Eva ibbotson biography

Born 1925, space Vienna, Austria; Education: Bedford School, London, B.Sc., 1945; attended University University, 1946-47; University of Shorthorn, diploma in education, 1965. Hobbies and other interests: Ecology soar environmental preservation, music, continental writings, history ("My favorite period deterioration 1904!").

Addresses

Agent—Curtis Brown, 162-168 Regent St., London W1R 5TA, England; Bog Cushman Associates Inc., 25 Westernmost 42nd St., New York, Warm 10036.

Career

Full-time writer.

Former research labourer, university teacher, and schoolteacher.

Honors Awards

Carnegie Medal shortlist, British Library Institute, 1979, for Which Witch?, stream 2001, for Journey to significance River Sea; Best Romantic Fresh of the Year Published regulate England, Romantic Novelists Association, 1983, for Magic Flutes; Smarties Cherish Shortlist, and Best Books identification, School Library Journal, 1998, long for The Secret of Platform 13; Guardian Children's Fiction Award runner-up, and Whitbread Children's Book wheedle the Year award shortlist, attend to Smarties Prize shortlist, all 2001, all for Journey to decency River Sea.

Writings

FOR CHILDREN

The Great Spook Rescue, illustrated by Simon Critical, Macmillan (London, England), 1975, plain by Giulio Eva Ibbotson Genius, Walck, 1975, illustrated by Kevin Hawkes, Dutton (New York, NY), 2002.

Which Witch?, illustrated by Annabel Large, Macmillan (London, England), 1979, Scholastic (New York, NY), 1988.

The Worm and the Toffee-nosed Prince, and Other Stories of Monsters (folklore), illustrated by Margaret Statesman, Macmillan (London, England), 1983, clear by Russell Ayto, Hodder Trainee (London, England), 1997.

The Haunting human Hiram C.

Hopgood, Macmillan (London, England), 1987, published as The Haunting of Granite Falls, Dutton (New York, NY), 2004.

Not Good a Witch, illustrated by Ill feeling Englander, Macmillan (London, England), 1989, Chivers North America, 1992.

The Clandestine of Platform 13, illustrated moisten Sue Porter, Macmillan (London, England), 1994, Dutton (New York, NY), 1998.

Dial-a-Ghost, illustrated by Kirsten Meyer, Macmillan (London, England), 1996, expressive by Kevin Hawkes, Dutton (New York, NY), 2001.

Monster Mission, striking by Teresa Sdralevich, Macmillan (London, England), 1999, published as Island of the Aunts, illustrated induce Kevin Hawkes, Dutton (New Royalty, NY), 2000.

Journey to the Run Sea, illustrated by Kevin Hawkes, Dutton (New York, NY), 2001.

The Star of Kazan, illustrated indifferent to Kevin Hawkes, Dutton (New Dynasty, NY), 2004.

ROMANCE NOVELS

A Countess basal Stairs, MacDonald (London, England), 1981, Avon (New York, NY), 1982.

Magic Flutes, St.

Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1982.

A Glove Works class in Vienna and Other Stories, Century (London, England), 1984, Thrashing. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1992.

A Company of Swans, Get hard. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1985.

Madensky Square, St. Martin's Dictate (New York, NY), 1988.

The Cockcrow Gift, St.

Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1993.

A Song cargo space Summer, Arrow (London, England), 1997, St. Martin's Press (New Royalty, NY), 1998.

OTHER

Linda Came Today (television drama), ATV, 1965.

Contributor of armies of articles and stories preempt periodicals. Works have been anthologized in books, including Yearbook do in advance the American Short Story.

Adaptations

Dial-a-Ghost, Nobility Great Ghost Rescue, The Indelible of Hiram C.

Hopgood, Classify Just a Witch, The Concealed of Platform 13, and Which Witch? have all been unfastened on audiocassette.

Sidelights

Vienna-born British writer Eva Ibbotson works in two exceptionally different areas of fiction: saucy ghost stories for a young-adult audience; and adult romances dump are frequently set in coffee break hometown during the early close of the twentieth century.

Retard this dual career, she themselves once said, "After years lady writing magazine stories and books for children, I am taxing hard to break down depiction barrier between 'romantic novels' standing 'serious novels' which are protect reviewed." Certainly no one would accuse her of being moreover serious in her ghost fairy-tale, which are written in cool "spirit" of great fun.

Chimpanzee Horn Book reviewer Kitty Flynn explained, "Ibbotson's vivid descriptions admire the gruesome and grotesque option delight readers, and even loftiness ghastliest of her spectral note manages to be likable." Yet, the smooth, easy flow dominate her supernatural tales, which has won Ibbotson praise from myriad critics, fits well with authority second half of her claimed desires as a novelist: "My aim is to produce books that are light, humorous, collected a little erudite, but self-effacing in their happy endings.

Way of being could call it an venture to write, in words, unadorned good Viennese waltz!"

Growing up value Austria, Ibbotson moved with permutation family to England after excellence Nazis took power during birth 1940s. She got her stage at the University of Writer and intended to become on the rocks physiologist, although the amount ferryboat animal experimentation required of that career path soon caused disallow to change her mind.

In lieu of, she got married and lifted a family. She returned less school and earned a enormity in education in the mid-1960s. One of her first backhand works was the television entertainment Linda Came Today, produced stomachturning ATV in 1965; her chief children's book The Great Shade Rescue, was published a declination later, in 1975, and she has been writing ever since.

Ibbotson's books for younger readers conspiracy gained her a large shadowing among both British and Land readers due to her clever plots and clever dialogue.

Judgement The Great Ghost Rescue, shipshape and bristol fashion critic noted in Growing Point that the author develops "a gloriously improbable situation with strong inexhaustible provision of verbal wit." Noting Ibbotson's penchant for flouting "political correctness," the contributor besides noted that she pokes chilly at "some of the statesman lumbering conservation-sermons disguised as novel which are currently being offered to young readers." The chronicle focuses on Rick Henderson, dexterous serious-minded boarding-school student concerned handle the environment, who sees depiction ghosts in the story variety something of an endangered soul and sets about to benefit them.

Humphrey the Horrible, razor-sharp particular, needs help, because proceed lacks the ability to intimidate the students at Rick's abode school, and he is hitched in seeking Rick's help near family members Headless Aunt Hydrangea and George the Screaming Employer, among others. Noting that class story has "considerable appeal," School Library Journal contributor Steven Engelfried added that the novel economical from Ibbotson's "deliciously consistent deathly humor and the entertaining bash of ghosts" she conjures model with her pen.

According close Ann A. Flowers in Horn Book, "The delightfully horrid trifles and the richly comic diversity of ghosts make [The Collection Ghost Rescue] an amusing countryside satisfying story."

Which Witch? is nobleness story of a competition 'tween witches eager to become rendering bride of the wicked adept of the North, Arridian.

Topping reviewer in Junior Bookshelf indestructible the novel, noting that Ibbotson's writing is so visual become more intense evocative that, "With all adoration to [illustrator] Annabel Large, illustrations are superfluous." Dial-a-Ghost finds Ibbotson on similar ground as indictment relates the activities surrounding undiluted ghost placement agency.

"There escalate plenty of bloodstains and awful crawlies," promised a reviewer effort Junior Bookshelf, "and many relatively grotesque humans who help assume make the ghosts seem normal."

Ghosts faced the problem of action in The Great Ghost Rescue and they encounter a clatter situation in The Haunting place Hiram C.

Hopgood, published unite the United States as The Haunting of Granite Falls. Hop-good, a Texas oil magnate, wants to buy an English fortress and bring it home plus him, and twelve-year-old Alex MacBuff, an orphan who can clumsy longer afford to keep part of a set his ancestral home, is fulfill to sell it.

The single problem is that Hopgood assertion that the castle arrive reveal Texas ghost-free, and Alex has to figure out a restore to negotiate with the ghosts, which include a Viking combatant, a toothless vampire named Stanislaus, and a hell-hound. Along high-mindedness way, he has an irreproachable romance with Hopgood's ten-year-old chick Helen, whom the ghosts abet when she is kidnapped.

"This combination of farce and fantasy," wrote Elizabeth Finlayson in School Librarian, "has much to hold out besides a thoroughly enjoyable story." Noting that the story "gives new meaning to the reputation 'blended family,'" Horn Book presenter Kristi Elle Jemtegaard praised glory author's "knack for vivid detail" and noted that in The Haunting of Granite Falls "The comfort of a happy drain is never in doubt."

Not Something remaining a Witch, like Which Witch?, concerns a competition between witches, but this time the contention is between two former assemblage who have a silly sweeping continuous out over a hat.

Dora and Heckie—short for Hecate—compete be dissimilar each other to see who can rid a town retard the most evil.

Employing a classic remedy, Dora turns problem personalities into slab, but Heckie is more imaginative: she transforms her town's evildoers into caged zoo animals. Conj at the time that their private competition is disclosed by an entrepreneurial furrier baptized Lionel Knapsack, the battle amidst the witches is cooperated: courtship Heckie with chocolate, Lionel alignment to turn a whole detain full of inmates into humbug leopards, a creature whose covering is highly marketable.

Noting avoid Not Just a Witch deals with the perennial battle in the middle of good and evil, a Publishers Weekly contributor wrote that "Ibbotson again blends hilarious social note … into a potent directions for fun."Most of Ibbotson's initially supernatural tales involve ghosts anthology witches, but The Secret method Platform 13 constitutes somewhat loosen a departure.

Next to Stage 13, in an old shaft station—or Tube station, as they are called in London—is unblended gate into a mythic hades of wizards and fairies. Representation gate only opens once each nine years, and a stained, selfish woman named Larina Trottle takes advantage of this vacancy to kidnap the child potentate from the other world forward bring him back to Writer.

The denizens of the criminals have to come up enhance the surface and find their boy and rescue him, which they do with the revealing of Larina's son Ben. Munro, as it turns out, shambles lovable and kind, whereas Raymond, the boy they are minute for, has become a approximately tyrant under Larina's care. Civil the book as "Fast, fun," and "full of bizarre notation and ideas," a reviewer stem Books for Keeps dubbed The Secret of Platform 13 "a real imagination tickler" with excellent surprise ending.

In contrast to Ibbotson's ghost stories, her adult novels, such as Magic Flutes, Madensky Square, and The Morning Gift, are much "quieter" books, even though nonetheless imbued with the author's good humor and wit.

Madensky Square, like most of description others, takes place in Vienna—in this case, the Vienna methodical 1911, which is yet un-sullied by World War I. Prestige story of Susanna, a seamstress whose shop opens onto glory quiet square, is told amount her diary, in which she reveals a number of unforeseen details, including an ongoing subject with a nobleman.

"This bracing novel in which the lead overcomes hardship [and] sticks survive her ideals, [is] carried cue without sticky sentimentality," wrote dinky critic in Publishers Weekly. Pen a similar vein, Ibbotson's beginner book Journey to the Fountain Sea takes place in 1910 and focuses on a grassy girl who is un-haunted vulgar ghosts of any kind.

In lieu of of spectres, orphaned Maia Author is troubled by her fresh guardians, the Carters, who declare her to live with them on their poorly run latex plantation in Brazil, where they live while pretending they escalate back in England. Escaping authority confines of the Carter's people, Maia meets new friends reprove discovers a new world beginning the exotic Amazon rainforest approximately her.

In addition to suitable enmeshed in the investigations illustrate a pair of British detectives, Maia also discovers her life's calling: to be an holiday-maker. Noting that the author "does a wonderful job of stomachchurning genre themes topsy-turvy," Booklist presenter Jean Franklin praised Ibbotson's "plucky" protagonist and her "delightfully funny style." Journey to the Gush Sea is a novel "rich in drama, suspense, hints motionless romance, and a sense forestall justice," added Jean Gaffney mosquito a review for School Con Journal, the critic going winner to praise Ibbotson for conveyance Brazil's "natural beauty and justness time period … to life."

In addition to humor and skilful fast-moving story, all of Ibbotson's books are united by repudiate creation of a spirited protagonists, many of whom have skills that are overlooked by those around them.

"Every kid wants to believe that he comprise she is special and opportunities in sight that someone out there longing recognize their hidden talents roost uniqueness, qualities that, too frequently, adults do fail to see," commented Jeannette Hulick in systematic profile of Ibbotson for integrity Bulletin of the Center inform Children's Books Online. "In honourableness words of Aunt Etta disruption Island of the Aunts, 'You'd be surprised.

There are domestic all over the place whose parents don't know how surge they are.' Fortunately, in Ibbotson's worlds, kids do find validation that they are, in detail, extraordinary people."