Stephanie Kuehn
Stephanie Kuehn is an American author of young adult fiction, best known for her William C. Morris Award-winning debut novel Charm & Strange, Delicate Monsters, and Complicit. Her novels often explore themes of mental illness and psychology.[1]
Stephanie Kuehn | |
---|---|
Born | United States |
Language | English |
Education | BA in Linguistics, MA in Sports Psychology, PsyD in Clinical Psychology |
Alma mater | John F. Kennedy University, University of California, Santa Cruz |
Genre | young adult fiction |
Years active | 2014-now |
Notable works | Charm & Strange, Delicate Monsters, Complicit |
Notable awards | William C. Morris Award 2014, Northern California Book Award 2016 |
Children | 3 |
Website | |
stephaniekuehn |
Personal life
Kuehn wanted to be a filmmaker as a teen and grew up in Berkeley, California.[2] She grew up reading books by V.C. Andrews and Peter Straub.[3]
Kuehn went to John F. Kennedy University and the University of California, Santa Cruz.[4] She has a bachelor's degree in linguistics, a master's degree in sports psychology, and a doctorate in clinical psychology.[5][4]
Her background as a psychologist is one of the reasons why many of her novels have narrators who are dealing with mental health issues.[6]
She currently lives in Northern California with her husband and three children.[7]
Selected works
Her debut young adult novel, Charm & Strange, was published by St. Martin's Griffin in 2014 and tells the story of a teenage athlete who believes he might be a werewolf.[8] Charm & Strange won the William C. Morris Award in 2014[9] and was nominated for a Carnegie Medal in 2014.[10]
Delicate Monsters, her sophomore novel, about the intersecting lives of three troubled teenagers, was published in 2015 by St. Martin's Griffin.[11] It won the Northern California Book Award in the category Children's Fiction for Older Readers in 2016.[12]
Her third novel, Complicit, about a teen dealing with the aftermath of his sister burning down a barn and being sentenced to juvenile detention, was published by St. Martin's Griffin in 2016.[13] Complicit was also on Booklist's 2014 Top 10 Crime Fiction for Youth,[14] the 2015 Reading List of the Texas Library Association,[15] YALSA's 2015 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults list,[16] and YALSA's 2017 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults list.[17] Complicit was also nominated for a Kentucky Bluegrass Award in 2016[18] and a Rhode Island Teen Book Award in 2016.[19]
Kuehn's fourth novel, The Smaller Evil, is about a teen who arrives at a self-help center to deal with his anxiety and chronic illness, but stumbled into strange happenings when the retreat leader appears not to be who he seems.[20] The Smaller Evil was published by Dutton in 2016.[21] It received a starred review from School Library Journal[22] Kuehn was awarded the PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship for The Smaller Evil in 2015.[23]
Her fifth novel, When I Am Through With You, was published by Dutton in 2017.[24] It received a starred review from Kirkus magazine.[25]
Bibliography
Young adult novels
- Charm & Strange (St. Martin's Griffin, 2014)
- Delicate Monsters (St. Martin's Griffin, 2015)
- Complicit (St. Martin's Griffin, 2016)
- The Smaller Evil (Dutton, 2016)
- When I Am Through With You (Dutton, 2017)
- We Weren't Looking to Be Found (Disney-Hyperion, 2022)
Short stories
- in Feral Youth, edited by Shaun David Hutchinson (Simon Pulse, 2017)
- in (Don't) Call Me Crazy, edited by Kelly Jensen (Algonquin, 2018)
- in His Hideous Heart, edited by Dahlia Adler (Flatiron, 2019)
Awards
Year | Title | Award | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Charm & Strange | William C. Morris Award | Winner | [9] |
Carnegie Medal | Nominee | [10] | ||
2016 | Delicate Monsters | Northern California Book Award, Children's Fiction for Older Readers | Winner | [12] |
Complicit | Kentucky Bluegrass Award | Nominee | [18] | |
Rhode Island Teen Book Award | Nominee | [19] |
References
- "Fangirls Unleashed: Exclusive Interview with Stephanie Kuehn". San Jose Public Library. 2018-08-21. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
- "One Thing Leads to Another: An Interview with Stephanie Kuehn - The Hub". The Hub. 2014-08-07. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- Staff, MPR News. "'The Smaller Evil' dives into the dark plot of a cult-like retreat". Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "CELEBRATION OF SCHOLARSHIP JOHN F. KENNEDY UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTIONS 2013" (PDF). John F. Kennedy University. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
- "The PEN Ten with Stephanie Kuehn - PEN America". pen.org. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "Stephanie Kuehn on the Unreliable Narrator, Mental Health, and". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "about". stephanie kuehn. 2012-11-27. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
- CHARM & STRANGE by Stephanie Kuehn | Kirkus Reviews.
- NGILBERT (2014-12-03). "2014 Morris Award". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "Nominations announced for the 2014 CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Medals". CILIP. 2013-11-05. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- DELICATE MONSTERS by Stephanie Kuehn | Kirkus Reviews.
- "Poetry Flash > programs". poetryflash.org. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- COMPLICIT by Stephanie Kuehn | Kirkus Reviews.
- Top 10 Crime Fiction for Youth: 2014, by Ilene Cooper | Booklist Online. Retrieved 2018-11-26 – via www.booklistonline.com.
- "Current List - Texas Library Association". Texas Library Association. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- NGILBERT (2015-02-03). "2015 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- NGILBERT (2017-01-18). "2017 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- Smith, Jennifer. "2016 Kentucky Bluegrass Award Master Lists". kba.nku.edu. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "Complicit | Rhode Island Teen Book Award". riteenbookaward.org. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- THE SMALLER EVIL by Stephanie Kuehn | Kirkus Reviews.
- "The Smaller Evil | Washington Independent Review of Books". www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "The Smaller Evil by Stephanie Kuehn | SLJ Review". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "2015 PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship - PEN America". pen.org. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
- "Children's Book Review: When I Am Through with You by Stephanie Kuehn. Dutton, $17.99 (304) ISBN 978-1-101-99473-3". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
- WHEN I AM THROUGH WITH YOU | Kirkus Reviews.