2002 Frances Clarke Sayers Lecture
Walter Dean Myers
Sunday, March 3, 2002
Walter Dean Myers , the recipient of the first annual Virginia
Hamilton Literary Award, has been a versatile and prolific
writer for more than 30 years. Myers began to write fiction
when he was only 10 or 11 and continued to develop his skills
throughout his high school years, during his three years in
the army, and after his discharge. Raised in Harlem, the setting
for many of his books, he earned a B.A. degree from Empire
State College, despite having dropped out of high school.
He has received the Newbery Honor Award for "Somewhere in the Darkness" and "Scorpions" and the Coretta Scott King Award for "Now Is Your Time," "Scorpions," "Motown and Didi: A Love Story" and "The Young Landlords." Other honors include the "Boston Globe-Horn Book" Award, American Library Association Margaret A. Edwards Award, New York Council on Interracial Books for Children Award and numerous notable and best book citations from the American Library Association. Most recently, "Harlem," a book of his poetry illustrated by his son, Christopher, was a Caldecott Honor Book, and “The Righteous Revenge of Artemis Bonner”, set in an 1880's historical setting, has received great praise.
Myers explains his feeling for the young adult novel, "The special place of the young adult novel should be in its ability to address the needs of the reader to understand his or her relationships with the world, with each other, and with adults. The young adult novel often allows the reader to directly identify with a protagonist of similar interests and development."
Walter Dean Myers lives with his wife, Constance, in Jersey City, New Jersey. For more information, check the following website: http://www.edupaperback.org/authorbios/Myers_WalterDean.html
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