Katherine Paterson, author of Bridge to Terabithia, was born on October 31, 1932 in Qing Jiang, China.  Her parents were missionaries and she and her family moved eighteen times before she turned eighteen!  When Katherine was a child, she didn’t want to be an author.  In fact, she really wanted to be either a missionary or a movie star.  After college, Katherine spent a year teaching sixth grade in a rural school in northern Virginia.  According to Katherine, many of her students were just like Jess Aarons from her novel.
    After teaching, Katherine returned to graduate school, studying Bible and Christian education.  She moved to Japan and while there she attended language school and lived and worked in that country for four years.  Katherine returned to the United States and met a Presbyterian minister and they were married in 1962.
    Katherine said that her life as a writer really began in 1964 when she worked on writing curriculum materials for fifth and sixth-graders.  She began writing fiction books and became hooked on writing.  Katherine wasn’t able to devote all of her time to writing, however, because she had four children to take care of.  It took a lot of patience, hard work, and lots of writing until Katherine finally started getting her books published.
    Katherine Paterson has written many books for children and young adults, some of which are listed below.  A common theme throughout many of Katherine’s books is the portrayal of strong characters who are set apart, are loners, or are cast out from society.  In Bridge to Terabithia, Leslie is a new student who is disliked by many of her new classmates until she is befriended by Jess.  In Katherine’s novels, the characters change and grow as they search to find their own identities and their own way in life.
 
 

This page was last updated November 18, 2002.
All graphics from Discovery School's Clip Art Gallery Images
Bridge to Terabithia image from Summary of Terabithia page.

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