Born:
 1935
Lewistown, Pennsylvania,

Current Home:
Albuquerque, New Mexico,

Carolyn Meyer

Biography

• PRINT
• EMAIL

Carolyn Meyer was born in Lewistown, Pennsylvania, in 1935. In high school, she served as editor of her high school newspaper and yearbook, and spent her summers writing radio advertisements. In 1957 she graduated cum laude from Bucknell University with a degree in English, only to find that because she was a woman, good jobs were in short supply. She moved to New York, where she worked as a secretary; then she got married, had children, and moved to suburban Connecticut. But Meyer kept writing, publishing her first story in a secretarial magazine - in shorthand. (No one in her family could read it.) She wrote columns for McCall's magazine, and finally published her first book for children, a nonfiction book about sewing, in 1969. She wrote several more books on crafts before branching out to write about craftspeople.

After her divorce in 1973, Meyer began traveling to research her books, and she developed a love for moving and finding out about her subjects first-hand. She became known for her journalistic books for children, books that shed light on lesser-known ways of life, for example: Amish People: Plain Living in a Complex World, and Eskimos: Growing Up in a Changing Culture. She visited South Africa, Northern Ireland, and Japan to write about children's lives in those countries. She also began writing novels for young people. Meanwhile, she also moved her home, living in Pennsylvania, New York, New Mexico, and Texas.

The mother of four, Meyer now lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with her husband, poet and historian E. A. Mares. Meyer continues to challenge herself in her writing, and has recently written two well-received entries in the acclaimed series The Royal Diaries.

• Teacher Store
• 

  The Teacher Store

  The Royal Diaries: Anastasia by Carolyn Meyer Twelve-year-old Anastasia leads a privileged life with loving parents who rule her nation. But the country erupts in chaos and her royal family becomes the enemy of the people. The story recounts Anastasia's tumultuous days and see what a historical event really meant to a young woman whose whole world was snatched away--and whose fate remains a mystery today. $10.95 Hardcover Book | Grades 4-9

  
  The Royal Diaries: Anastasia
  Grades 4-9 $10.95
  
• Teacher Store
• 

  The Teacher Store

  The Royal Diaries: Isabel by Carolyn Meyer Full of conspirators, manipulations, and an array of court customs, Isabel's journal paints an enthralling portrait of 15th-century Spain through the eyes of a teen who will grow up to fund Columbus's explorations. Isabel's daily life may seem like an alien universe, but your students are sure to relate to this young woman struggling for independence and learning who she can trust. $10.95 Hardcover Book | Grades 4-9

  
  The Royal Diaries: Isabel
  Grades 4-9 $10.95