Maureen Wartski
Encyclopedia
Maureen Crane Wartski is a naturalized American author She has written many novels for children and young adults. Wartski's Eurasian heritage and her deep connection to the natural world have inspired many of her novels which address such issues as racism
(The Face in My Mirror), (Candle in the Wind), (A Boat to Nowhere), identity (My Brother is Special), (The Lake is on Fire, The Promise), and bullying (Yuri's Brush with Magic).
, Japan, to Albert Edwin Crane, a businessman, and Josephine Wagen Crane, a teacher from Geneva
, Switzerland.
Long before she told her first story at 14, Wartski was in love with writing. As a child, she listened to stories and folktales told by her aunts. Inspired by these folktales, and by an uncle who gave her an early introduction to classical literature, Wartski realized that words are magical things. Her Eurasian heritage and a deep connection with the natural world have influenced many of Wartski's young adult and middle-grade novels. A former high school English
teacher, Wartski has conducted writing workshops, and has authored many books.
Wartski attended the University of the Redlands from 1958-1958, and received a B.A.
in 1962 from Sophia University
. That same year she became a naturalized U.S. citizen. She is married to Maximillian Wartski; they have two sons and three grandchildren. The Wartskis currently reside in North Carolina
.
, and Scholastic under the pseudonym of M. A. Crane.
In 1980, Wartski won the Josette Frank Award
from the Bank Street College of Education
for her young adult novel A Boat to Nowhere. In 2010, Wartski wrote her 13th children's book, Yuri's Brush With Magic, an adventure story about a young Japanese-American girl who must spend the summer on the North Carolina
coast with her mysterious and magical "Aunt Yuri" from Japan. In Yuri's Brush with Magic, is a Next Generation Indie Book Awards
Finalist in Children's/Juvenile Fiction, Wartski integrates Japanese folk tales, such as Urashima Taro
, and the Ginger Seller, into a contemporary adventure story for a middle school audience. Wartski is also an accomplished artist.
Wartski believes that race and ancestry are important parts of identity and uses these themes in her writing. Yet it is the similarities, the shared memories that allow her characters – and, she hopes, her readers as well – to move past difference and into friendship and trust.
The Lion and the Unicorn - Volume 23, Number 2, April 1999, pp. 219–237
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
(The Face in My Mirror), (Candle in the Wind), (A Boat to Nowhere), identity (My Brother is Special), (The Lake is on Fire, The Promise), and bullying (Yuri's Brush with Magic).
Background
Maureen Crane Wartski was born in AshiyaAshiya
Ashiya may refer to:* Ashiya, Hyōgo, Japan* Ashiya, Fukuoka, Japan* Ashiya, a subcaste of Charans from Rajasthan, India-People with the family name Ashiya:* Mizuki Ashiya, the lead character in the manga series Hana-Kimi...
, Japan, to Albert Edwin Crane, a businessman, and Josephine Wagen Crane, a teacher from Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Switzerland.
Long before she told her first story at 14, Wartski was in love with writing. As a child, she listened to stories and folktales told by her aunts. Inspired by these folktales, and by an uncle who gave her an early introduction to classical literature, Wartski realized that words are magical things. Her Eurasian heritage and a deep connection with the natural world have influenced many of Wartski's young adult and middle-grade novels. A former high school English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
teacher, Wartski has conducted writing workshops, and has authored many books.
Wartski attended the University of the Redlands from 1958-1958, and received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1962 from Sophia University
Sophia University
There are several rankings below related to Sophia University.-General Rankings:The university was ranked 61st in 2010 in the ranking Truly Strong Universities by Toyo Keizai...
. That same year she became a naturalized U.S. citizen. She is married to Maximillian Wartski; they have two sons and three grandchildren. The Wartskis currently reside in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
.
Career
Maureen Ann Crane Wartski has worked as a history teacher, a reporter and a lecturer on creative writing. Her first juvenile book, My Brother Is Special, was published in 1979. She also contributes plays and short stories to children's magazines such as Highlights, Boy's LifeBoy's Life (Japanese magazine)
was a Japanese monthly shōnen magazine published by Shogakukan from April 1963 until August 1969. The magazine was marketed to boys in junior high school and older, and included a manga section as well as general interest articles and information.-Outline:...
, and Scholastic under the pseudonym of M. A. Crane.
In 1980, Wartski won the Josette Frank Award
Josette Frank Award
The Josette Frank Award is an annual children's literary award for fiction that honors a book or books of "outstanding literary merit in which children or young people deal in a positive and realistic way with difficulties in their world and grow emotionally and morally".Known as the Children's...
from the Bank Street College of Education
Bank Street College of Education
Bank Street College of Education is located in Manhattan, New York City.-History:Bank Street was founded in 1916 by Lucy Sprague Mitchell as the "Bureau of Educational Experiments"....
for her young adult novel A Boat to Nowhere. In 2010, Wartski wrote her 13th children's book, Yuri's Brush With Magic, an adventure story about a young Japanese-American girl who must spend the summer on the North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
coast with her mysterious and magical "Aunt Yuri" from Japan. In Yuri's Brush with Magic, is a Next Generation Indie Book Awards
Next Generation Indie Book Awards
The Next Generation Indie Book Awards is an awards program that recognizes and honors authors and publishers of exceptional independently published books in 60 different categories...
Finalist in Children's/Juvenile Fiction, Wartski integrates Japanese folk tales, such as Urashima Taro
Urashima Taro
is a Japanese legend about a fisherman who rescues a turtle and is rewarded for this with a visit to Ryūgū-jō, the palace of Ryūjin, the Dragon God, under the sea...
, and the Ginger Seller, into a contemporary adventure story for a middle school audience. Wartski is also an accomplished artist.
Wartski believes that race and ancestry are important parts of identity and uses these themes in her writing. Yet it is the similarities, the shared memories that allow her characters – and, she hopes, her readers as well – to move past difference and into friendship and trust.
Sources
- "The Importance of Multicultural Themes in Writing and Teaching". JSTOR: The English Journal - Vol. 94, No. 3, Jan. 2005, pp. 49–51, by Maureen Crane Wartski
- "Refugees and Immigrants: The Southeast Asian Experience as Depicted in Recent American Children's Books". The Lion and the Unicorn - Volume 23, Number 2, April 1999, pp. 219–237, by Michael M. Levy
External links
- Official homepage
- http://www.sleepyhollowbooks.com
- Michael M. Levy, http://muse.jhu.edu/login?uri=/journals/lion_and_the_unicorn/v023/23.2levy.html, "Refugees and Immigrants: The Southeast Asian Experience as Depicted in Recent American Children's Books"
The Lion and the Unicorn - Volume 23, Number 2, April 1999, pp. 219–237
- "The Importance of Multicultural Themes in Writing and Teaching" from the JSTORJSTORJSTOR is an online system for archiving academic journals, founded in 1995. It provides its member institutions full-text searches of digitized back issues of several hundred well-known journals, dating back to 1665 in the case of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society...
- The Maureen Crane Wartski Papers, de Grummond Collection, McCain Library and Archives, University Libraries, University of Southern Mississippi http://www.lib.usm.edu/~degrum/html/research/findaids/wartski.htm