Knowing Karen Cushman

Karen Cushman was born on October 4, 1941 to Arthur Cushman and Loretta Lipski in Chicago, Illinois. Ms. Cushman has a bachelor’s degree in English and Greek and a master’s degree in both human behavior and in Museum Studies.

As a child, she loved to read. She was said to go alphabetically down the shelves of the public library. She had a distinct interest in history particularly, the middle ages. But, she wasn’t very fond of the focus always being on the kings, queens and other people in power. As she said “I grew tired of hearing about kings, princes, generals and presidents. I wanted to know what life was like for ordinary young people in other times.” With that, she wrote about normal people at the time.

She also claims to be a late bloomer. This is proven by the fact that she began to write her first book at the age of fifty. Her first book, Catherine, Called Birdy would eventually be her first book and would go on to win numerous awards.

As a writer, Karen Cushman is known for describing characters in great physical detail. Also, she is known for using similar settings throughout her books. Lastly, she is known for using chapter names that are alike.

Currently, she resides in Oakland, California with her husband, daughter, two dogs, a cat and a rabbit.

Sources: http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/cushman5.html

http://www.karencushman.com/

http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/cushman.html

http://www.karencushman.com/harper-karen-cushman-bio.html

by Angelo Torres