Sarah Dessen is an American writer for young adults, living and teaching in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She was born on June 6, 1970 in Illinois, but was raised in North Carolina, where both of her parents were professors at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which Dessen later attended, graduating with a degree in English. After college, she continued waiting tables at the Flying Burrito and writing, and she sold her first book, That Summer, three years after she graduated. Since then, her seven books have won many awards. On April 10, 2007, she has announced on her blog that she was pregnant with her first child. Sarah's daughter Sasha was born on September 2, 2007. Two of her novels, That Summer and Someone Like You, were the basis for How to Deal, a 2003 movie starring Mandy Moore. Her most recent novel Just Listen was released in April 2006 and subsequently reached number two on the New York Times Book Review. She is currently working on her eighth book, Lock and Key, which is scheduled to be published in 2008.
Trivia
- Dessen has said she enjoys shopping at the Gap. She is also a fan of UNC Chapel Hill basketball (the North Carolina Tar Heels) and the television shows Gilmore Girls, Grey's Anatomy, and Veronica Mars.
- Just Listen spent over 17 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List, starting in April 2006.
- Dessen's books are all set in the fictional town of Lakeview, with recurring locations and characters mentioned in multiple books. Examples include:
- - The Arbors, a rich upperclass neighborhood in Lakeview that appears in every novel
- - The World of Waffles, a restaurant in both The Truth About Forever and Just Listen
- - Bendo, a music club in This Lullaby and Just Listen
- - The Last Chance Cafe, which appears in The Truth About Forever and Keeping The Moon
- - Scarlett from Someone Like You, who later appears as John Miller's boss and love interest in This Lullaby
- - Remy and Dexter from This Lullaby, who later appears as the band performing in Just Listen
- - Macy and Wes from The Truth About Forever, who later appear at The World of Waffles in Just Listen, although it doesn't directly say that it's them, you can tell because she describes two runners. (one of them a very good-looking boy and the girl with an elastic hair-tye around her wrist)
- - In Just Listen Owen's mother mentions that she and Mallory are taking a mother-daughter class run by Boo Connell, who was Caitlin's neighbor in Dreamland.
- - In The Truth About Forever, Macy is watching the news, in which Lorna McPhail appears, who is Haven's stepmother in That Summer.
- - The Truth About Forever, the woman who gives Macy directions is reading "The Choice" by Barbara Starr, who is Remy's mother in This Lullaby.
- - In Just Listen, Whitney reads her poem at Jump Java, a coffehouse which John Miller and Scarlett work at from This Lullaby and Someone Like You.
- - Evergreen Care Center is mentioned in Just Listen, Dreamland, and The Truth About Forever.
- Sarah has one daughter, Sasha Clementine, born September 2, 2007. Sarah dessen has two dogs and some lizards and lives wtih her husband in North Carolina.
Bibliography
- That Summer
- Someone Like You
- Keeping the Moon
- Dreamland
- The Truth About Forever
- This Lullaby
- Just Listen
- Lock and Key (due out April 2008)
External links
- Official Site
- Sarah Dessen at MySpace
- PopGurls 20 Questions with Sarah Dessen
- Sarah Dessen's Blog
- Sarah Dessen Press Kit: lists awards, critical acclaim
