Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein

The inspiring story of the girl behind one of the greatest novels -- and monsters -- ever, perfectly timed for the 200th anniversary of the publication of Frankenstein. For fans for picture book biographies such as I Dissent or She Persisted.

How does a story begin? Sometimes it begins with a dream, and a dreamer. Mary is one such dreamer, a little girl who learns to read by tracing the letters on the tombstone of her famous feminist mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, and whose only escape from her strict father and overbearing stepmother is through the stories she reads and imagines. Unhappy at home, she seeks independence, and at the age of sixteen runs away with poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, another dreamer. Two years later, they travel to Switzerland where they meet a famous poet, Lord Byron. On a stormy summer evening, with five young people gathered around a fire, Byron suggests a contest to see who can create the best ghost story. Mary has a waking dream about a monster come to life. A year and a half later, Mary Shelley's terrifying tale, Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus, is published -- a novel that goes on to become the most enduring monster story ever and one of the most popular legends of all time.

A riveting and atmospheric picture book about the young woman who wrote one of the greatest horror novels ever written and one of the first works of science fiction, Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein is an exploration of the process of artistic inspiration that will galvanize readers and writers of all ages.

Author: Linda Bailey
Publisher: Tundra Books (NY)
Published: 08/28/2018
Pages: 56
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 11.50h x 7.90w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9781770495593
Audience: Ages 9-12

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 3.3
Point Value: 0.5
Interest Level: Lower Grade
Quiz #/Name: 500814 / Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 06/01/2018 pg. 78
Kirkus Reviews 07/01/2018
Publishers Weekly 08/06/2018 pg. 90
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2018 pg. 102
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2019 - Superior,Well Above Average

About the Author
LINDA BAILEY is an award-winning author who has written more than thirty books for children, including Carson Crosses Canada, Under-the-Bed Fred, The Tiny Hero of Ferny Creek Library and Seven Dead Pirates. She has won the Blue Spruce Award, the California Young Reader Medal and the Georgia Storybook Award, among others. Like Mary, she has been building castles in the air all her life. She lives and works in Vancouver, British Columbia.

JÚLIA SARDÀ is an artist who has illustrated many books for children, including The Liszts by Kyo Maclear, and number of classics such as Alice in Wonderland, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Her work has been published around the world in many languages. She lives in Barcelona, Spain.