SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Zevi Takes the Spotlight
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://carol.carolmatas.com/
CITY: Winnipeg
STATE:
COUNTRY: Canada
NATIONALITY: Canadian
LAST VOLUME: SATA 277
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born November 14, 1949, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; daughter of Roy Joseph (a judge) and Ruth Gloria Matas; married Per K. Brask (a professor of theater), February 19, 1977; children: Rebecca Ellen, Aaron Samuel.
EDUCATION:University of Western Ontario, B.A., 1969; graduated from Actor’s Lab (London, England), 1972.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and educator. University of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, instructor of creative writing in Continuing Education Division; Bemidji State University, Bemidji, MN, visiting professor; Manitoba Arts Council artist-in-the-schools; Centennial Library, Winnipeg, writer-in-residence.
MEMBER:Writers’ Union of Canada, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Canadian Children’s Book Centre.
AWARDS:Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young Readers, 1988, Sydney Taylor Book Award Honor Book designation, Association of Jewish Libraries, and New York Times Book Review Notable Book designation, both 1989, Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies selection, National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)/Children’s Book Council (CBC), 1990, Young Adults’ Choice selection, International Reading Association, 1991, and Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) Our Choice designation, all for Lisa’s War; Mr. Christie’s Honour Book designation, 1989, CCBC Our Choice designation, and Young Adult Canadian Book Award runner up, both 1990, and Woodward Park Award and Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies selection, both 1991, all for Jesper/Code Name Kris; Notable Book designation, Canadian Library Association (CLA), 1992, for The Race; Governor General’s Literary Award nomination, Silver Birch Award, Ruth Schwartz Award nomination, and Mr. Christie’s Honor Book designation, all 1993, Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies designation and Books for the Teen Age selection, New York Public Library, both 1994, and Manitoba Young Reader’s Choice Award, 1996, all for Daniel’s Story; Sydney Taylor Book Award and CLA Notable Book designation, both 1993, and Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies designation and Books for the Teen Age designation, both 1994, all for Sworn Enemies; CCBC Our Choice designation, 1993, and Governor General’s Literary Award finalist, Quick Picks for Young Adults listee, American Library Association (ALA), and Books for the Teen Age designation, all 1994, all for The Burning Time; Manitoba Book of the Year finalist, 1995, and CCBC Outstanding Book of the Year designation, 1996, both for The Primrose Path; ALA Best Books for Young Adults and Quick Picks for Young Adults designations, Best Book of the Year and Best Book of the Year for Children finalists, McNally Robinson Book Awards, Ruth Schwartz Award finalist, Jewish Book Award, and Mr. Christie Honour Book designation, all 1996, and Books for the Teen Age designation and Notable Children’s Trade Book designation, both 1997, all for After the War; Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies designation, Books for the Teen Age designation, and Rachel Bessin/Isaac Frichwasser Memorial Award for Young-Adult Fiction, all 1998, all for The Garden; Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies designation and Geoffrey Bilson Award nomination, both 1999, both for Greater than Angels; McNally Robinson Book Award for Young People nomination, Book for the Teen Age designation, CCBC Our Choice designation, Geoffrey Bilson Award Honor Book selection, and Sydney Taylor Award Honor Book designation, all 2000, all for In My Enemy’s House; Manitoba Book for Young Readers Award nomination and Judy Lopez Award Honor Book selection, both 2001, and Margaret McWilliams Award finalist, Manitoba Historical Society, all for Rebecca/Sparks Fly Upward; Books for the Teen Age designation, Sydney Taylor Award Honor Book designation, Geoffrey Bilson Award Honor Book designation, and McNally Robinson Book for Young People finalist, all 2001, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award, 2002, and Lamplighter Award finalist, 2004, all for The War Within; Silver Birch Award finalist, McNally Robinson Book for Young Readers finalist, and Margaret McWilliams Award, all 2001, all for Footsteps in the Snow; McNally Robinson Book for Young People Award finalist and Geoffrey Bilson Award finalist, both 2003, both for Rosie in New York; Hackmatack Award finalist, 2006, for Rosie in Los Angeles; McNally Robinson Book for Young Readers Award finalist, Margaret McWilliams Award, Geoffrey Bilson Award finalist, and CCBC Our Choice Merit Honor Book selection, all 2006, and Frances and Samuel Stein Memorial Prize in Youth Literature, 2007, all for Turned Away; CCBC Our Choice selection, 2006, for Past Crimes; Sydney Taylor Book Award Notable Book for Older Readers designation, 2007, for The Whirlwind, and 2008, for The Freak; CCBC Best Book for Teens and Kids selection, Rocky Mountain Book Award shortlist, and Golden Oak Award shortlist, all 2012, all for Behind Enemy Lines; Sydney Taylor Book Award Honor Book designation, CCBC Best Book for Teens and Kids selection, Red Cedar Award shortlist, and Helen and Stan Vine Canadian Jewish Book Award, all 2014, all for Pieces of the Past.
RELIGION: Jewish.WRITINGS
Adaptor (with Per Brask) of stage play Jesper, based on Matas’s novel; author of a blog.
Daniel’s Story was adapted for audiobook, read by Daniel Carpenter-Gold, AudioBookshelf, 2008.
SIDELIGHTS
A Canadian author of historical novels and other fiction for children and young adults, Carol Matas writes hard-hitting stories that thrust adolescent protagonists into life-and-death situations while confronting readers with the vagaries and complexities of life. Matas is best known for award-winning novels such as Lisa’s War, The Whirlwind, and Pieces of the Past: The Holocaust Diary of Rose Rabinowitz, the last in which she casts the events of World War II as an historical backdrop as well as a central agent in stories of heroism and despair. Additionally, she has written plays, contemporary stories, and science fiction and fantasy tales, sometimes in collaboration with fellow Canadian author Perry Nodelman.
Interestingly, given her successful literary career, Matas had no intention of becoming a writer; in fact, her early ambitions led her to the theater. As a young woman, she trained at Actor’s Lab in London, England, then returned to her native Winnipeg to pursue a career in drama. During her first pregnancy, however, she left the theater and channeled her creative energy into writing a fantasy novel titled Carstan and Kasper. While caring for her young daughter, Matas continued to write and gradually honed her focus on writing for children. Her second completed manuscript, Fusion Factor, found a publisher after a score of rejections, and by this time Matas had already written and placed another book, The D.N.A. Dimension. Matas went on to have seven grandchildren and continued writing.
Matas’s early works, such as her “Fifth Perception” science-fiction novels, feature narratives that incorporate nuclear destruction, genetic engineering, and eco-catastrophe. In The Fusion Factor a girl named Rebecca travels into the future to an underground city populated by genetically impaired survivors of a nuclear holocaust who are kidnapping healthy children from the past for breeding purposes. Zanu finds Rebecca transported to a seemingly perfect future world, only to discover that society is controlled by big business; those who do not conform are banished to a wilderness destroyed by industrial pollution. The series concludes with Me, Myself, and I.
Mary Ainslie Smith, critiquing both The Fusion Factor and Zanu in Books in Canada, asserted that the author’s “spunky and ultimately optimistic” heroine “wants to believe that one person can make … a difference,” and “her determination to work for a better world should get some healthy ideas stirring in the minds of the readers of these two books.” More than twenty years after the release of Me, Myself, and I Matas reworked her “Fifth Perception” stories as the novel The Edge of When. A contributor in Kirkus Reviews described the work as “a thought-provoking and entertaining time-travel tale with a useful, even hopeful, message about personal responsibility.”
Lisa’s War was inspired by the stories of Matas’s husband’s father and grandfather, who participated in the Danish underground during World War II. Lisa is a Jewish teenager living in Copenhagen during the Nazi occupation. After joining the resistance, she becoming involved in exploits ranging from the distribution of leaflets to blowing up bridges and helping Jews avoid capture. Despite her fears that the resistance is becoming almost as violent and uncompromising as the Nazi movement it is fighting, Lisa is ultimately forced to resort to violence herself in order to save many others. In Horn Book Mary M. Burns noted the graphic nature of the novel and called Lisa’s War “not an adventure story with war as a backdrop but an account of events that irrevocably changed the lives of human beings.” In Publishers Weekly a commentator deemed the work “an unsettling, important novel.”
A sequel to Lisa’s War, Code Name Kris narrates the adventures of Jesper, an adolescent friend of Lisa and her older brother. Still battling the Nazis after Lisa and her family escape to Sweden, Jesper is captured as a resister and the novel he chronicles his wartime experiences while awaiting execution. A Five Owls reviewer noted that the narrative of this sequel “moves quickly and is full of action,” and Graham Caie commented in Canadian Children’s Literature that Matas’s careful research and thorough detail in Code Name Kris “give this historical novel greater credibility and depth.”
In After the War Matas chronicles the adventures of a fifteen-year-old survivor of the Nazi concentration camps. In the novel Ruth Mendleberg joins a Zionist group and tries to reach a new homeland in Palestine. Interwoven with the action of a perilous journey across Europe by a group of young death-camp survivors are flashbacks to Ruth’s wartime experiences, in particular the roundups and massacres she now wishes to forget. Betsy Hearne commented in the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books that “Matas’s recreation of life on the run acquires some authentic urgency,” and a Booklist reviewer noted that After the War melds historical incidents “into a tightly edited drama.”
Greater than Angels returns to war-torn Europe and finds young Anna Hirsch deported with her family from Germany to France. Eventually sent to the village of Le Chambon, she joins the townsfolk in resisting the Nazis and plans a daring escape to Switzerland. A Publishers Weekly reviewer praised Greater than Angels as a solidly researched and vivid account of the heroism of the Le Chambon villagers, who came to the aid of approximately 2,500 Jews seeking refuge. “An emotional, powerfully written text, it reveals, from a child’s perspective, the many terrifying experiences that the Jewish people faced while living in the Vichy area of France,” Carolyn Cutt noted in Resource Links.
For fourteen-year-old Ben Friedman, the protagonist of The Whirlwind, the search for safety from the Nazis leads to America. However, when the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, fear again invades Ben’s life as his Seattle classmates channel their anger over the loss of American lives to the German Jews living in their community. In The Whirlwind “Matas places vital, universal truths about life within a historical context,” noted Kliatt contributor Marissa Elliott, the critic going on to praise The Whirlwind as “a poignant look at what it means to come of age in a world of uncertainty.”
Pieces of the Past was published as part of the popular “Dear Canada” series of middle-grade historical novels and earned a number of honors for Matas. Its story focuses on Rose Rabinowitz, a thirteen-year-old Polish orphan who is traumatized by memories of Nazi barbarism as she struggles to adjust to her new life in Canada. At the suggestion of her foster father, Rose begins a diary in which she recounts the details of her grueling flight from war-torn Poland, a journey that took the lives of several family members. “This is a powerful, deeply affecting book,” explained Leslie Vermeer in Resource Links, the critic adding that Pieces of the Past “is sensitively written but doesn’t pull its punches.”
Behind Enemy Lines: World War II is based on the true story of 168 Allied airmen who were captured and imprisoned at the infamous Buchenwald concentration camp. After his plane is shot down over France, eighteen-year-old Sam Frederiksen, a Canadian gunner, becomes involved with the French Resistance as a spy and saboteur. Betrayed by one of his compatriots, Sam is taken into custody by the Gestapo and endures brutal treatment at the hands of his captors. “The narrative voice is potent and realistic,” Rob Bittner observed in the Canadian Review of Materials, the critic adding of Behind Enemy Lines that “Matas does a marvelous job capturing both the hope and courage in Sam’s personality as well as the terror he feels as he is transported around Nazi-occupied territory.”
In addition to her novels about World War II, Matas has fictionalized other historical epochs. In The Burning Time she focuses on the witch trials that took place in sixteenth-century France. Rose is aged fifteen when her mother, a healer and midwife, is accused of being a witch by jealous neighbors and spurned suitors. When the accusation moves to Rose, the girl must flee to save herself. Rochman, writing in Booklist, noted that “it’s the history that’s compelling here,” citing “the facts that are left out of the traditional textbooks, [and] the role played by those strong women outsiders who threatened the male hierarchy.”
In The War Within: A Novel of the Civil War readers are introduced to thirteen-year-old Hannah Green, the daughter of a Jewish merchant living in Mississippi. After Union general Ulysses S. Grant occupies the area and orders all Jews to leave, Hannah and her family move north to Illinois, where she begins to question her values as she experiences both the sting of anti-Semitism and the dissonance of her own racist attitudes. In Kliatt Deborah Kaplan cited Matas’s use of period documents in The War Within, adding that by focusing on “a little-known part of American history,” Hannah’s story allows readers to “focus on the development of personal conscience.”
Also based on Jewish history, Sworn Enemies deals with the kidnapping and forced conversion of Jewish youths for the Czarist army in nineteenth-century Russia. Here sixteen-year-old Aaron is betrayed by fellow Jew Zev and rousted into the Czar’s army. Ironically, Zev is also caught, and the two again confront one another as they each attempt to escape. A Kirkus Reviews critic called Sworn Enemies a “harrowing, thought-provoking, skillfully written novel about a past whose vile legacy persists,” while New York Times Book Review critic Roger Sutton asserted that “Matas is a good storyteller, and her novel will tell young readers about a less than familiar aspect of Jewish history.”
Matas transports readers to the fledgling town of Tucson, Arizona, in her historical novel Tucson Jo, which is based on Charles Strauss, who became the first Jewish mayor of that city in 1882. An independent-minded tomboy who would rather learn to ride wearing trousers rather than bulky skirts and petticoats, Josephine Fiedler is uncertain whether to join her father’s campaign for mayor of the up-and-coming frontier town. While the fourteen year old believes that her father unfairly denies her the freedom he used to persuade the Fielder family to make the trek from their home in Boston, she begins to understand the difference between freedom and anarchy when Mr. Fiedler is publically attacked for his Jewish faith. Reviewing Matas’ novel in the Canadian Review of Materials, Ruth Latta noted of Tucson Jo that “Jo’s many ambitions and discontentments are typical” of a girl her age in any era, and “readers cheering for the side of integrity and good government will not be disappointed” as the young woman begins to discern “the balance between individual freedom and the good of society as a whole.”
Based on Matas’s family history, Sparks Fly Upward introduces twelve-year-old Rebecca Bernstein, who lives with her extended family in rural Saskatchewan until a fire forces them to relocate to Winnipeg. When her father has trouble finding work in the new city and sends Rebecca to live with a Christian foster family, she confronts anti-Semitism but also finds a best friend in the family’s daughter Sophie. When a scuffle within the foster family prompts Mr. Bernstein to forbid the new relationship, Rebecca must discover for herself the value of friendship and loyalty. In School Library Journal Kathleen Isaacs enjoyed the story’s unusual setting, predicting that Sparks Fly Upward “should appeal to middle-grade readers, especially girls.”
“For me, the greatest pleasure is to read a book that is compelling and substantive,” Matas once related in an interview with Perry Nodelman in Canadian Children’s Literature. “I’m not trying to preach a message—quite the opposite,” she added. “I’m trying to open a question, a dialogue, give my reader food for thought.” “The world is a complex place,” she added, “and … what I’m trying to do is present this world, in all its complexities, to my readers. And hope they are both challenged and entertained.”
(open new)In Who Am I?, wealthy teenager Miranda is diagnosed with an unexplained illness. While hospitalized, she learns that she is a clone of her parents’s first child. She is shocked to find out that another clone also exists to provide any “spare parts” should Miranda ever fall sick. This leads her to question the nature of her own life and the ethics behind the actions of her parents and her doctor. In a review in Resource Links, Anne Letain remarked that “the adults are poorly conceived considering the seriousness of their actions and choices. Still, the book is full of action and suspense and should appeal to the middle schoolers it was written for.”
Daniel’s Story centers around fourteen-year-old Daniel and his identity crisis as he navigates living in Germany during the Holocaust. Reviewing the book in Resource Links, Carmelita Cechetto-Shea noted that “although the publisher has this novel listed for ages 8-14, Daniel’s Story is an excellent teaching tool for units on Holocaust studies for all grades from 6-12. Younger students and lower grades may find the story a little beyond their comprehension and emotional ability.”
With Who’s Looking?: How Animals See the World, a little girl and her baby sister see wolves, birds, insects, whales, rabbits, and other animals as they wander around the natural world. They wonder how these animals perceive them and their environment. The picture book uses basic science to explain this to young readers .In a review in School Library Journal, Eva Elisabeth VonAncken “highly recommended” the account, calling it “a valuable addition to science and nature collections.”
In Zevi Takes the Spotlight, thirteen-year-old Zevi can hear the thoughts of others. He thinks it is his curse. Although he is able to help others, he worries about more people learning about his abilities. When he gets a part in a movie and his abilities start telling him things, he worries about how to approach sharing his findings with others. Writing in School Library Journal, Ashleigh Williams commented that Matas’s “hi-lo title excels in the genre, packaging an accessible, dyslexia-friendly text with a compelling plot and likable protagonist.”(close new)
BIOCRIT
BOOKS
Children’s Literature Review, Volume 52, Gale (Detroit, MI), 1999.
St. James Guide to Young-Adult Writers, 2nd edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1999.
PERIODICALS
Booklist, September 1, 1994, Hazel Rochman, review of The Burning Time, p. 35; April 1, 1996, review of After the War, p. 1361; April 1, 2001, Carolyn Phelan, review of The War Within: A Novel of the Civil War, p. 1484; April 1, 2002, Hazel Rochman, review of Sparks Fly Upward, p. 1328; May 15, 2003, John Peters, review of Rosie in New York City: Gotcha!, p. 1666; March 1, 2007, Hazel Rochman, review of The Whirlwind, p. 74; August, 2007, Hazel Rochman, review of Past Crimes, p. 64.
Books in Canada, March 1, 1987, Mary Ainslie Smith, “Back to the Future,” p. 37; April 1, 1988, Welwyn Wilton Katz, review of Lisa, p. 36; December 1, 1994, Pat Barclay, review of Of Two Minds, p. 57; May 1, 2002, Footsteps in the Snow: The Red River Diary of Isobel Scott, p. 43.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, May 1, 1993, Betsy Hearne, review of Daniel’s Story, p. 289; April 1, 1996, Betsy Hearne, review of After the War, pp. 271-72; July 1, 2002, review of Sparks Fly Upward, p. 409; July 1, 2007, Hope Morrison, review of The Whirlwind, p. 477, April 1, 2008, April Spisak, review of The Freak, p. 343.
Canadian Children’s Literature, number 82, 1996, Perry Nodelman, interview with Matas, pp. 58-59, 61, 66, 67.
Canadian Literature, March 22, 1996, J.R. Wytenbroek, reviews of Lisa, The Lost Locket, and Sworn Enemies, all p. 108.
Canadian Review of Materials, May 1, 1992, Gordon Heasley, review of The Race, p. 168; September 1, 1993, Anne Louise Mahoney, review of Daniel’s Story, p. 153; February 17, 2012, Rob Bittner, review of Behind Enemy Lines: World War II; September 13, 2013, Meredith Harrison-Lim, review of Pieces of the Past: The Holocaust Diary of Rose Rabinowitz; September 26, 2014, Ruth Latta, review of Tucson Jo.
Five Owls, January 1, 1991, review of Code Name Kris, p. 61; September 6, 2002, review of Footsteps in the Snow; September 19, 2003, review of Rosie in New York City.
Horn Book, May 1, 1989, Mary M. Burns, review of Lisa’s War, pp. 377-78.
Kirkus Reviews, January 1, 1993, review of Sworn Enemies, p. 66; January 15, 2012, review of The Edge of When.
Kliatt, November 1, 2002, Deborah Kaplan, review of The War Within, p. 20; July 1, 2007, Marissa Elliott, review of The Whirlwind, p. 26; September 1, 2007, Amanda MacGregor, review of Past Crimes, p. 24.
New York Times Book Review, April 11, 1993, Roger Sutton, review of Sworn Enemies, p. 30.
Publishers Weekly, February 10, 1989, review of Lisa’s War, p. 73; April 27, 1998, review of Greater than Angels, p. 68; June 23, 2003, review of Rosie in New York City, p. 67.
Quill & Quire, October 1, 1989, Frieda Wishinsky, review of Jesper, p. 14; October 1, 1991, Anne Louise Mahoney, review of The Race, p. 35; February 1, 1993, Kenneth Oppel, review of Daniel’s Story, p. 35.
Resource Links, February 1, 2004, Jill McClay, review of Rosie in New York City, p. 19; June 1, 2005, Anne Hatcher, review of Rosie in Los Angeles: Action!, p. 34; February 1, 2003, Jill McClay, review of Footsteps in the Snow, p. 13; April 1, 2004, Mavis Holder, review of Rosie in Chicago: Play Ball!, p. 23; October 1, 2005, Gail Lennon, review of The Dark Clone, p. 35; February 1, 2006, Suzanne Finkelstein, review of Turned Away: The World War II Diary of Devorah Bernstein, p. 26, and Joanne de Groot, review of Jesper, p. 49; February 1, 2007, Margaret Mackey, review of Past Crimes, p. 39; April 1, 2007, Margaret Mackey, review of The Whirlwind, p. 45; December 1, 2007, Frances Stanford, review of The Burning Time, p. 40; February 1, 2012, Lesley Little, review of The Edge of When, p. 22; April 1, 2013, Leslie Vermeer, review of Pieces of the Past, p. 10; December 1, 2013, Carolyn Cutt, review of Greater than Angels, p. 20; February 1, 2017, Anne Letain, review of Who Am I?, p. 33; December 1, 2018, Carmelita Cechetto-Shea, review of Daniel’s Story, p. 37.
School Library Journal, May 1, 1996, Robyn Nicoline Ryan, review of After the War, p. 135; March 1, 1999, Cyrisse Jaffee, review of In My Enemy’s House, p. 212; June 1, 2001, Crystal Faris, review of The War Within, p. 152; March 1, 2002, Kathleen Isaacs, review of Sparks Fly Upward, p. 234; August 1, 2003, Sharon R. Pearce, review of Rosie in New York City, p. 163; February 1, 2004, Susan Shaver, review of Rosie in Chicago, p. 149; March 1, 2004, Terrie Dorio, review of Rosie in Los Angeles, p. 218; May 1, 2007, Donna Rosenblum, review of The Whirlwind, p. 138; January 1, 2009, Caitlin Augusta, review of The Proof That Ghosts Exist, p. 112; May 1, 2022, Eva Elisabeth VonAncken, review of Who’s Looking?: How Animals See the World, p. 91; February 1, 2024, Ashleigh Williams, review of Zevi Takes the Spotlight, p. 90.
Voice of Youth Advocates, June 1, 1989, Marian Rafal, review of Lisa’s War, p. 104; October 1, 1994, review of The Burning Time, p. 210; April 1, 2012, Barbara Allen, review of The Edge of When, p. 77.
ONLINE
Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, https://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/ (June 26, 2022), Deborah Kalb, author interview.
Carol Matas website, http://www.carolmatas.com (August 16, 2024).
Carol Matas
Canada (b.1949)
Carol Matas is an internationally acclaimed author of over 40 books for children and young adults. Her best-selling work, which includes three award-winning series, has been translated into Spanish, Catalan, Japanese, Taiwanese, Turkish, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian, German, French, Indonesian, Bulgarian and Russian.
A graduate of Actors Lab in London, England, Carol first earned a B.A. (English) from the University of Western Ontario. Her teaching experience includes Artists in the School (Manitoba Arts Council); visiting professor at Bemidji State University, Minnesota; and creative writing instructor with Continuing Education at the University of Winnipeg. Carol writes contemporary and historical fiction, as well as science fiction and fantasy. She first began writing historical fiction when her Danish husband told her stories about his parents' experiences fighting the Nazis in World War II. Most of her books incorporate Jewish themes and 10 of her novels deal specifically with the Holocaust. Because she was well known for her Holocaust books for young readers, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. asked her to write Daniels Story, which became a best seller.
Genres: Young Adult Fiction
New and upcoming books
April 2024
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Zevi Takes the Spotlight
Series
Minds (with Perry Nodelman)
1. Of Two Minds (1995)
2. More Minds (1996)
3. Out of Their Minds (1998)
4. A Meeting of Minds (1999)
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Freak
1. The Freak (1997)
2. Visions (2008)
3. Far (2008)
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Clone
1. Cloning Miranda (1999)
2. The Second Clone (2001)
3. The Dark Clone (2005)
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Ghost Hunters (with Perry Nodelman)
1. The Proof That Ghosts Exist (2008)
2. The Curse of the Evening Eye (2009)
3. The Hunt for the Haunted Elephant (2010)
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Novels
DNA Dimension (1982)
Zanu (1986)
The Fusion Factor (1986)
aka It's Up To Us
Jesper (1989)
Code Name Kris (1990)
Kris's War (1992)
Adventure in Legoland (1992)
Sworn Enemies (1993)
Daniel's Story (1993)
Safari Adventure in Legoland (1993)
The Lost Locket (1994)
The Burning Time (1994)
Lisa's War (1995)
The Primrose Path (1995)
After the War (1996)
The Garden (1997)
Greater Than Angels (1998)
Telling (1998)
In My Enemy's House (1999)
Rebecca (2000)
The War Within (2001)
Footsteps in the Snow (2002)
Sparks Fly Upward (2002)
Rosie in New York City: Gotcha (2003)
Rosie in Chicago (2003)
Rosie in Los Angeles: Action! (2004)
Whirlwind (2007)
Past Crimes (2007)
Rosie in Los Angeles (2008)
The Edge of When (2011)
Tucson Jo (2014)
Who Am I? (2016)
A Struggle for Hope (2021)
Zevi Takes the Spotlight (2024)
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Series contributed to
Dear Canada
A Season for Miracles (2006) (with others)
A Christmas to Remember (2009) (with others)
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Picture Books hide
Who's Looking? (2022)
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Non fiction hide
When I Die (2013)
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About Carol
"We must never simply accept the voice of authority. We must think for ourselves. Throughout the centuries, Jews have learned by argument. I have tried to follow in that tradition, using the context of Jewish wisdom, by posting moral and ethical problems in my books and challenging young people to think about them, to think for themselves. Surely, that is the most important thing a young person can do — think independently."
Carol Matas is an internationally acclaimed author of more than 45 books for children and young adults. Her best-selling work, which includes three award-winning series, has been translated into over a dozen languages including Spanish, Catalan, Japanese, Taiwanese, Turkish, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian, German, French, Indonesian, Bulgarian and Russian. She has adapted some of her books into plays and has had productions in Tel Aviv, Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg.
A graduate of Actor’s Lab in London, England, Carol first earned a B.A. (English) from the University of Western Ontario. Her teaching experience includes Artists in the School (Manitoba Arts Council); visiting professor at Bemidji State University, Minnesota; and creative writing instructor with Continuing Education at the University of Winnipeg.
Carol writes contemporary and historical fiction, as well as science fiction and fantasy, and has recently expanded into picture books. She first began writing historical fiction when her Danish husband told her stories about his parents' experiences fighting the Nazis in World War II. Most of her books incorporate Jewish themes and 11 of her novels deal specifically with the Holocaust. Because she was well known for her Holocaust books for young readers, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. asked her to write Daniel’s Story, which became a best seller.
Over the years, Carol's knack for successfully infusing serious and thought-provoking issues into an action-driven format has kept readers of all ages engaged. Carol is also an inspiring and passionate speaker who is frequently invited to address children and adults alike across North America.
Carol's books have won over 100 awards and honours, including the Sydney Taylor Honor Award, Geoffrey Bilson Award, Silver Birch Award, Canadian Jewish Book Award, National Jewish Book Awards Finalist, and the ALA Notable List, The New York Times Review Notable List, The New York Public Library List for the Teen Age, and the Voya Best Book List. She has also been twice nominated for Canada's prestigious Governor General's Award.
Q&A
CAROL MATAS ANSWERS READERS' QUESTIONS
Where were you born?
Winnipeg, Manitoba.
When were you born?
November 14, 1949
Where do you live now?
Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Do you have a family?
I have two grown children, a husband, and seven grandchildren. We used to have a very special dog named Kokopelli. Koko was an American Indian dog — that ís a special breed — who could catch a Frisbee. She loved the snow and the desert. You can find out more about the breed on the Web. We now have a standard poodle named Ava. She is a retired show dog.
What are some of your favorite things?
I love walking in Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg. In Assiniboine Park there is an English Garden, and my husband and I go there to look at the flowers. It’s a great place to think. I also love politics although I find it very frustrating. But I read the newspapers and watch the news, and follow both American and Canadian politics and often I’ll work for a political candidate. I love flowers and colors. My favorite food is fruit in season, and my favorite treat is dark chocolate.
What is important to you?
My family is the most important thing to me. My work is also important. Through my work I hope to make the world a little bit better — I’d like to make a difference and help make the world a better place to live for everyone. I believe one person can make a difference for good or for ill.
What is your favorite book that you wrote?
I really don’t have a favorite. They are all like children to me. I am always a little fonder of the baby- the newest book, the one I have just finished.
What is your favorite book that you have read?
The Wizard of Oz books were my favorite as a child. They had great characters, strong feisty girls with lots of courage, and wonderful imaginative plots and settings.
What book was the most fun to write?
Probably The Race, because it was all about politics and I love politics. But the books I wrote with Perry Nodelman were also great fun because we were able to work together and it was always interesting and fun.
Why do you write so much about the war?
Over two million children were murdered in the Holocaust. They cannot tell their stories. I hope I can tell some of those stories for them. It is also a way to explore the issues of good and evil in the world. They are difficult books to write but very rewarding.
Where do you get your ideas?
Everywhere! I can be reading the newspaper, looking out the window, watching a movie, reading a book, or talking to a friend. And suddenly I'll think — wait, that would make a great book. Often I write about things young people have not read much about because that way it will be fresh and interesting and perhaps get them to think about new things in new ways.
Why do you write?
I write to entertain and I write to challenge. I want my books to be fun to read, pleasurable, and I also want them to spur people into thinking for themselves, to ask questions, to think.
How do you do your research?
That depends on the book. If possible, I talk to people. If the book is set hundreds of years ago, I read not only history books but memoirs and diaries — the next best thing to talking to people. I also try to view videos or movies or view pictures, so I can get a visual sense of the times. Research can take anywhere from a few months to a few years.
Sunday, June 26, 2022
Q&A with Carol Matas
Carol Matas is the author of the new children's picture book Who's Looking?: How Animals See the World. Her many other books include A Struggle for Hope. She lives in Winnipeg.
Q: What inspired you to write Who’s Looking?
A: The inspiration for Who’s Looking happened on a walk home from the park with my then-6-year-old grandson Kai. We paused to look at the ants scurrying around and, just to encourage some fun conversation, I asked him what he thought we might look like to the ants.
He liked that question, and we had a good chat about it – so much so that when he left for home, I started researching how ants “see.”
What I discovered was fascinating. I had assumed that ants had good eyesight or how could they be so efficient, but I was mistaken. What else had I gotten wrong? I began researching other animals to see what I could discover. It was amazing! Who knew robins could see ultraviolet light or that rabbits could see behind them or that whales saw in grey and black?
The first iteration of the book was fiction, but an editor I knew was looking for nonfiction and I decided to change it to nonfiction for her. In the end, she didn’t take it, but to be fair it changed a lot from that first draft.
It was my agent who suggested I develop a story. I decided to set it on a farm in the Pacific Northwest and create a story with siblings who discover their environment. That also dictated which animals I could use. (I had to lose the giraffes.)
Q: What do you think Cornelia Li’s illustrations add to the book?
A: The first time I saw a rough illustration what struck me was the warmth Cornelia Li brought to the project. I was very focused on getting the science right, the seasons, the choice of animals, the variety of animals, and how each page would follow the other in an organic and yet exciting fashion. Cornelia brought a warmth and intimacy to the characters that I love.
I also really appreciate how she separated how the animal sees from how the human sees in a way that was child-friendly – that was quite a feat!
Q: How did you research the book, and did you learn anything that especially surprised you?
A: I joined National Geographic and used their website. I also used university sites and other prestigious science sites. I am fortunate to have a cousin who is a biologist who fact-checked the manuscript for me, and my editor was a science grad.
We really tried to get it right. The most difficult writing challenge was simplifying the science so that a 5-year-old could understand it.
In terms of what surprised me – just about everything! Robins are a good example. Did you know that they can sense the earth’s magnetic field? Wow.
But the main takeaway which I try to express at the end of the book is how differently we all see the world. That was what surprised me the most. If only we could see through each other’s eyes!
Q: You’ve written for different age groups--do you have a preference?
A: I can’t really choose a favourite age group to write for. But I can say that a picture book and a novel are totally different and yet very similar. I want to tell a strong, gripping story that children will relate to, and that they will enjoy. And maybe give then some food for thought as well! That is my goal, whatever the age.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I am really loving the picture book journey right now and have about a dozen stories in various stages and a few out on submission. However, at the same time I am working on three middle grade novels, also at various stages. One novel is set in Germany in 1938, another is science fiction, and I am also working on a paranormal novel.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: I have just published a novel called A Struggle For Hope with Scholastic in Canada and am hoping we can find a US publisher for it.
Set during the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, it follows a Holocaust survivor who must fight for her new country while confronting the past. The Holocaust section takes place in Auschwitz and tells the little known story of the rebellion there when inmates destroyed some of the crematoria.
It is very much a novel about the power of story. Ruth tells stories to heal, to help others heal, but also to warn about storytellers who can be dangerous - like Hitler. Unfortunately, with fascism on the rise all over the world right now it is very relevant as it also documents how fascism took hold so quickly – using story and lies.
Because Ruth is a storyteller I created numerous stories that she shares in the book - I loved that part – making up all these little stories. Often after writing one of the stories I would think, “Where the heck did that come from?” That’s the joy of writing.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Carol Matas.
Posted by Deborah Kalb at 7:09 AM
MATAS, Carol
Who Am I?
Fictive Press, 2016. 300p. Gr. 5-9. 978-1-927633-37-0. Pbk. $17.95
When privileged and wealthy teenager, Miranda, is suddenly stricken with a life threatening but poorly explained disease, her parents are on the case right away assuring her that it will all be taken care of and that she has no need to worry. They whisk her away to see Dr. Mullen who has always been in charge of her care. While hospitalized at his private research facility, Miranda makes some shocking discoveries about herself and how she came to be on this earth, and also why her parents have become so evasive to their only child.
Suddenly, Miranda is part of a brave new universe when she finds out that she is actually a clone of her parents' first child who died of a brain tumor, and she learns that they have also created another "child" to provide spare parts to Miranda should she ever become ill.
From this point, the tension mounts when Miranda must decide the meaning of her own personal truth and to find answers to much deeper ethical questions of nature vs nurture. Matas then leads the reader into an arch evil scientist mystery involving a trio of clones and the dangers they encounter. Who is to survive? Who is to be sacrificed? How is the wicked Dr. Mullen to be dealt with? Why are Miranda's clones able to function in the regular world when they have never left the laboratory? What will happen to her parents if it is revealed that they gave Mullen the financial support to create clones?
It is at this point where the book fails. Who Am I? is a combined reworking of three previous science fiction works by Matas, and truthfully the "new" plot lacks the credence of good sci-fi and needs a surer footed narrative. The story borders on the preposterous at times, because of so many twists and turns and the time the reader spends figuring out who is impersonating who, and why.
Miranda and her friend Emma are attractive heroines taking charge. But No. 10 Clone (Ariel) and No. 11 Clone (Eva) are poorly developed and characterized. Since Ariel is only supposed to be ten years of age, her language is strangely mature, as are some of her philosophical utterings. Eva is even more of a blank slate and for someone who is supposed to die of cancer within weeks, she is incredibly physically active. The adults are poorly conceived considering the seriousness of their actions and choices.
Still, the book is full of action and suspense and should appeal to the middle schoolers it was written for.
Thematic Links: Speculative Fiction; Clones
[G] Good, even great at times, generally useful!
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Resource Links
http://www.atcl.ca
Source Citation
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Letain, Anne. "Matas, Carol: Who Am I?" Resource Links, vol. 22, no. 3, Feb. 2017, p. 33. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A492222426/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=846d2683. Accessed 20 June 2024.
MATAS, Carol
Daniel's Story
Scholastic Canada, 1993/2018. 168p. Gr. 6-12. 978-1-4431-7007-9. Pbk. $8.99
[E]
Daniel's Story is a fictional account of Daniel, a 14-year old Jewish boy living during the historical time period known as the Holocaust. Daniel lives in Germany, so he considers himself to be German, which is part of his struggle as to why the Nazis hate the Jewish people so much because in his eyes he is German first. Daniel lives with his family in Frankfurt, enjoys school and loves taking photos, and has aspirations of being a photographer one day. He comes from a loving family, but suddenly his world is turned upside down as the Nazis prevent Jews from going to church, owning businesses, and many other rights his family has had.
Told in first person, Daniel's Story follows four years of Daniel and his family's lives as they are forced from their home In Frankfurt, sent to a ghetto in Lodz, Poland, then to the notorious concentration camp known as Auschwitz. In each place, Daniel and his family discover more of the Nazi hatred of Jewish people, but also learn that there is strength in family, and that the will to live is strong enough to endure many hardships. Eventually Daniel is sent to Buchenwald, and it is here that he finds freedom at the end of the war as American troops rescue the camp and its prisoners.
Daniel's Story reads like a picture memoir as each of Daniel's memories are captured in pictures, with the help of a smuggled camera. Each "picture" is a testament to the memory of the racism, hatred and cruelty of the Nazi regime. Capturing memories, good or bad, is the essence of humanity. Photography is the tool to create that memory for future generations to witness. And with each horror or episode of cruelty Daniel witnesses at the hands of the Nazis, his anger grows even stronger; this anger culminates in Daniel's strength, determination, and will to survive regardless of what hurdles the Nazis place before him.
Daniel's Story tells the story of a young teen who survives during the Holocaust, a time when youth was taken and replaced by prejudice and hatred; the story is fictional, but the Holocaust is real. Carol Matas has created a character that readers can relate to, especially readers who are teens themselves. Daniel's experiences, trials and tribulations should never happen to anyone, but Ms. Matas brings them to life through the eyes of a strong and defiant teen who shows readers that there is hope despite whatever one may be experiencing. The story will bring readers to moments of tears, but also have readers reflect on the power of love, family and perseverance.
This 25th anniversary edition of Daniel's Story will be just as valuable in 25 more years, and its themes, messages, and historical content will remain critical even in today's world. In Daniel's Story, Carol Matas has written an award winning account of resilience and love, that can be read again and again, and it has. The changes to the book are minimal, with changes to the cover itself, moving from the 1993 cover that depicts the swastika, and chaos as Jewish families are uprooted and sent into the unknown, to a 2018 cover which I enveloped in two common images from the Holocaust itself: striped pajamas and the yellow Star of David. The current edition includes a question and answer section with the author shedding light on the story's importance and connection with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This addition also provides the reader with more information on Ms. Matas' intentions in writing the story, as well as meaning behind the book's dedication. But maybe the biggest story the reader can discover from Daniel's Story is simple: remember!
Note: Although the publisher has this novel listed for ages 8-14, Daniel's Story is an excellent teaching tool for units on Holocaust studies for all grades from 6-12. Younger students and lower grades may find the story a little beyond their comprehension and emotional ability
Thematic Links: Holocaust; Racism; Intolerance; Survival; Jewish Children; World War II; Photography; Persecutions
Carmelita Cechetto-Shea
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 Resource Links
http://www.atcl.ca
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Cechetto-Shea, Carmelita. "MATAS, Carol: Daniel's Story." Resource Links, vol. 24, no. 2, Dec. 2018, pp. 37+. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A570046530/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=0daa2467. Accessed 20 June 2024.
MATAS, Carol. Who's Looking?: How Animals See the World. illus. by Cornelia Li. 32p. Orca. Apr. 2022. Tr $21.95. ISBN 9781459826762.
PreS-Gr 2--We see the animals around us, but what does the world look like to them? In this delightfully original nonfiction picture book, a young girl and her baby sister wander through woods, fields, and a shoreline, while a variety of creatures look on: birds, insects, whales, rabbits, and even wolves. Simple scientific explanations and colorful illustrations show readers how each animal may perceive the world. Matas explains that some are color-blind and see only in shades of gray. Others have panoramic 360 degree vision. Eagles have the best sight of any creature and can spot a mouse from great distances, while mice are nearly blind but have a useful special cell that can sense movement. Rabbits can see behind their backs, while beavers, having very poor vision, have gogglelike membranes to help them see underwater. The lovely illustrations make use of borders, perspective, and other effects to offer a sense of the difference between what the creature sees and how a human would see it; it's not photorealistic or literal, but gives children an opportunity to process and ponder the information. In the meantime, the sisters are a remote focal point, and as the seasons pass, the baby grows to a toddler. These two comprise an illustrative reference point and are not part of the text, except in two early lines that explain a baby's early vision and how human vision works with glasses. The scenes clearly show the affection the sisters have for each other. The readable text offers understandable science, while the engaging illustrations promote careful investigation. VERDICT A valuable addition to science and nature collections. Highly recommended. --Eva Elisabeth VonAncken
Caption: Who's Looking?: How Animals See the World (Matas) [C]2022 by Cornelia Li, p.91
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2022 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
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VonAncken, Eva Elisabeth. "MATAS, Carol. Who's Looking?: How Animals See the World." School Library Journal, vol. 68, no. 5, May 2022, pp. 91+. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A702476151/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=5722c0fe. Accessed 20 June 2024.
MATAS, Carol. Zevi Takes the Spotlight. 128p. (Orca Currents). Orca. Apr. 2024. pap. $10.95. ISBN 9781459838826.
Gr 4-7--His mom calls it a gift--but to 13-yearold Zevi, his psychic abilities are anything but. He doesn't know how or why, but Zevi can hear people's thoughts, communicate with the dead, and see preternatural visions. His invaluable help in a missing child case puts his abilities front and center, and he's worried about this visibility hurting his acting aspirations. Suddenly, the opportunity of a lifetime comes to Zevi's doorstep when his house is used in a film starring popular actor Robert Lemon. But foreboding supernatural hints are plaguing Zevi--and coming true in the form of dangerous accidents during filming, like collapsing light fixtures and poisoned drinks--making him fear for Robert's safety. Readers will keep turning pages as Zevi and his crew attempt to find the culprit behind the on-set mishaps. Various terms and tidbits about filmmaking will appeal to movie enthusiasts. Zevi is Jewish, and this important part of his identity is skillfully woven throughout the narrative. VERDICT TIhis hi-lo title excels in the genre, packaging an accessible, dyslexia-friendly text with a compelling plot and likable protagonist whose journey readers will happily follow. Highly recommended.--Ashleigh Williams
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
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Williams, Ashleigh. "MATAS, Carol. Zevi Takes the Spotlight." School Library Journal, vol. 70, no. 2, Feb. 2024, p. 90. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A784714377/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=3a3ad584. Accessed 20 June 2024.