. . and yet radiant with hope." Previous to winning the National Book Award, Whelan was known primarily as a regional author, writing tales often set in Michigan, such as
A Clearing in the Forest, Hannah, and
Once on This Island and its sequels, although she had also written books with a more international flavor before
Homeless Bird. Her 1992 novel,
Goodbye, Vietnam, for instance, deals with the plight of the Vietnamese boat people fleeing their country for a new life abroad. But with the winning of the National Book Award, Whelan moved out of the category of local or regional author and stepped on a national and international stage. Receiving the award set a new standard for Whelan, as she explained to Elizabeth Farnsworth on the Public Broadcasting Service's
News Hour: "It pushes me to try and do better. It's a kind of responsibility, and it's also a kind of affirmation. It makes me feel that somehow the stories that I'm writing are stories that are being received by somebody."
Coming of Age in Michigan
Born an only child in Detroit, Michigan, in 1923, Whelan has been writing stories "as long as I can remember," as she told Kathleen T.
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