In books such as
Bridge to Terabithia and
Jacob Have I Loved, she tackles serious themes head on, but always with compassion and strong storytelling skills. In others, such as
The Great Gilly Hopkins, her humor and wit are showcased. Paterson establishes a powerful identification with the reader because she so strongly believes what she writes. "Why do I keep writing stories about children and young people who are orphaned or otherwise isolated or estranged"" Paterson asked in
Theory into Practice. "It's because I have within myself a lonely, frightened child who keeps demanding my comfort. I have a rejected child, a jealous and jilted adolescent inside who demands, if not revenge, a certain degree of satisfaction. I am sure it is she, or should I say they, who keep demanding that I write for them."
Paterson often writes about children who are orphaned or estranged from their parents, teens who isolate themselves or who associate only with one or two close friends. These recurring situations reflect the instability of the author's childhood. "If I tell you that I was born in China of Southern Presbyterian missionary parents, I have already given away three chief clues to my tribal memory," Paterson once wrote in Horn Book.
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