Steve sheinkin

1. Steve sheinkin Master of Nonfiction Susan DavidsonLIS 682October 24, 2013

2. childhood • Born in Brooklyn, NY • His family moved around (to Mississippi and Colorado) before settling in the suburbs of NYC • As a child, his favorite books were action stories and outdoor adventures, particularlyMutiny on the Bounty

3. Growing up • Attended Syracuse University,where he studied communications and international relations and spent a summer in Central America working on a documentary. • After college, he moved to Washington, D.C., and worked for the National Audubon Society, then moved to Austin, Texas, with his younger brother to make movies.

4. BECOMING A WRITER • Moved back to Brooklyn to work as a writer (screenplays, short stories, comics). In 2006, after hundreds of rejections, the first Rabbi Harvey graphic novel was published. • At the same time, because he needed the money, he began working for an educational publishing company, fact-checking and editing history textbooks. Gradually, he began doing more writing and less editing, until he became a full-time textbook writer. He left the educational publishing company in 2008. • Today he writes full-time and lives in Saratoga Springs, NY, with his wife and two young kids.

5. Sheinkin’s Oeuvre • The Port Chicago 50 (forthcoming, Jan. 21, 2014) • Bomb (2012) • El Illuminado (2012) • Lincoln’s Grave Robbers (2012) • The Notorious Benedict Arnold (2010) • Rabbi Harvey vs. The Wisdom Kid (2010) • Which Way to the Wild West? (2009) • King George: What Was His Problem? (2008) • Two Miserable Presidents (2008) • Rabbi Harvey Rides Again (2008) • The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey (2006) • The American Revolution (2005)

6. Making history exciting • As a child, Sheinkin always loved history, though he disliked his history textbooks. • The whole time he was working as a textbook writer he was collecting interesting stories from history that he was not allowed to include in his textbooks. He believes that these stories are what make history fun and exciting for kids. • He doesn’t really enjoy writing, but he loves the research that goes into creating his books—a “nerdy kind of detective work.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqEFBonACkA

7. style • In his narrative nonfiction, Sheinkin combines his love of action/adventure stories with his interest in historical facts. • He employs lively prose, humor, fast pacing, and strong character development. • Although written in the third person (and told from multiple perspectives), Sheinkin’s books feature dialogue and descriptions based off of first-person, primary-source accounts. • He interweaves the stories of multiple characters with various backgrounds and perspectives to provide a fulsome depiction of the subject.

8. themes • Complexity and contradiction (both situations and characters) • Can Benedict Arnold be both a hero and a traitor? Are physicists Robert Oppenheimer and Ted Hall (a Soviet spy) good or bad? Can a criminal have redeeming qualities and help fight crime? • Integrity/morality • Much of history is determined by small decisions that have large, unpredictable consequences.

9. Bomb (2012) • A “nonfiction thriller” about the race among the Americans, Germans, and Soviets to build a nuclear bomb during World War II. • Winner of the Robert F. Siebert Award; YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction; National Book Award (finalist); Newbery Honor Book; Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year; National Science Teacher’s Association-CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children; Washington Post Best Books of the Year (among many, many others)

10. Lincoln’s Grave Robbers (2012) • A group of counterfeiters, desperate to get one of their own released from prison, concoct a scheme to steal Lincoln’s body from its tomb in Springfield, IL, and hold it for ransom.

11. The Notorious Benedict Arnold (2010) • The tale of Benedict Arnold’s involvement in the American Revolution—from his illustrious beginning to the traitorous conclusion. • Sheinkin calls Benedict Arnold “America’s original loose-canon action hero, a sort of brooding, cursing Bruce Willis character, two centuries before Hollywood” (from his acceptance speech for the Horn Book Award) • Winner of the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award; YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction (finalist); Beacon of Freedom Award; New York Charlotte Award Master List

12. The adventures of rabbi harvey (2006) • As a child, Sheinkin loved both Jewish folklore and action stories set in the Wild West. • In his Rabbi Harvey graphic novels, he combines these two early childhood loves, creating a wise rabbi who serves as a sort of pseudo-sheriff of the town of Elk Spring, Colorado.

13. Sheinkin’s influence on YA literature • Although Sheinkin is really just at the beginning of his career (he’s been publishing for less than ten years), he has written some of the most notable titles in the genre of narrative nonfiction for YA readers. • His books—part action/adventure/spy thriller, part history—bring history to life and make teens wantto read history books. This will create an enhanced readership for this genre over the coming years and perhaps encourage other YA writers to delve into narrative nonfiction. • He demonstrates how to successfully weave multiple story lines and characters together, proving that YA readers can handle complex stories with complex characters if they are told expertly.