Justina Ireland

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Justina Ireland
BornFrench Camp, California, United States of America
OccupationNovelist
NationalityAmerican
Alma materArmstrong Atlantic State University
Hamline University
GenreScience fiction
Young Adult
Website
justinaireland.com

Justina Ireland is an American science-fiction and fantasy author of young adult fiction and former editor-in-chief of the FIYAH Literary Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction.[1][2][3][4][5] She received the 2018 World Fantasy Award for Non-Professional Work.[6] Her novel Dread Nation won the 2019 Locus Award, and was nominated for the Andre Norton, Bram Stoker, and Lodestar Awards.[7]

Biography[]

As a teen, Ireland had aspirations to become a historian. She enlisted in the military at nineteen, where she would serve as an Arabic linguistics expert.[4] Now based in York, Pennsylvania, she works for the U.S. Navy as a director of logistics and weapon-systems support, and teaches creative writing at York College of Pennsylvania, where she is an adjunct lecturer in the department of Communication and Writing.[8][4]

Ireland holds a BA in History from Armstrong Atlantic State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University, where she wrote a thesis on "microaggressions in children’s literature".[9][4] She is currently pursuing her PhD in English Literature.[4]

Writing[]

Ireland is known for writing strong female characters, and for addressing issues of race, class, power, misogyny, sexism, and colorism in her fiction.[10][11]

Dread Nation[]

Her best-known novel, Dread Nation, is an alternate history set in 19th century U.S. In this timeline, the Civil War ends when zombies emerge from their graves at Gettysburg. The enslaved are then freed, but Black and Indigenous children are then trained to fight the undead and protect the nation. The main character, Jane McKeene, is a biracial teen sent to a prestigious combat school where she trains in hopes of being assigned to a wealthy white family.[12]

Dread Nation received largely positive reviews that praised Ireland for her skillful approach to dealing with difficult issues related to slavery and its legacy. Kirkus Reviews wrote, "With a shrewd, scythe-wielding protagonist of color, Dread Nation is an exciting must-read."[13] School Library Journal, in their review, stated, "Ireland skillfully works in the different forms of enslavement, mental and physical, into a complex and engaging story" and declared that the novel is "A perfect blend of horrors real and imagined".[14] Alex Brown of Tor.com wrote, "Dread Nation is the perfect example of why we need more diversity in the YA author pool. Only a Black American woman could write Dread Nation."

Advocacy and activism[]

Ireland is known as an outspoken advocate for diversifying YA literature.[4][15] Lila Shapiro, in a 2018 article in New York magazine, called her "YA Twitter’s Leading Warrior."[4] She has been vocal about the need for more authors of color, and stories that feature characters of color in YA literature.

Ireland is also the founder of Writing in the Margins, an organization that provides mentorship to writers from historically marginalized groups.[1]

Bibliography[]

  • (2013)
  • (2014)
  • (2018)
  • Ophie's Ghosts (2021)

Dread Nation Series[]

  • (2018)
  • (2020)

Star Wars[]

  • (2018)
  • (2019)
  • (2021)
  • (2021)

Awards and nominations[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Justina Ireland: 2018 National Book Festival". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  2. ^ Brown, Alex (2019-08-07). "Hugo Spotlight: The Devastating Alternate History of Justina Ireland's Dread Nation". Tor.com. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  3. ^ Liptak, Andrew (2019-01-14). "Justina Ireland on how systems create oppression and how to break free". The Verge. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Shapiro, Lila (2018-04-03). "Meet Justina Ireland, YA Twitter's Leading Warrior". Vulture. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  5. ^ Patches, Matt (2020-03-11). "High Republic author Justina Ireland on exploring and inscribing a new era of Star Wars". Polygon. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  6. ^ a b Tor.com (2018-11-04). "Announcing the 2018 World Fantasy Award Winners". Tor.com. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  7. ^ a b c "Justina Ireland Awards". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  8. ^ "Faculty and Staff Directory | York College of PA". www.ycp.edu. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  9. ^ "Author Interview - Justina Ireland, author of Dread Nation". BookPage.com. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  10. ^ Sorg, Arley (September 26, 2018). "Arley Sorg Reviews Dread Nation by Justina Ireland". Locus Magazine. Archived from the original on April 10, 2021.
  11. ^ "Children's Book Review: Ophie's Ghosts by Justina Ireland". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on March 25, 2021. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  12. ^ Brown, Alex (2018-04-03). "A Tale of Two Americas: Dread Nation by Justina Ireland". Tor.com. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  13. ^ DREAD NATION | Kirkus Reviews.
  14. ^ SLJ. "Dread Nation by Justina Ireland | SLJ Review". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  15. ^ Mason, Everdeen (February 10, 2017). "There's a new way for novelists to sound authentic. But at what cost?". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019.
  16. ^ "2018 Nebula Finalists Announced". The Nebula Awards®. 2019-02-20. Retrieved 2020-06-11.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""