Lisa Klein
Encyclopedia
Dr. Lisa Klein is an American
author
known for her Shakesperean works including Ophelia
and Lady Macbeth's Daughter. She was an assistant professor of English at The Ohio State University for eight years but left when she was denied tenure. She turned to writing afterwards, publishing such books as Two Girls of Gettysburg and Cate of the Lost Colony, based on the tale of the Roanoke Colony
. She lives in Columbus, Ohio
, with her husband
and two sons.
. She became an eight-year assistant professor of English at The Ohio State University but left after she was denied tenure. That same year she broke her leg. She took her life down a new direction: writing.
Klein had written The Exemplary Sidney and the Elizabethan Sonneteer in college
, and dabbled in writing in other ways in her earlier life, but after leaving The Ohio State University, she resumed writing, beginning with a book about her church, Be It Remembered: The Story of Trinity Episcopal Church on Capital Square, Columbus, Ohio.
She then went on to publish Ophelia, a continuation of Shakespeare's Hamlet
that focuses on the tragic female character of Ophelia
.
She followed that up with Two Girls of Gettysburg for which she traveled to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
to research the battle site. Originally, in Two Girls, Klein had set the home of the girls close enough to the battle to watch from their house. However, upon observing Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Klein noted that a hill that is truly there would've blocked any fictional character in Two Girls from truly seeing the battle unfold. She therefore simply changed the location of the home in Two Girls to on top of that hill so that the two girls could have realistically seen the historic battle. Regardless, Lisa Klein noted that readers of Two Girls probably wouldn't have recognized the inconsistency of the hill had she not changed the home's location to on top of the hill, but said she wanted to make the book realistic and said she would have known there was an inconsistency in her own published writing, therefore the change was made.
Lady Macbeth's Daughter came next, with Klein creating the character of Macbeth
and Lady Macbeth
's daughter as the main character. Although a child of the two legendary fictional Shakespeare characters is never directly seen or heard from in the original works of William Shakespeare
, Klein contends that Lady Macbeth implies she has had a child when she speaks to Macbeth about nursing in Shakespeare's original play Macbeth
, and therefore it is possible that Lady Macbeth did indeed have a daughter (or a son). Although possible that Lady Macbeth was implying she had had a male child whom she had nursed, Klein decided that the child should be female as to bring about a dominant female character in Shakespeare's work as Shakespeare wrote only about strong male characters.
About the mysterious disappearance of settlers of the Roanoke Colony
, Cate of the Lost Colony is Klein's most recent work.
Mrs. Klein works as a public speaker at schools discussing her work as a writer. She states in her presentation to students that she participated, as a child, in the national spelling bee held in Washington, D.C.
, and brings in a newspaper
report covering that competition as proof.
.
Klein currently lives in Clintonville
in Columbus, Ohio with her husband and two sons.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
known for her Shakesperean works including Ophelia
Ophelia
Ophelia is a fictional character in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet.-Plot:...
and Lady Macbeth's Daughter. She was an assistant professor of English at The Ohio State University for eight years but left when she was denied tenure. She turned to writing afterwards, publishing such books as Two Girls of Gettysburg and Cate of the Lost Colony, based on the tale of the Roanoke Colony
Roanoke Colony
The Roanoke Colony on Roanoke Island in Dare County, present-day North Carolina, United States was a late 16th-century attempt to establish a permanent English settlement in what later became the Virginia Colony. The enterprise was financed and organized by Sir Walter Raleigh and carried out by...
. She lives in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, with her husband
Husband
A husband is a male participant in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between cultures and has varied over time...
and two sons.
Careers
Lisa Klein graduated with a doctorate in English from Indiana UniversityIndiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
. She became an eight-year assistant professor of English at The Ohio State University but left after she was denied tenure. That same year she broke her leg. She took her life down a new direction: writing.
Klein had written The Exemplary Sidney and the Elizabethan Sonneteer in college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
, and dabbled in writing in other ways in her earlier life, but after leaving The Ohio State University, she resumed writing, beginning with a book about her church, Be It Remembered: The Story of Trinity Episcopal Church on Capital Square, Columbus, Ohio.
She then went on to publish Ophelia, a continuation of Shakespeare's Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
that focuses on the tragic female character of Ophelia
Ophelia
Ophelia is a fictional character in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet.-Plot:...
.
She followed that up with Two Girls of Gettysburg for which she traveled to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...
to research the battle site. Originally, in Two Girls, Klein had set the home of the girls close enough to the battle to watch from their house. However, upon observing Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Klein noted that a hill that is truly there would've blocked any fictional character in Two Girls from truly seeing the battle unfold. She therefore simply changed the location of the home in Two Girls to on top of that hill so that the two girls could have realistically seen the historic battle. Regardless, Lisa Klein noted that readers of Two Girls probably wouldn't have recognized the inconsistency of the hill had she not changed the home's location to on top of the hill, but said she wanted to make the book realistic and said she would have known there was an inconsistency in her own published writing, therefore the change was made.
Lady Macbeth's Daughter came next, with Klein creating the character of Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
and Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth may refer to:*Lady Macbeth, from William Shakespeare's play Macbeth**Queen Gruoch of Scotland, the real-life Queen on whom Shakespeare based the character...
's daughter as the main character. Although a child of the two legendary fictional Shakespeare characters is never directly seen or heard from in the original works of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, Klein contends that Lady Macbeth implies she has had a child when she speaks to Macbeth about nursing in Shakespeare's original play Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
, and therefore it is possible that Lady Macbeth did indeed have a daughter (or a son). Although possible that Lady Macbeth was implying she had had a male child whom she had nursed, Klein decided that the child should be female as to bring about a dominant female character in Shakespeare's work as Shakespeare wrote only about strong male characters.
About the mysterious disappearance of settlers of the Roanoke Colony
Roanoke Colony
The Roanoke Colony on Roanoke Island in Dare County, present-day North Carolina, United States was a late 16th-century attempt to establish a permanent English settlement in what later became the Virginia Colony. The enterprise was financed and organized by Sir Walter Raleigh and carried out by...
, Cate of the Lost Colony is Klein's most recent work.
Mrs. Klein works as a public speaker at schools discussing her work as a writer. She states in her presentation to students that she participated, as a child, in the national spelling bee held in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and brings in a newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
report covering that competition as proof.
Personal life
Dr. Klein declines the use of "Dr." before her name as the honorary title of "Dr.", she says, seems to falsely imply that she is a medical doctor whereas she is actually a holder of a doctorate degree in literatureLiterature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
.
Klein currently lives in Clintonville
Clintonville
Clintonville is an unincorporated neighborhood in north-central Columbus, Ohio, USA with around 30,000 residents. Clintonville is an informal neighborhood. The southern border is loosely defined as Arcadia Avenue or the Glen Echo Ravine. To the east, either I-71 or the adjacent railroad tracks are...
in Columbus, Ohio with her husband and two sons.
External links
- http://www.teenreads.com/authors/au-klein-lisa.asp
- http://readerrabbit.blogspot.com/2008/02/review-ophelia-by-lisa-klein.html
- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/459128.Lisa_M_Klein
- http://www.bloomsburykids.com/authors_illustrators/lisa_klein_3552