Lecture Topics
A selection of the author's speeches:
- House of Cards: Constructing a Novel in Letters
- The Occupation of Guernsey During the Second World War
- Reading for Pleasure: Literacy and Liberty
- Thinking Like a Kid, Writing Like a Grownup
Other Areas of Expertise
- History
- Literature and Fiction
More Information
Annie Barrows
Best-Selling Novelist of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and Children's Book Author
Base: Berkeley, CA
- Photo: Brook McCormick
Annie Barrows's collaboration with her late aunt Mary Ann Shaffer, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, has been a publishing phenomenon, resulting in well over one million copies in print in both hardcover and paperback, and speaking engagements for Barrows all over the country. People magazine called it ''a small masterpiece about love, war, and the immeasurable sustenance to be found in good books and good friends.'' Guernsey was on more than fifteen ''best of the year'' lists, and has now been published in twenty-five countries.
Annie Barrows was born in San Diego into a family of book lovers and moved to the San Francisco Bay Area shortly thereafter. She spent most of her childhood at the library; ''because I wouldn't leave, they hired me to shelve books at the age of twelve.'' After attending UC Berkeley and getting a BA in Medieval History, she had a succession of publishing jobs, rising to the position of senior editor at Chronicle Books, where she acquired their first New York Times bestseller, Griffin & Sabine.
After receiving an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College, she began writing full time. The first book in her children's series Ivy and Bean was published in 2006 and was an ALA Notable book for 2007; it was followed by four others, with the sixth book in the series to be published in fall 2009. Her 2008 stand-alone children's novel, The Magic Half, was described by School Library Journal as ''a delightful tale brimming with mystery, magic, and adventure.''
While Annie was producing her children's books, her beloved aunt Mary Ann Shaffer, who had also spent her career working with books, had started a first novel about the German occupation of the Channel Island of Guernsey during World War II. However, she fell ill soon after selling the novel to the Dial Press, and to complete her revisions, she called on her niece Annie, who saw this ''as a unique occasion to help someone I loved.'' Sadly, Mary Ann died before seeing her novel embraced by hundreds of thousands of readers, but the novel itself stands as a moving legacy to her dream.
Annie lives in Northern California with her husband and two daughters. She is currently working on a novel for adults and a seventh Ivy and Bean book for children.
Works by this Speaker
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
January 1946: writer Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a stranger, a founding member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. And so begins a remarkable tale of the island of Guernsey during the German occupation, and of a society as extraordinary as its name.
IVY and BEAN
The moment they saw each other, Bean and Ivy knew they wouldn’t be friends, but when Bean finds herself in a pickle, Ivy helps out with a magical spell. The results are glorious: Bean’s sister Nancy loses her mind, and Ivy and Bean become forever friends.
IVY and BEAN and the Ghost That Had To Go
Ivy has discovered a ghost in the school bathroom! Ivy and Bean can see its cloudy form and its glowing eyes. They can hear its moaning voice. This is the best thing that ever happened at school—until the teachers find out. Now Ivy and Bean have to figure out how to get the ghost out of the bathroom. Potions—and plumbing—come to the rescue.
IVY and BEAN Break the Fossil Record
Bean wants to break a world record, but all she seems to be breaking are dishes. Out in Bean's backyard, Ivy and Bean dig up a pile of ancient bones and discover that they are record–breakers: They're the youngest paleontologists in the world! The problem is, nobody believes them.
IVY and BEAN Take Care of the Babysitter
Who’s the worst babysitter you can imagine? Okay, now multiply that person times a million. Bean’s just found out that her sister Nancy is babysitting for the afternoon. After Ivy rescues Bean from prison, the two girls turn tragedy into opportunity.
IVY and BEAN: Bound to be Bad
Ivy has decided to become good. Extra, super–duper good. Bean figures that's a big waste of time—until Ivy explains that if you're really good, animals and birds will follow you around. Okay, then, Bean decides she'll be good too. So how come they end up muddy, wet, and in trouble?
IVY and BEAN: Doomed to Dance
Ivy and Bean have made a terrible mistake. They thought ballet meant leaping, kicking, and cool costumes. Instead it means they're going to have to be the Two Friendly Squids in a ballet the teacher made up. How embarrassing. Ivy and Bean aren't going to take this lying down—or pirouetting.
The Magic Half
The middle child between two sets of twins, Miri has always been the odd one out. The extra, not the special. But on the afternoon Miri spots a piece of glass taped to the wall of her room, her world changes into something she never dreamed was possible. Undaunted by the barest of clues, the meanest of cousins, and the mystery of time itself, Miri finds that magic is really just a way of setting things right.
