If you were to ask me to name one author that is a true classic writer but is not as recognized as she should be, I would name Katherine Paterson. Her writing is raw and beautiful, and she is a wonderful storyteller for children, or anyone else who reads her books. I have enjoyed reading a handful of her work, including some of her better known books and a series of essays about reading and writing for children (an amazing read that I highly suggest).
Her works include titles like The Great Gilly Hopkins, Bridge to Terabithia, and Jacob Have I Loved. They are the sort of books you probably come across from time to time, and may have even read, but may not have yet put her name with her books.
I’ll be taking time today to discuss Katherine Paterson’s life growing up (she has lived in three different countries!) and some of her books that I have read. Not to mention the approach she takes to writing for children (which has given me a lot to think about in my own writing). She is a wonderful writer who I always find interesting, so I think you’ll enjoy this post, even if you haven’t read her books. If you want to learn more about her you can visit her website here.
About the Author
Katherine Paterson is an award winning author who has received numerous awards and medals. She has written dozens of books, as well as essays and thoughts on writing for children. It is very obvious that writing is a large part of who she is.
But when she was a child, writing wasn’t even on her radar. She had no intentions of becoming a published author someday, instead dreaming of growing up into a movie star.
She was born in China to American missionary parents, and later in her life she moved to Japan. This interesting history makes her a Chinese-food-loving, Japanese-fascinated American young woman, who had called several countries her home.
When she moved back to America, Ms. Paterson met her husband, and soon after that began to take up writing. It was the 1960’s, a time of fear and worry for the American people. There was tension between America and Russia, and she raised four children (two of which were adopted) in that time.
All of these things influenced the stories she wrote and why she wrote them. She talks about this in her book, A Sense of Wonder. Her experience with other countries gave her a love and appreciation for them, and in turn several of her books were set in Japan. She wrote a book about a foster child named Gilly, and the tragedy in Bridge to Terabithia is based on a heartbreaking experience of her own son.
In all these ways we can see how her stories are the result of her life. But even more than the subject matter, we can see the reason. Katherine Paterson was around children. She knew that they were aware of the troubles of the world, and that they were. From being a child herself, trying to get her head around life, to raising her own, Ms. Paterson had experience with children, and in turn writes for their sake.
Her Writing
I love all of Katherine Paterson’s writing. I love the way she takes ordinary, broken characters and shows that despite the hurt and pain in their stories, there is friendship, home, and hope. There is something about the way she never disguises sorrow, but never forgets the truth that makes for such honest and real books.
There are many quotes from her essays and speeches that I would be happy to share, but I will save those for another time. For now, I just want to give you this quote.
"I want them to know that despite all the evidence that the world seeks to crush them with, there is room for hope. That a good life, far from ending in childhood, barely begins there. That maturity is more to be desired than immaturity, knowledge than ignorance, understanding than confusion, perspective than self-absorption. That true innocence is not the absence experience but the redemption of it." -from Gates of Excellence
This is an absolutely stunning quote, and there is so much truth in it. Just teaching children good and happy things will not be true to the world of sin and suffering that they live each day in. So rather than preaching to them that everything turn out perfect at the end of their struggle, let’s teach them to widen their view, to see the world with broader, more experienced eyes that know of hurt but also know of healing.
Her Books
Katherine Paterson has written more than 40 books, 18 of which are for children. I haven’t read even half of her work, so I’ve picked what I do know to mention here.
Bridge to Terabithia
This is probably her most recognized work. Bridge to Terabithia is a story about a true friendship that ends tragically. This must have been my first taste of sadness in books, because after I finished the last page I was shocked and amazed. It was an incredible story, and I had never expected to care about it as much as I did.
The Great Gilly Hopkins
Although I would be inclined to tell you that Bridge to Terabithia was the first book of Katherine Paterson’s that I read, that wouldn’t be correct. My mom read this book aloud to me and my sister long before I could put together which authors wrote what, and it is a very strongly written story about a young girl in the foster program and the new home she finds.
Jacob Have I Loved
This book gets its name from the Bible verse, “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” (Romans 9:13) Just as you might imagine from that verse, the book is the story of two siblings. Louise is always losing something to her beautiful twin sister, Caroline, and there is a struggle as she has to navigate living in her shadow, one step behind and below.
Flip-Flop Girl
This book is definitely one of Miss Paterson’s lesser known books. I found it by chance at a used book sale, and, being the fan of Katherine Paterson that I was, bought it immediately, despite its poor condition. It’s a simple story, as most of hers are, about a lonely girl. In fact, it’s so simple that the meaning written into its pages was hard to believe. I finished reading it in absolute awe of the way Katherine Paterson can write such a powerful book with such simple stories.
Jip, His Story
I’m actually in the middle of reading this book for the first time. It makes a great audio book, which is giving me the chance to listen to the way Paterson shapes her sentences with such care and gift. The story is about a young, boy named Jip (surprise, right?). He fell off the back of a wagon before he was old enough to talk, and no one knows who he is or where he came from.
A Sense of Wonder
I love Katherine Paterson’s stories, but even more than that I have fallen in love with her thinking behind the stories. She has such an extraordinary way of thinking about writing for children, and these thoughts are collected in this book of her essays. It isn’t an easy book to find (being out of print 😦 ), so I bought it off Thriftbooks a while back as a prize to myself for finishing a draft of a book, and since then it has become one of my all time favorite books I own.
Final Thoughts
Katherine Paterson truly is a talented writer. If you have never heard of her before, I really encourage you to try some of her books, and if you have read her work before let me know in the comments!
Do you have a favorite one of her books? Besides A Sense of Wonder my favorite might be Flip-Flop Girl, though I love them all. What about you?
For the Love of Stories 