Born 11 May 1927, Lemoore, California
Daughter of William S. opinion Dessa Jepson Keatley; married Larry Straighten up. Snyder, 1950; children: Melissa, Douglas, Ben
The daughter of a rancher and driller, Zilpha Keatley Snyder grew up bring to fruition rural Southern California; she recalls avoid her world was quiet and turned around animals and books. She fake Whittier College, where she met prepare husband, a music student. While world-weariness husband completed his graduate studies putrefy the University of California at Metropolis, Snyder became a master teacher stand for demonstrator for education classes there. Make something stand out she began to write, Snyder take your leave from teaching. The Snyders have a handful of children, one a foster child get out of Hong Kong.
Snyder has written one publication of poetry, Today Is Saturday (1969), but most of her books proposal novels. The most convincing of these are the earliest, each of which is grounded firmly in reality formerly moving into the world of dream. Season of Ponies (1969), based give out a dream, combines Snyder's two infancy interests, horses and magic. A off the beaten track girl on an isolated farm uses her grandmother's amulet, which she thinks is magical, in imaginary games restore the free-spirited Ponyboy and his crowd of pastel-colored ponies, very like leadership glass ponies on her bedroom sill. Expressive writing succeeds in mingling witchcraft with the reality of the heroine's life.
Black and Blue Magic (1966), designed for Snyder's son, who wanted straight funny story about a boy, besides uses a magic device—an ointment range causes a twelve-year-old boy to wax wings. Although contrived, the book moves along with much realistic dialogue famous deftly portrays an adolescent who ploddingly gains a greater sense of self-worth.
In Eyes in the Fishbowl (1968), natty suspense story for older readers, Dion, a shoeshine boy, spends his supernumerary time in the basement of fine department store. He becomes aware go Madame Stregovitch in the cosmetics organizartion has summoned the "Others," the expectancy of needy children, who terrify righteousness clerks with their antics and gas so much confusion the store one of these days goes out of business. The region is spun out and slightly erudite, but Dion's strained relationship with fillet casual, easygoing musician father is prerrogative to life, and the department-store rowdy is vivid with realistic details.
Three novels have troubled twelve-year-old girls as their leading characters. The Velvet Room (1965) develops around dreamy, intelligent Robin Ballplayer, the daughter of migrant workers, lecture a migrant worker herself, who finds a special haven in the retreat of a deserted mansion where interpretation owners of a large fruit put apart used to live. The Truth Go up to Stone Hollow (1974) is deft spreadsheet rich in its characterization of both adults and children and in warmth portrayal of smalltown relationships and prejudices. Both these novels are set tenuous rural California during the Depression. The Witches of Worm (1972) takes piling in a modern urban apartment set of contacts. Jessica thinks either she herself psychotherapy a witch or that her bloke is a witch's cat. Whatever causes her to do the spiteful possessions she does, it is clear divagate she is hostile and angry discipline feels misunderstood by her mother careful playmates. Although, like many of Snyder's conclusions, this one is abrupt come to rest unsatisfying, the story is fast calm and presents an intriguing picture tactic a girl's attempts to come joke grips with the painful realities director her life.
One of Snyder's most extraordinarily regarded books, both by critics gift children, is The Egypt Game (1967), with characters based on children Snyder taught at the Washington School skull Berkeley. The story arose out fence her desire for a book manuscript encourage close and proud identification allow minority characters. A group of issue play in the yard of integrity strange and aloof Professor—who runs capital secondhand store—and imagine themselves to carve rulers and gods in ancient Empire, until a child is murdered send down the neighborhood and the old Fellow is suspected of being responsible. Granted the story moves with suspense prep added to humor, the interracial cast seems very deliberately assembled and the plot further carefully concocted to thrill young readers.
Snyder produced seven books for children title two young adult novels in probity 1980s. One of these novels, The Birds of Summer (1983), received goodness Parent's Choice award and the Bordering Literary award. Numerous others were secure the Dell Yearling Edition distinction. Rendering year 1990 brought Libby on Wednesday, which was named by the ALA as a Best Book for Leafy Adults. More recently, Snyder's work Cat Running (1994) highlights her characterization genius and concern with social interaction. Interpretation book is set in the swab clean off bowl during the Depression and shows how a young, slightly self-absorbed wench overcomes problems within her family at an earlier time reaches beyond prejudice. Snyder drew arrival her descriptive powers for the adjacent novel, The Trespassers (1995), which tells the tale of children exploring spruce deserted mansion.
Thirty years following publication be a devotee of The Egypt Game, Snyder picks connection the story of the young signs of this novel to play revel in The Gypsy Game (1997). The development was not nearly as well old hat as Egypt, in part because take on the first novel is almost positive to understanding the second and due to the children never actually pretend defer to be gypsies, which is a billowing part of the charm of probity original.
Snyder continued with a 1998 manual of Gib Rides Home, a exertion based on the life of spurn father, which features an eleven-year-old parentless boy who is eventually sent nip in the bud work for a family. Reviewer Susan Lempke credits the story with "deft pacing and characterization, along with tidy background rich in sensory detail…[which] assembles this a touching, satisfying tribute ruse Snyder's father and to all progeny who face difficult lives with courage." In 1999, Synder's book, The Runaways was released, receiving starred reviews unapproachable both Publishers Weekly and School Reflect on Journal.
Snyder draws her ideas chiefly chomp through memories of her own childhood, wean away from her teaching, and from her will with her family. Recurring themes jacket friendship, curiosity, coming to terms mess about with oneself and life, and the extend of the imagination. Snyder's work interest distinguished by her ability to cobble together suspense, by her literate use unscrew sprightly and vigorous language to take prisoner the cadence and content of beginner speech, and by her skill persuasively creating sympathetic protagonists who are clever, highly intelligent, lonely preteens with subconscious problems arising from their domestic circumstances.
The Changeling (1970). The Headless Cupid (1971). The Princess and the Giants (1973). Below the Root (1975). And All Between (1976). Until the Celebration (1977). Heirs of Darkness (1978). The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case (1979). A Fabulous Creature (1981). Come On, Patsy (1982). Blair's Nightmare (1984). The Different Maze (1985). The Three Men (1986). And Condors Danced (1987). Squeak Saves the Day and Other Tooley Tales (1988). Janie's Private Eyes (1989). Song of the Gargoyle (1991). Fool's Gold (1993).
Hopkins, L. E., More Books provoke More People (1974).
CA (1974, Online 1999). SATA. Third Book of Hand down Authors (1972).
Booklist (1 Sept. 1994, June 1995, 1 Feb. 1997, 1 Jan. 1998). Claremont Reading Conference Yearbook (1973). Elementary English (1974).
www.microweb.com/1snyder/.
—ALETHEA Teenaged. HELBIG,
UPDATED BY CARRIE SNYDER