband’s military career, the family often moved. They lived in California, Florida, South Carolina and finally settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Donald left the service and enrolled at Harvard Law School. After graduation, the family moved to Portland, Maine.
Donald and Lois broke up when her career went up. Children grew up, and the couple found that they could not live together. In 1979, Lois moved to Boston. In Massachusetts, she went to an agency to take out insurance for a car, and agency head Martin Small invited her to coffee. In 1980, they bought an apartment and spent together more than thirty years until his death in 2011.
Education and career
When the kids got older, Lois Lowry entered the University of South Maine at the Department of English Literature. Having received a bachelor's degree, she continued her postgraduate studies, where while working on a term paper she got acquainted with photography, which became not only a hobby of life, but also a profession. When she worked as a freelance writer in Redbook magazine, she designed the articles with her own photographs. The editor saw talent in her and suggested writing a book for children. Lowry agreed, and her first work was The Summer to Die, published in the author’s 40th birthday.
Lois lowry today
Lois is now 81 years old, but she leads an active life. Not only continues to write, but also gives lectures. He enjoys spending time with four grandchildren in his homes in Maine and Massachusetts. In spring and summer, she enjoys gardening, she prefers to while away winter evenings for knitting. In 2015, Dr. Howard Corwin became her life partner.
Lois Lowry recently wrote on her blog: “Now I am a grandmother. For my grandchildren and subsequent generations, through writing, I try to convey the awareness that we live on a big planet. And our future depends on whether we care more about each other. ” Lowry is not particularly religious, but respects people of different religions and regrets the conflicts that occur on this basis. Most appreciated by the Dalai Lama: “My religion is kindness.”
Still keen on photography. They adorn the covers of Lois Lowry’s books “Finding the Blue,” “Count the Stars,” “The Giver.”
Prizes and awards
The ALA Margaret Edwards Award (Margaret Edwards Award) is awarded for "a significant and lasting contribution to literature for young people." Lowry received this award in 2007. In addition, it was noted that her book “The Giver” became one of the most “contested books of 1990–2000”, which was repeatedly tried to be removed from the list of literature for schoolchildren. But “the book has taken a unique position in literature for adolescents” and “will be debated and disputed for many years,” whether it is “an ideal reading” for them.
- Lowry received two John Newbury medals: in 1990 for the novel “Count the Stars” and in 1994 for the book “The Giver”.
- In 1990, Lois was awarded the National Jewish Book Prize for the novel “Count the Stars”. For the same book in 1991 she was awarded the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Prize.
- In 1994, the author of children's books, Lois Lowry, was awarded the Regine medal.
- In 2002, her book Gooney Bird Greene was awarded the Rhode Island Children's Book Award.
What is he writing about?
The name Lois Lowry is well known to English-speaking readers, she is one of their favorite writers. The books “Count the Stars” and “The Giver” are included in the list of books required for reading in schools. The writer addresses very serious topics, such as racism, incurable disease, murders and the Holocaust.
Surprisingly, in her other works, which seem carefree, she also deeply touches on topical and controversial issues about family, friends, and growing up. And no matter comedy, adventure or drama, Lois' novels are always attractive to the reader. She began to write seriously when she was in her thirties and since then has been devoting time to writing every day and before she begins the novel, she already knows the beginning and end of a new story.
How does it write?
Lois easily changes genres and plots, revealing a wider range of life and literature to young readers than many contemporaries offering books with similar themes and styles. But this does not mean that the voice of this author is inconsistent. On the contrary, Lowry took upon herself the responsibility of introducing her readers to a large number of genres, styles, tones and themes.
Lois offers a wide selection of dishes, seasoned with a thirst for justice, humor or the ability to sympathize. Lowry's reading list is a well-balanced literary diet in which there is no place for extreme examples or actions to the brink of fiction. This is an art where the author wins readers' hearts and gives them “reliable” novels that will not bring disappointment.
What is the difference between her works?
The author of children's books has a rather difficult task - to write works from which little readers will eventually leave, “grow up”, but may never forget what they read in childhood. In the work of children's writers, the efforts made by them are noticeable to help adolescents in difficult times. Leave memories of stories and characters that will be with them all their lives. This is the hallmark of Lowry's work - she prepares her readers for life and writes not just to entertain or provoke a nostalgic reading. She writes to help them become real people.
Creation
Lois is a universal author and writes in a variety of forms, from the novel “Count the Stars” about the Holocaust to the carefree adventures of Anastasia Krupnik and the fantastic “Giver”.
In 1977, Lois Lowry published her first novel, Summer to Die, about a young girl who loses her sister. The basis was the bitter experience of life: sister Lois Helen died at a young age. After 2 years, the first book of the popular series about Anastasia Krupnik was published. The writer continued this remarkable cycle with a tetralogy about Anastasia’s brother, “Sam Krupnik,” the first volume of which was published in 1988.
In 1979, the novel Autumn Street was published, for the creation of which Lois took inspiration from her own life. The main character, Elizabeth, while her father is serving, moves with her family during World War II to her grandfather. During the war, Lois's mother also moved with her children to her parents' house while Lois's father was abroad. Later they joined him and lived for some time in Japan.
“Count the stars”
The 1989 historical novel Count the Stars tells the story of World War II. The main character of the book is ten-year-old Annemarie is friends with a Jewish girl Ellen Rosen. Annemarie has a sister, Kirsty. Their city was occupied by the Nazis. No products, cut off electricity. Rumors spread that Jewish families would be shot. Checks started.
Ellen's parents are helped by the ex-groom of their elder sister Liz. Early in the morning, the Nazis rushed into the Johansen house. Annemarie at the last moment breaks a pendant with a star of David from Ellen. Fascists are confused by Ellen's black hair, but fortunately, Liz, Annemarie's older sister, had brown hair in her childhood. The girl is given out for her and the head of the family shows them a photo of "little Liz."
The next morning, Johansen and Ellen go to the sea, to the house where Jewish families hide. But the Nazis came there too. The audience said that they were burying their aunt, who died of typhus. The Nazis squeamishly turned away and left. In small groups, in order not to attract attention, Jewish families are transported by sea to a safe place. In the morning, Ellen says goodbye to the Johansen family. Annemarie accidentally finds a package that is more important for Resistance. The girl, not thinking about the danger, rushes after her uncle, who dropped him.
After occupation
Two years later, Europe celebrates liberation from the Nazi invaders. Jewish families returning from the city during the occupation are returning, and they see that their friends and neighbors saved their homes and did not lose hope of their return. Annemarie discovers that Liz’s sister did not die as a result of the accident, but that the Germans killed her when she learned that she was in the Resistance.
The book “Count the stars” has collected positive reviews. In addition to numerous awards, it has become one of the best-selling books for children with a circulation of more than 2 million copies. In 1996, the playwright Doug Larsh wrote a theatrical adaptation. Since then, more than 250 productions have taken place, including at the opening of the Holocaust Museum.
"Giving"
Newbury Lowry received her second medal four years later, in 1994, when the first book of the tetralogy The Giver was published, which caused much controversy. Parents who were convinced that they could not speak on such serious topics with their children forbade them to read this novel. Despite this, the “Giver” was included in the list of books required for reading at an American school. The story of Lois takes the reader to the future - to the Community, where there is no poverty and war, but the life of every person is strictly controlled. Boy Jonas becomes a student of the only person who has access to memories of the past.
In The Giver, Lois Lowry raises eternal questions: “Who am I? Why do I live? ” The author unobtrusively proclaims: "The world is not perfect, but it has a family, love, peace and light." Lowry’s thoughts about the future and the present convince the reader that these simple, universal values have no national barriers and are very significant for all of us. We, the inhabitants of planet Earth, are responsible for everything that happens in our common home.
Safe world
In the book, Lois Lowry created a comfortable and safe world, throwing violence and poverty, injustice and prejudice out of it. All the characters in the novel are courteous and polite. The wonderful world of Jonas was to please the reader. But is a perfect world so good? A world in which for every woman the number of children is determined, the extra ones are "cleaned up".
The birth order was indicated by an identification number, and so that there was no confusion, the person was given a name. No one knew the parents. Everyone dressed equally, ate the same food. For each, a life span was determined. There was no need for mirrors, as they were intended for a person to see his personality in him. In this world one cannot differ. The main law of life is the sameness in everything.
The protagonist Jonas was born unlike others - he knew how to distinguish colors. Thanks to the wisdom of his Master, he developed the ability to see further - he was able to gain memory, the ability to feel, love and suffer. It is no accident that the author calls the teacher the Giver. He gave his student the most important thing - a living soul.
According to Lowry's script, the movie Dedicated appeared in 2014, starring the famous Brenton Twights, Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep.
Other Lowry books
In 1995, a tragedy occurred in the Lowry family - the son of Gray, a US Air Force pilot, died in a plane crash. His daughter Nadine was just a baby and, despite her grief, Lois tried to make a book for her granddaughter about their family, her father, her biography. Lois Lowry published her memoirs “Looking Back” in 1998.
In 2002, Lowry released another successful series of children's books, Gooney Bird. The main character of the book is a strange and adventurous elementary school student. In 2006, the second volume of Gooney Bird and the Room Mother was released, in 2007, 2009 and 2011, respectively, Gooney the Fabulous, Gooney Bird Is So Absurd and Gooney Bird on the Map.