Ann Schlee

Ann Schlee

FRSL
Born(1934-05-26)26 May 1934
Greenwich, Connecticut, U.S.
Died1 November 2023(2023-11-01) (aged 89)
EducationSomerville College, Oxford
Notable awardsGuardian Children's Fiction Prize (1979)
SpouseNick Schlee
Children4

Ann Schlee FRSL (26 May 1934 – 1 November 2023) was an English novelist. She won the annual Guardian Children's Fiction Prize for The Vandal (1979), a book award judged by a panel of British children's writers.[1] She was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1997.[2]

Personal life and education

As a child, Schlee was born in Greenwich, Connecticut and brought up in the United States by her mother and grandparents until the end of the Second World War.[3] Afterward, she settled in Cairo, Egypt with her parents. They later moved to Sudan and Eritrea. Later, she attended boarding school in England and studied at Somerville College, Oxford.

Schlee was married to artist Nick Schlee. They couple lived in Berkshire and had four children.[citation needed] She died on 1 November 2023, at the age of 89.[4]

Career

Schlee spent much of her writing career in London being quite active in the 1970s to the 1990s.

Awards and honours

The Vandal (Macmillan, 1980) is a science fiction novel set in the future. Beside winning the 1980 Guardian Prize[1] it was a commended runner up for the Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, recognising the year's best children's book by a British subject.[5][a]

Rhine Journey (Henry Holt & Co, 1981, ISBN 978-0-03-056894-7) was shortlisted for the 1981 Booker Prize, recognising the year's best novel.[6]

Selected works

Schlee has written a number of books including:[7][8][9]

  • The Strangers (1971)
  • The Consul's Daughter (1972)
  • Guns of Darkness (1973)
  • Ask Me No Questions (1979)
  • The Vandal (Macmillan, 1980)
  • Rhine Journey (Henry Holt & Co, 1981)
  • The Proprietor (1983)
  • Laing (1987)
  • The Proprietor (1996)
  • The Time in Aderra (Macmillan, 1998)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Today there are usually eight books on the Carnegie shortlist. According to CCSU, some runners up through 2002 were Commended (from 1955) or Highly Commended (from 1966); the Highly Commended distinction became approximately annual in 1979. There were about 160 commendations of both kinds in 48 years including Schlee and two others (one highly commended) in 1979.

References

  1. ^ a b "Guardian children's fiction prize relaunched: Entry details and list of past winners" Archived 27 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine. guardian.co.uk 12 March 2001. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  2. ^ All Fellows: S Archived 12 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine, The Royal Society of Literature Archived 9 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ^ Ann Schlee Archived 6 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine, David Higham Associates Archived 23 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine.
  4. ^ "Ann Schlee, prize-winning novelist who wrote for both children and grown-ups – obituary". The Telegraph. 10 December 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Carnegie Medal Award" Archived 27 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine. 2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library. Central Connecticut State University (CCSU). Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  6. ^ Rhine Journey by Ann Schlee Archived 5 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine, Fantastic Fiction Archived 11 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ^ Ann Schlee Archived 3 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine, goodreads Archived 13 April 2001 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ^ Ann Schlee Archived 18 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine, LibraryThing Archived 14 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ^ Ann Schlee Archived 3 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Amazon.co.uk.