Lynne Kositsky
Encyclopedia
Lynne Kositsky is an award-winning Canadian author of poetry and young adult historical fiction. Kositsky, who was born in Montreal and grew up in London, England, now lives in the Niagara region of Ontario. As of 2010 she has published ten novels, set in such varied historical contexts as Ireland during the potato famine of the 1840s, Nova Scotia during the early 19th century, Elizabethan London, and the Holocaust.
Her books often have in common the theme of a youthful protagonist (usually, but not always, female) surviving social disruption or ostracism in a world dominated by the mistakes of adults. Her four books in the Our Canadian Girl series issued by Penguin all focus on an African Canadian ex-slave, Rachel, who is forced to relocate with her parents to Nova Scotia after the Revolutionary War. Like many of Kositsky's other books, the Rachel series received critical acclaim. The first and fourth books of the Rachel series, in the series were both nominated for the prestigious Hackmatack Award, and A Mighty Big Imagining won a White Raven Award, given by the International Youth Library in Munich to books which "contribute to an international understanding of a culture and people."
The Thought of High Windows garnered extensive critical acclaim and won the Canadian Jewish Book award for Youth in 2006. Reviewers for Kirkus, The Washington Post, Hornbook Magazine, The Center for Children's Books, and the School Library Journal all voiced critical praise for it. "A Searing poetic novel" - WP. "Holocaust fiction at its least romanticized" - Hornbook. "Superb, wrenching holocaust fiction" - Kirkus
Kositsky's A Question of Will (2000) deals with the Shakespearean authorship question, exploring the Oxfordian
perspective, and she has since co-authored with Roger Stritmatter a series of articles for academic journals on the date, sources, and symbolism of Shakespeare's Tempest
. A Question of Will was included in the Folger Shakespeare Library's "Golden Lads and Lasses" exhibit (2006).
Her books often have in common the theme of a youthful protagonist (usually, but not always, female) surviving social disruption or ostracism in a world dominated by the mistakes of adults. Her four books in the Our Canadian Girl series issued by Penguin all focus on an African Canadian ex-slave, Rachel, who is forced to relocate with her parents to Nova Scotia after the Revolutionary War. Like many of Kositsky's other books, the Rachel series received critical acclaim. The first and fourth books of the Rachel series, in the series were both nominated for the prestigious Hackmatack Award, and A Mighty Big Imagining won a White Raven Award, given by the International Youth Library in Munich to books which "contribute to an international understanding of a culture and people."
The Thought of High Windows garnered extensive critical acclaim and won the Canadian Jewish Book award for Youth in 2006. Reviewers for Kirkus, The Washington Post, Hornbook Magazine, The Center for Children's Books, and the School Library Journal all voiced critical praise for it. "A Searing poetic novel" - WP. "Holocaust fiction at its least romanticized" - Hornbook. "Superb, wrenching holocaust fiction" - Kirkus
Kositsky's A Question of Will (2000) deals with the Shakespearean authorship question, exploring the Oxfordian
Oxfordian theory
The Oxfordian theory of Shakespearean authorship proposes that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford , wrote the plays and poems traditionally attributed to William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon. While a large majority of scholars reject all alternative candidates for authorship, popular...
perspective, and she has since co-authored with Roger Stritmatter a series of articles for academic journals on the date, sources, and symbolism of Shakespeare's Tempest
The Tempest
The Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
. A Question of Will was included in the Folger Shakespeare Library's "Golden Lads and Lasses" exhibit (2006).
Books
- Candles (Roussan 1998)
- Rebecca’s Flame (Roussan 1999)
- A Question of Will (Roussan 2000)
- A Mighty Big Imagining (Penguin 2001)
- The Maybe House (Penguin 2002)
- Certificate of Freedom (Penguin 2003)
- An Elephant Tree Christmas (Penguin 2004)
- The Thought of High Windows (Kids Can 2004)
- Claire By Moonlight (Tundra 2005)
- Minerva’s Voyage (Dundurn 2009)
External links
Official Website- http://www.lynnekositsky.com