Deborah Wiles
Encyclopedia
Deborah Wiles is an award-winning children's book author. Her second novel, Each Little Bird That Sings
, was a 2005 National Book Award
finalist.
. Wiles' mother was from West Point, Mississippi
, where she was a champion softball and basketball player. She was a stenographer working at Brookley Field in Mobile when she met her future husband on a blind date. They were married for 52 years. Wiles was their eldest child, followed by a brother, Michael (1954) and a sister, Cathy (1959). Wiles' father was transferred to Hickam AFB, and the family moved to Hawaii when Wiles was five. She started kindergarten at Pearl Harbor Elementary School. She wrote about her Hawaii memories in her first novel, Love, Ruby Lavender.
In 1961, Wiles's father was transferred to Andrews Air Force Base
outside Washington, D.C.
, where he was a special missions pilot and also served as chief of safety for the 89th Airlift Wing
. The family would stay in the D.C. area for seven years. Wiles attended Camp Springs Elementary School in Camp Springs
, and Roger B. Taney Jr. High School (now Thurgood Marshall Middle School) in Temple Hills, Maryland
. This setting is the backdrop for Wiles' 2010 documentary novel Countdown, which takes place in 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis
.
In 1968 the family moved to Charleston, South Carolina
, where Wiles attended St. Andrews Parish High School, and then to Clark AFB in the Philippines, where Wiles graduated high school at Wagner High School, in 1971. She then flew back to the States for College, and attended Jones County Junior College
, in Ellisville, Mississippi
, until she married a fellow student and moved to the Washington, D.C. area once again.
Today she lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She has four children and is married to Jim Pearce, a jazz musician. She received her MFA in writing from Vermont College in 2003. She taught "Writing Techniques for Teachers" at Towson University
, and has taught in MFA programs at Vermont College, and Lesley University.
, in 2001. The book is based on her memories of growing up in Mississippi in 1964, during the passage of the Civil Rights Act. Two boys, best friends, want to swim at the town pool together the day it opens to "everybody under the sun, no matter what color," but find out that they can't, as the pool has been filled in "with hot, spongy tar." The decision they make after this event is one that cements their friendship. Freedom Summer
won the Simon Wiesenthal
Once Upon A World Award, the Ezra Jack Keats new writer award for Wiles and new illustrator award for Jerome Lagarrigue, as well as the Coretta Scott King/Steptoe award for Lagarrigue.
Another picture book, One Wide Sky, was published in 2003. It is a rhyming counting book that depicts the joys of the natural world and family. It was a Children's Book of the Month Club selection and has accompanying music written by Jim Pearce.
The Aurora County Trilogy:
The Aurora County Trilogy consists of three novels that take place in the fictional Aurora County, Mississippi, which is really Jasper County, Mississippi
, and the place that Wiles spent part of her childhood summers. Her father was born and raised in Louin, Mississippi
, and her grandmother and great-grandmother lived there most of their lives. Louin becomes Halleluia in Love, Ruby Lavender, Snapfinger in Each Little Bird that Sings, and Mabel and Halleluia in The Aurora County All-Stars.
Love, Ruby Lavender, was published in 2001 and is about a nine year old girl, Ruby, who lives in Halleluia, Mississippi
. In this book, her grandmother of a best friend takes a vacation to Hawaii, leaving Ruby to put up with Melba Jane, who has not stop bothering her since the accident with Melba's father and Ruby's grandfather last summer. Ruby writes to and receives many letters from her grandmother, chronicling her summer. The novel was an ALA Notable Children's Book, a BookSense 76 Pick, an NCTE Notable Children's Trade Book in the Language Arts, a New York Public Library
100 Titles For Reading and Sharing title, and a Parent's Guide Children's Media Award Winner.
Each Little Bird That Sings
published in 2005, is about Comfort Snowberger who lives in Snapfinger Mississippi. Her family lives above a funeral home that they run, and Comfort writes obituaries for the paper. She knows exactly what flowers to bring, what dish to take, and who not to bring to a visitation and funeral, since she has been to at least 200. Number one on that last list is her sniffling, whiney cousin Peach. When her Great-great-Aunt Florentine dies, straight after her Uncle Edisto, all Comfort wants to do is curl up in her closet and hide with her big dog, Dismay, even if it is the most important funeral of her life so far. Unfortunately, she has to go, and take whiney Peach with her, and on top of that, her best friend Declaration is turning downright mean. Comfort learns that life is full of surprises, and the biggest one is learning how to handle them. As Uncle Edisto tells her, "Open your arms to life! Let it strut into your heart, in all its messy glory!" 'Each Little Bird that Sings' was a National Book Award Finalist.
The Aurora County All-Stars completes the trilogy of Mississippi novels that includes Each Little Bird That Sings and Love, Ruby Lavender. It is about a young pitcher named House Jackson, whose hero is the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax. House's team, the Aurora County All-Stars, is a small community team that has only one game every year at four-o-clock on July 4, without fail, against the Raleigh Redbugs. Unfortunately for House, his pitching elbow was broken before last year's game, and his team lost. This year though, he is going to give that game all he has. July 4 happens to also be the town's 200th anniversary this year, and the town is holding a pageant, for which all mothers have signed up their children, including the baseball players. The director of the pageant is 14-year-old Frances Shotz, the same girl who broke House's elbow. 'The Aurora County All-Stars' shows what it truly means to be strong, to create community, and to sacrifice for a friend.
The Sixties Project
The Sixties Project is a series of three companion novels about the 1960s for young readers, published by Scholastic Press. The books are a first of their kind: documentary novels. They will contain scrapbooks of archival material as part of the narrative—photographs, song lyrics, advertisements, biographies, quotes, newspaper articles and more. Book one takes place in 1962, book two in 1964, and book three in 1968.
Book one, Countdown, was published May 1, 2010. It takes place in October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis and is a story about eleven-year-old Franny Chapman and her great desire to be seen, to belong, and to matter in a world that includes her authoritative mother, her Air Force pilot father, the interesting new boy across the street, a best friend who is turning into an enemy, a perfect little brother who wants to be an astronaut, an amazing older sister with secrets, an uncle who is still living through the trenches in World War I, and the real horror of the Cuban Missile Crisis, thirteen days in October 1962, when the world came as close as it has ever come to nuclear annihilation. It's a breathtaking novel.
Countdown was a Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of the Year, 2010; an Amazon's Best Books of the Year
(2010), Top Ten Middle Grade Books; a Booklist Editor’s Choice for 2010; a Book Links Lasting Connection of 2010; a Best Books of 2010, The Christian Science Monitor, and an ALA Notable Book.http://deborahwiles.com/site/.
Books two and three will follow.
Each Little Bird That Sings
Each Little Bird That Sings is a 2005 book aimed for people of all ages, by Deborah Wiles, the author of Love, Ruby Lavender. It won the 2006...
, was a 2005 National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
finalist.
Personal life
Wiles was born Deborah Marie Edwards in Mobile, Alabama, the daughter of Marie (née Kilgore) and Thomas Paulette Edwards, Jr., an air force pilot from Jasper County, MississippiJasper County, Mississippi
-History:Jasper County was formed in 1833 from the middle section of what been Jones County. It was named for Sgt. William Jasper who first distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie in 1776. When a shell from a British warship shot away the flagstaff, he recovered the flag, raised it on...
. Wiles' mother was from West Point, Mississippi
West Point, Mississippi
West Point is a city in Clay County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 12,145 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Clay County and the principal city of the West Point Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the larger Columbus-West Point Combined Statistical...
, where she was a champion softball and basketball player. She was a stenographer working at Brookley Field in Mobile when she met her future husband on a blind date. They were married for 52 years. Wiles was their eldest child, followed by a brother, Michael (1954) and a sister, Cathy (1959). Wiles' father was transferred to Hickam AFB, and the family moved to Hawaii when Wiles was five. She started kindergarten at Pearl Harbor Elementary School. She wrote about her Hawaii memories in her first novel, Love, Ruby Lavender.
In 1961, Wiles's father was transferred to Andrews Air Force Base
Andrews Air Force Base
Joint Base Andrews is a United States military facility located in Prince George's County, Maryland. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force 11th Wing, Air Force District of Washington ....
outside Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he was a special missions pilot and also served as chief of safety for the 89th Airlift Wing
89th Airlift Wing
The 89th Airlift Wing of the United States Air Force is based at Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility and has an operational force of over 1,000 personnel...
. The family would stay in the D.C. area for seven years. Wiles attended Camp Springs Elementary School in Camp Springs
Camp Springs, Maryland
Camp Springs is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 17,968 at the 2000 census. Camp Springs is not an official post office designation, but rather the area is divided between the surrounding mailing addresses...
, and Roger B. Taney Jr. High School (now Thurgood Marshall Middle School) in Temple Hills, Maryland
Temple Hills, Maryland
Temple Hills is a suburb of Washington DC, southeast of the downtown district. It is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The greater Temple Hills mailing address includes not just the tiny red area on this map, but also the area...
. This setting is the backdrop for Wiles' 2010 documentary novel Countdown, which takes place in 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
.
In 1968 the family moved to Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, where Wiles attended St. Andrews Parish High School, and then to Clark AFB in the Philippines, where Wiles graduated high school at Wagner High School, in 1971. She then flew back to the States for College, and attended Jones County Junior College
Jones County Junior College
Jones County Junior College is a junior college accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools located in Ellisville, Mississippi. JCJC serves its eight-county district consisting of Clarke, Covington, Greene, Jasper, Jones, Perry, Smith and Wayne...
, in Ellisville, Mississippi
Ellisville, Mississippi
Ellisville is a city in Jones County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 3,465 at the time of the 2000 census.-History:The city is named for Powhatan Ellis, a former U.S. Senator for Mississippi and descendant of Chief Powhatan, father of Pocahontas...
, until she married a fellow student and moved to the Washington, D.C. area once again.
Today she lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She has four children and is married to Jim Pearce, a jazz musician. She received her MFA in writing from Vermont College in 2003. She taught "Writing Techniques for Teachers" at Towson University
Towson University
Towson University, often referred to as TU or simply Towson for short, is a public university located in Towson in Baltimore County, Maryland, U.S...
, and has taught in MFA programs at Vermont College, and Lesley University.
Works
Wiles published a picture book, Freedom SummerFreedom Summer
Freedom Summer was a campaign in the United States launched in June 1964 to attempt to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi which had historically excluded most blacks from voting...
, in 2001. The book is based on her memories of growing up in Mississippi in 1964, during the passage of the Civil Rights Act. Two boys, best friends, want to swim at the town pool together the day it opens to "everybody under the sun, no matter what color," but find out that they can't, as the pool has been filled in "with hot, spongy tar." The decision they make after this event is one that cements their friendship. Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer was a campaign in the United States launched in June 1964 to attempt to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi which had historically excluded most blacks from voting...
won the Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal KBE was an Austrian Holocaust survivor who became famous after World War II for his work as a Nazi hunter....
Once Upon A World Award, the Ezra Jack Keats new writer award for Wiles and new illustrator award for Jerome Lagarrigue, as well as the Coretta Scott King/Steptoe award for Lagarrigue.
Another picture book, One Wide Sky, was published in 2003. It is a rhyming counting book that depicts the joys of the natural world and family. It was a Children's Book of the Month Club selection and has accompanying music written by Jim Pearce.
The Aurora County Trilogy:
The Aurora County Trilogy consists of three novels that take place in the fictional Aurora County, Mississippi, which is really Jasper County, Mississippi
Jasper County, Mississippi
-History:Jasper County was formed in 1833 from the middle section of what been Jones County. It was named for Sgt. William Jasper who first distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie in 1776. When a shell from a British warship shot away the flagstaff, he recovered the flag, raised it on...
, and the place that Wiles spent part of her childhood summers. Her father was born and raised in Louin, Mississippi
Louin, Mississippi
Louin is a town in Jasper County, Mississippi, United States located along route 15. The population was 339 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Louin is located at ....
, and her grandmother and great-grandmother lived there most of their lives. Louin becomes Halleluia in Love, Ruby Lavender, Snapfinger in Each Little Bird that Sings, and Mabel and Halleluia in The Aurora County All-Stars.
Love, Ruby Lavender, was published in 2001 and is about a nine year old girl, Ruby, who lives in Halleluia, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. In this book, her grandmother of a best friend takes a vacation to Hawaii, leaving Ruby to put up with Melba Jane, who has not stop bothering her since the accident with Melba's father and Ruby's grandfather last summer. Ruby writes to and receives many letters from her grandmother, chronicling her summer. The novel was an ALA Notable Children's Book, a BookSense 76 Pick, an NCTE Notable Children's Trade Book in the Language Arts, a New York Public Library
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
100 Titles For Reading and Sharing title, and a Parent's Guide Children's Media Award Winner.
Each Little Bird That Sings
Each Little Bird That Sings
Each Little Bird That Sings is a 2005 book aimed for people of all ages, by Deborah Wiles, the author of Love, Ruby Lavender. It won the 2006...
published in 2005, is about Comfort Snowberger who lives in Snapfinger Mississippi. Her family lives above a funeral home that they run, and Comfort writes obituaries for the paper. She knows exactly what flowers to bring, what dish to take, and who not to bring to a visitation and funeral, since she has been to at least 200. Number one on that last list is her sniffling, whiney cousin Peach. When her Great-great-Aunt Florentine dies, straight after her Uncle Edisto, all Comfort wants to do is curl up in her closet and hide with her big dog, Dismay, even if it is the most important funeral of her life so far. Unfortunately, she has to go, and take whiney Peach with her, and on top of that, her best friend Declaration is turning downright mean. Comfort learns that life is full of surprises, and the biggest one is learning how to handle them. As Uncle Edisto tells her, "Open your arms to life! Let it strut into your heart, in all its messy glory!" 'Each Little Bird that Sings' was a National Book Award Finalist.
The Aurora County All-Stars completes the trilogy of Mississippi novels that includes Each Little Bird That Sings and Love, Ruby Lavender. It is about a young pitcher named House Jackson, whose hero is the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax. House's team, the Aurora County All-Stars, is a small community team that has only one game every year at four-o-clock on July 4, without fail, against the Raleigh Redbugs. Unfortunately for House, his pitching elbow was broken before last year's game, and his team lost. This year though, he is going to give that game all he has. July 4 happens to also be the town's 200th anniversary this year, and the town is holding a pageant, for which all mothers have signed up their children, including the baseball players. The director of the pageant is 14-year-old Frances Shotz, the same girl who broke House's elbow. 'The Aurora County All-Stars' shows what it truly means to be strong, to create community, and to sacrifice for a friend.
The Sixties Project
The Sixties Project is a series of three companion novels about the 1960s for young readers, published by Scholastic Press. The books are a first of their kind: documentary novels. They will contain scrapbooks of archival material as part of the narrative—photographs, song lyrics, advertisements, biographies, quotes, newspaper articles and more. Book one takes place in 1962, book two in 1964, and book three in 1968.
Book one, Countdown, was published May 1, 2010. It takes place in October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis and is a story about eleven-year-old Franny Chapman and her great desire to be seen, to belong, and to matter in a world that includes her authoritative mother, her Air Force pilot father, the interesting new boy across the street, a best friend who is turning into an enemy, a perfect little brother who wants to be an astronaut, an amazing older sister with secrets, an uncle who is still living through the trenches in World War I, and the real horror of the Cuban Missile Crisis, thirteen days in October 1962, when the world came as close as it has ever come to nuclear annihilation. It's a breathtaking novel.
Countdown was a Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of the Year, 2010; an Amazon's Best Books of the Year
Amazon's Best Books of the Year
Amazon's Best Books of the Year is a list of best books created yearly by Amazon.com. It is a list of best books picked by Amazon editors and customers. It began in 2000. Customer favorites are ranked according to the number of sales made through October, for books published in that calender year...
(2010), Top Ten Middle Grade Books; a Booklist Editor’s Choice for 2010; a Book Links Lasting Connection of 2010; a Best Books of 2010, The Christian Science Monitor, and an ALA Notable Book.http://deborahwiles.com/site/.
Books two and three will follow.
Novels
- Countdown (2010)
- The Aurora County All Stars (2007)
- Each Little Bird That Sings (2005)
- Love, Ruby Lavender (2001)
External links
- Official site
- Deborah Wiles's blog, One Pomegranate
- Each Little Bird That Sings at the National Book Foundation website
- KidsReads interview about Each Little Bird That Sings
- Harcourt interview about Each Little Bird That Sings
- Harcourt interview about The Aurora County All-Stars
- School Library Journal, Fuse #8 Review of the Day for Countdown
- Publishers Weekly Interview with Deborah Wiles
- Through the Tollbooth interview about Countdown
- A Conversation with Deborah Wiles: Podcast on Read/Write/Think
- Team Countdown: A Conversation with Deborah Wiles and David Levithan