Erskine, Kathryn

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Erskine, Kathryn

PERSONAL:

Born in the Netherlands; married; children: one daughter. Hobbies and other interests: Traveling, exploring, walking, spending time with family and friends, playing games, fencing.

ADDRESSES:

Home and office—VA. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer. Formerly worked as an attorney.

MEMBER:

Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Best Books for Young Adults selection, and Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers selection, both American Library Association, both 2008, both for Quaking.

WRITINGS:

Quaking (novel), Philomel Books (New York, NY), 2007.

ADAPTATIONS:

Quaking was adapted as an audio book.

SIDELIGHTS:

Kathryn Erskine's critically acclaimed debut novel, Quaking, examines themes of patriotism, idealism, and faith. Set against the backdrop of the War in Iraq, Erskine's story centers on fourteen-year-old Matilda (known as Matt), a suspicious, withdrawn girl who has been shuttled from one foster home to another since being taken from her abusive father years earlier. "I was concerned about why we were in Iraq and how people respond to war and violence in general," Erskine related in an interview on the Jessica M. Burkhart Web log. "That's why I didn't make [Quaking] … Iraq-specific, but it obviously speaks to our current situation. I also wanted to relate the issue of violence in war to a more personal level. Matt is going through her own post-traumatic stress syndrome. War or violence in any form has powerful effects on individuals and society."

When Matt is sent to live with Sam and Jessica Fox, a Quaker couple raising a disabled young boy, she slowly finds herself drawn to their pacifist beliefs. Matt's adjustment to her new life is complicated, however, by her encounters with a staunchly pro-war civics teacher and a school bully, and she grows concerned about her foster parents when the local churches are vandalized by protesters. Erksine "enfolds the political issues into a deeper focus on the characters' personal stories," noted Francisca Goldsmith in Booklist, and Janis Flint-Ferguson, writing in Kliatt, stated that Quaking "gives a balanced look at the ramifications of violent actions, both on a personal and a national level." In a TeensReadToo.com interview with Jennifer Wardrip, Erksine described Quaking as "a story of finding peace, no matter where you've been or where you're going."