Read 'Em Yet? Wednesday - August 5

How many times have you heard an author's name for the umpteenth time and said, "Doh! I've been meaning to read them!" and then never do? Well, here's a little poke to get to them! "Read 'Em Yet?" Wednesday features an author that keeps showing up on your booklists, but may or may not have been tackled yet. Now's your chance!

Your mission: Read about this week's author, then investigate their bibiliography. If you have read one of their works in the past, post about it on your blog (book review, thumbs-up or thumbs-down recommendation, or a short synopsis; it's up to you!).

If you discover that you haven't read one of their works yet, what are you waiting for? Take a look at their bibliography, select one or two titles that interest you, and post about your finds on your blog, along with an idea of when you might read them.

And if, for some reason, you haven't read them and you're not convinced that they're worth your time, that's fine; still post about it. Why don't they interest you? What do you dislike about their genre or writing style?

Make sure to link back here with your answers so others can read them!

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And now...the Author:

Scott O'Dell, most famously known for his children's books such as Island of the Blue Dolphins and Sing Down the Moon, was actually named Odell Gabriel Scott. On one of his first articles, proofreaders didn't catch the mistake of the name change, but it didn't matter: Odell liked it so much he made it official. The then Scott O'Dell joined the Army in 1918 during the first World War, but it was all over before he made it to officer.

Before O'Dell was a published book author, he worked in Hollywood, reviewing and criticizing new scripts. He also worked as a set dresser for Paramount Pictures including the famous Ben Hur (the silent version).

O'Dell's first books, both nonfiction and fiction, were for adults. It wasn't until he was 62 years old that O'Dell first began writing children's books, when his friend and fellow writer, Maud Lovelace, told him he was good at it. Island of the Blue Dolphins, the script she saw, would gain O'Dell knew-found popularity and a Newbery Award; he would go on writing children's books (26 in all!) until his death in 1989 at the age of 91.

O'Dell also loved history, and established the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, which continues to award today's authors of historical content.

For a complete bibliography, click here.


Wait! Before you go, try to identify next week's author. If you guess correctly, you could win a prize!



Last week's winner: No one guessed Scott O'Dell from last week, so those prizes will go to this week's winner.

This week, I'm offering books! I've got 4 old, slightly tattered, faded, only-a-booklover-would-love-me paperbacks on my shelf that I need to get rid of. They all have great binding, but too many scratches and dings to try to mooch or sell, but I think they would still make good bookish prizes. If you win, you get to pick 2 of 4, and I'll send 'em along to you.

They are:
- Black Gold by Marguerite Henry
- King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry
- The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
- A Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne (a Landoll's Classic, unabridged)

Here's to you!