S. A. Bodeen

S.A. Bodeen grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. She graduated from UW-River Falls with a degree in Secondary Ed., then joined the Peace Corps with her husband and went to Tanzania, East Africa. She has lived in eight states, two African countries, and an insular possession. Currently, she lives in the Midwest with her husband and two daughters.

Bodeen's first picture book, Elizabeti's Doll (written as Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen) was published in 1998, followed by six other picture books. Her first YA novel written as S.A. Bodeen, the award-winning The Compound, came out from Feiwel and Friends in 2008. Her latest novel is Found.

Recently I asked Bodeen about what she was reading. Her reply:

I’ve always felt the pull to read books that weren’t meant for me. So when my agent sent me an advanced reader copy of another client’s forthcoming book, I sat right down with it, even though he had sent it for my husband and daughter. Let me explain. My husband manages a national wildlife refuge. My youngest daughter is a fan of the television show Pretty Little Liars. What non-fiction book could possibly combine those two? Odd Birds by Ian Harding. The author, a star of the show, is a lifelong birder. Odd Birds is a collection of his reflections on experiences with birds and nature, midst a backdrop of his insider Hollywood life. I never watched the show, and although I have an affinity for nature, I’m not an official birder. Turns out that neither mattered, because this read was charming and delightful.

Visit S.A. Bodeen's website.

Writers Read: S.A. Bodeen (July 2016).

--Marshal Zeringue