Eve Bunting

Eve Bunting
Born Anne Evelyn Bolton
(1928-12-19) December 19, 1928
Maghera, Northern Ireland, UK
Pen name Eve Bunting, A. E. Bunting, Evelyn Bolton
Occupation Children's author, novelist, freelance writer, college instructor
Education Methodist College Belfast
Queen's University Belfast
Period 1972–present
Genre Young-adult fiction, science fiction, historical fiction, children's non-fiction
Notable awards Golden Kite Award (1976)
Edgar Award (1993)
Regina Medal (1997)

Anne Evelyn Bunting (born December 19, 1928), Eve Bunting, is a Northern Ireland-born American writer of more than 250 books. Her work covers a broad array of subjects and includes fiction and non-fiction books. Her novels are primarily aimed at children and young adults, but she has also written the text for picture books. While many of her books are set in Northern Ireland, where she grew up, her topics and settings range from Thanksgiving to riots in Los Angeles. Bunting's first book, The Two Giants, was published in 1971. Due to the popularity of her books with children, she has been listed as one of the Educational Paperback Association's top 100 authors.[1]

Life

Anne Evelyn Bunting was born in Maghera to Sloan Edmund Bolton, a postmaster, and Mary (née Canning) Bolton, a homemaker. Her mother had a book lending business, while her dad read her Irish poetry and acted like a tough guy near her friends. She married business executive Edward Davidson Bunting, whom she met in college, on March 26, 1950, and has three children: Christine, Sloan, and Glenn. She was educated in Belfast, Northern Ireland, attending Methodist College in the early 1940s and graduating in 1945; she then attended Queen's University, where she met her husband. After marrying, the couple moved to Scotland and started their family.

In 1958, Bunting immigrated to the United States with her husband and three children, later attending Pasadena City College in 1959. Bunting then enrolled in a community college writing course.[2] She felt the desire to write about her heritage. Bunting's first published story, The Two Giants (1971), focused an Irish folktale about Finn McCool who out smarted Culcullan, a terrible Scottish giant.[3] The first published work gave Bunting confidence and passion to pursue a writing career.

Bunting has taught writing classes at the University of California, Los Angeles and at various at writer's conferences. She is a member of International PEN and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. She continues to write at her home in Pasadena, California, and has six grandchildren.[2]

Literary career

Bunting went to school in Northern Ireland and grew up with storytelling. In Ireland, "There used to be Shanachies...the shanachie was a storyteller who went from house to house telling his tales of ghosts and fairies, of old Irish heroes and battles still to be won. Maybe I'm a bit of a Shanchie myself, telling stories to anyone who will listen".[2] This storytelling began as an inspiration for Bunting and has continued with her work.

Diversity

With over 250 titles, Eve Bunting has included diversity in her work. Every title focuses on a different issue. Smoky Night discusses racism and the Los Angeles riots with colorful illustrations. Fly Away Home illustrates a homeless father and son who live in an airport. Bunting has also addressed such topics as death, war, and troubled family life. Her writing speaks about important social issues with clarity and empowerment.

Awards

During her writing career, Bunting has won several awards for her books. She received the Golden Kite Award from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators in 1976 for One More Flight.[2] Other honors include the Southern California council on Literature for Children and Young People Award, PEN Los Angeles Center Literacy Award for Special Achievement in Children's Literature, and Southern California council on Literature for Children and Young People Award Excellence is a Series Award. Coffin on a Case won an Edgar Award for Best Juvenile from the Mystery Writers of America in 1993.[3]

Eve Bunting has also received the Heal the World award from a school. A young reader wrote Bunting to notify her of the achievement. She said, "It is among of the most cherished honors I have ever received and the plaque hangs proudly above my desk."[2]

David Díaz won the 1995 Caldecott Medal for illustrating Smoky Night, a picture book with text by Bunting.

In 2006, Bunting's book One Green Apple, illustrated by Ted Lewin, won the inaugural Arab American Book Award for books written for Children/ Young Adults. One Green Apple tells the story of a young girl who just immigrated to America from an Arab country and how she discovers that her differences are what makes her special.

Bunting is proud of her writing and how it affects children of all ages.

Selected works

Fiction

A father and son are homeless and they sleep at the airport. The son watches the planes fly away and hopes one day he will be able to leave.
Viktor finds hope from two fishes during a harsh war in the 1990s.
This book describes a family secretly leaving their country and taking a small boat to America. When they reach America, they celebrate and have Thanksgiving. This is a very powerful Thanksgiving story.
A young girl remembers her family, including her mother, by a string full of buttons. Each button belongs to a certain family member and memory. She is dealing with change as her stepmother and father paint the house. This story focuses on how the young girl copes with the pain of losing her father and gaining a stepmother.
A family travels through a forest and decorates a Christmas tree with oranges and popcorn. They sing and drink hot chocolate with the animals. The family leaves the tree for the animals to celebrate Christmas.
The same theme as Titanic but a different story board.
A young boy wakes up in the middle of the night and his family is forced to leave their house due to riots. Despite hatred in the city, two families are bonded by the events. Díaz won the annual Caldecott Medal for American children's illustration.
A young Japanese American girl visits her grandfather's grave at Manzanar with her parents and younger brother.[5]
Jesse Harmon searches for the hit-and-run serial killer who killed his brother Bry.

Non-fiction

References

  1. ↑ "Bunting, Eve". EBMA's Top 100 Authors. Educational Paperback Association. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Author Bio Evelyn Bunting
  3. 1 2 Eve Bunting
  4. 1 2
  5. ↑ Children's Book Review: So Far from the Sea, Publishers Weekly

External links

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