Lois Lowry is an American writer of children's literature. She began her career as a photographer and a freelance journalist during the early 1970s. Her work as a journalist drew the attention of Houghton Mifflin and they encouraged her to write her first children's book, A Summer to Die, which was released in 1977. She has since written more than 30 works for children and released an autobiography. Two of her books have been prized the prestigious Newbery Medal: Number the Stars in 1990, and The Giver in 1993.
As an writer, Lowry is known for composing about difficult subject matters within her books for children. She has explored such complex issues as racism, terminal illness, murder, and the Holocaust among other challenging topics. She has also explored very controversial issues of questioning authority such as in The Giver Trilogy. Her composing on such matters has brought her both praise and criticism. In particular, her work The Giver has been met with a diversity of reactions from schools in America, some of which have adopted her book as a part of the mandatory curriculum, while others have prohibited the book's inclusion in classroom studies.
(Lois Lowry photo #2)
Lowry started life on March 20, 1937, in Honolulu, Hawaii, to parents Robert and Katharine Hammersberg. Initially, Lois' parents called her Sena for her Norwegian grandmother but upon hearing this, her grandmother telegraphed and instructed Lois' parents that the child should have an American name.
Lois Lowry
