Presenting Lois Duncan

One of today's most prominent writers of young adult fiction, Lois Duncan gives credence to the expression "born writer": she already created stories and poems long before entering kindergarten, publishing her first poem at age 10 and her first story at age 13. By age 18 she had won first, second, and third prizes in Seventeen magazine's annual short story contest. And although she has produced more than 40 books spanning a range of genres, Duncan has remarked, "I am - first and foremost - an author of young adult novels, because I love the sensitivity, vulnerability and responsiveness of that age reader." For books like Killing Mr. Griffin, Daughters of Eve, and I Know What You Did Last Summer - noted for their distinctive combination of mystery, suspense, and the supernatural - Duncan has won an enormous following among young readers and earned the prestigious Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association. Presenting Lois Duncan represents the first full-length study of Duncan and as such offers a striking portrait of this veteran writer's life and works. With wit, warmth, and intelligence, the study's author, Cosette Kies, provides a thorough analysis of not just the well-known young adult novels but also Duncan's earlier works for this audience, as well as her achievements in other genres. A separate chapter is devoted to Who Killed My Daughter?, Duncan's moving account of the 1989 murder of her daughter Kaitlyn, a book that generated considerable media attention for its psychic overtones and led to interviews between Kies and Duncan during the writing of this study. Presenting Lois Duncan will be of keen interest to teenagers, librarians, and teachers, as well as students and scholars studying adolescent literature at the college level. Complementing the text are photos, a chronology of Duncan's life and achievements, a selected bibliography, and an index.