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Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 author
Author

An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created....
 best known for The Dark Is Rising, an award-winning five-volume fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
 saga set in and around England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 and Wales
Wales

native_name = Cymru|conventional_long_name = Wales|common_name = Wales|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg|national_motto = ...
. The books incorporate traditional British mythology (Arthurian
King Arthur

King Arthur is a legendary Britons leader who, according to medieval histories and Romance , led the defence of Britain against the Saxon invaders in the early 6th century....
 and folkloric
British folklore

British folklore refers to the folklore of any of the people of the British Isles. For more information see :*English folklore*Scottish folklore...
 elements) with original material (e.g. "the Old One
Old One

Old One may be a term used to refer to a God or other deity. Old Ones may also be a term used to refer to beings who co-existed with early humans according to many religions....
s"). She has written works for children, adolescents and adults.

Susan Cooper is also a board member of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance
National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance

National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance is an American non-profit organization that advocates on behalf of literacy, literature, and libraries for young people....
, a not-for-profit organization in the U.S.






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Encyclopedia


Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 author
Author

An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created....
 best known for The Dark Is Rising, an award-winning five-volume fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
 saga set in and around England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 and Wales
Wales

native_name = Cymru|conventional_long_name = Wales|common_name = Wales|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg|national_motto = ...
. The books incorporate traditional British mythology (Arthurian
King Arthur

King Arthur is a legendary Britons leader who, according to medieval histories and Romance , led the defence of Britain against the Saxon invaders in the early 6th century....
 and folkloric
British folklore

British folklore refers to the folklore of any of the people of the British Isles. For more information see :*English folklore*Scottish folklore...
 elements) with original material (e.g. "the Old One
Old One

Old One may be a term used to refer to a God or other deity. Old Ones may also be a term used to refer to beings who co-existed with early humans according to many religions....
s"). She has written works for children, adolescents and adults.

Susan Cooper is also a board member of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance
National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance

National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance is an American non-profit organization that advocates on behalf of literacy, literature, and libraries for young people....
, a not-for-profit organization in the U.S. that actively advocates for literacy, literature, and libraries.

Biography

Born in 1935, in Burnham, Buckinghamshire
Burnham, Buckinghamshire

Burnham lies north of the River Thames, and sits on the border with Berkshire, between the towns of Maidenhead and Slough. It is served by Burnham Burnham railway station in the west of Slough on the main line between London and Reading, Berkshire....
, Susan Cooper lived in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire is a Ceremonial counties of England and Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England home counties Counties of England in South East England England....
 until she was 21, when her parents moved to her grandmother's village of Aberdovey, Wales
Wales

native_name = Cymru|conventional_long_name = Wales|common_name = Wales|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg|national_motto = ...
. She attended Slough High School and then earned a degree in English
English studies

English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics , and English sociolinguistics ....
 from the University of Oxford
University of Oxford

The University of Oxford , located in the city of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation in the English-speaking world....
.

After graduation, she worked as a reporter for the Sunday Times of London under Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming

Ian Lancaster Fleming was an English literature author and journalist. Fleming is best remembered for creating the character of James Bond and chronicling his adventures in twelve novels and nine short stories....
, and wrote books in her spare time. During this period, she began work on the Dark Is Rising sequence and finished her first book, the science fiction
Science fiction

Science fiction is a broad genre of fiction that often involves speculations based on current or future science or technology. Science fiction is found in books, art, television, films, games, theatre, and other media....
 novel Mandrake.

In 1963 she left Britain for the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 to marry a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private university research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States....
. She then began writing full-time, focusing on The Dark Is Rising series and the 1970 Dawn of Fear, based on her childhood wartime experiences. Her output would eventually encompass works of fiction for both children and adults, a series of picture books, film screenplays, and works for the stage.

In July 1996, Cooper married Canadian-American actor and her sometime co-author Hume Cronyn
Hume Cronyn

Hume Blake Cronyn, Order of Canada was a Canadian actor of Theatre and screen, who enjoyed a long career, often appearing professionally alongside his second wife, Jessica Tandy....
, the widower of the late Jessica Tandy
Jessica Tandy

Jessie Alice "Jessica" Tandy was a United Kingdom-United States stage and film actress....
. They remained married until Cronyn's death in June 2003. Cooper currently lives in Marshfield, Massachusetts
Marshfield, Massachusetts

Marshfield is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States, on Massachusetts's South Shore . The population was 24,324 at the 2000 census....
.

Bibliography


The Dark Is Rising sequence

  • Over Sea, Under Stone
    Over Sea, Under Stone

    Over Sea, Under Stone is the first novel in the five-volume "The Dark Is Rising" sequence by British author Susan Cooper. It was first published in London by Jonathan Cape in 1965....
     (1965)
  • The Dark is Rising
    The Dark is Rising Sequence

    The Dark Is Rising is the name of a five-book series of children's novels by Susan Cooper originally published in the 1960s and 1970s. The series is written as contemporary fantasy, and depicts the struggle between the forces of good, called The Light, and the forces of evil, known as The Dark....
  • Greenwitch
    The Dark is Rising Sequence

    The Dark Is Rising is the name of a five-book series of children's novels by Susan Cooper originally published in the 1960s and 1970s. The series is written as contemporary fantasy, and depicts the struggle between the forces of good, called The Light, and the forces of evil, known as The Dark....
     (1973)
  • The Grey King
    The Dark is Rising Sequence

    The Dark Is Rising is the name of a five-book series of children's novels by Susan Cooper originally published in the 1960s and 1970s. The series is written as contemporary fantasy, and depicts the struggle between the forces of good, called The Light, and the forces of evil, known as The Dark....
  • Silver on the Tree
    The Dark is Rising Sequence

    The Dark Is Rising is the name of a five-book series of children's novels by Susan Cooper originally published in the 1960s and 1970s. The series is written as contemporary fantasy, and depicts the struggle between the forces of good, called The Light, and the forces of evil, known as The Dark....


Other novels

  • Mandrake (1964)
  • Dawn of Fear (1970)
  • Seaward (1983)
  • The Boggart
    The Boggart

    The Boggart is a children's novel by Susan Cooper published in 1993 by Macmillan Publishers. The book was nominated for a Young Reader's Choice Award in 1996....
     (1993)
  • The Boggart and the Monster (1997)
  • King of Shadows
    King of Shadows

    King of Shadows is a children's novel by Susan Cooper published in 1999 by Penguin Books. The book was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal.Only in the world of theatre can Nat Field find an escape from the tragedies that have shadowed his young life....
     (1998)
  • Green Boy (2002)
  • Victory the story of Samuel Robbins
    Samuel Robbins

    Samuel Robbins was a member of the crew of HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar.Robbins was born in London, England and served on HMS Victory from 2 April 1805 till he was discharged on 14 January 1806, meaning that he served during, and survived the Battle of Trafalgar....
     a boy who served on HMS Victory
    HMS Victory

    HMS Victory is a first rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, started in 1759 and launched in 1765, most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar....
     at the Battle of Trafalgar
    Battle of Trafalgar

    The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the United Kingdom Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy , during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
     (June 2006)


Picture books for children

  • Jethro and the Jumbie (1979)
  • The Silver Cow (1983)
  • The Selkie Girl (1986)
  • Matthew's Dragon (1991)
  • Tam Lin (1991)
  • Danny and the Kings (1993)
  • Frog (2002)
  • The Magician's Boy (February 2005)


Cooper has also written for the stage, film and television.

Awards

  • Newbery Honor citation, The Dark Is Rising (1974)
  • Newbery Medal
    Newbery Medal

    The John Newbery Medal is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association ....
    , The Grey King (1976)
  • Tir na n-Og Award, The Grey King (1976)
  • Tir na n-Og Award, Silver on the Tree (1978)
  • Janusz Korczak
    Janusz Korczak

    Janusz Korczak, the pen name of Henryk Goldszmit was a Polish-Jewish children's literature, pediatrics, and child pedagogy, known as Pan Doktor ....
     Literary Prize for Seaward (1989)


External links