Ronald L. Smith

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ronald L. Smith at the Gaithersburg Book Festival 2016

Ronald L. Smith children's book author. He is the author of Hoodoo (2015), The Mesmerist (2017), Black Panther: The Young Prince (2018), The owls have come to take us away (2019), and Gloom Town (2020). For Hoodoo, Smith won the American Library Association's Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent.

Early life[]

Smith was born in Maine to a military family that moved frequently; he also lived in Japan, Alabama, Michigan, Washington, DC, South Carolina, and Delaware, among other places.[1] His love of fantasy and science fiction novels began as a child, but he first worked as a writer in advertising before turning to writing children's fiction.[2]

Fiction career[]

Smith published his first book, Hoodoo, with Clarion Books in 2015.[3] Set in the 1930s Alabama,[4][5] Hoodoo earned Smith the American Library Association's Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent.[6][7]

Smith's second book, The Mesmerist (Clarion Books, 2017), is set in London at the turn of the century.[8][9][10]

In January 2018, Smith published a children's novel for Marvel Comics featuring Marvel's superhero Black Panther.[11] The book, Black Panther: The Young Prince, was released just prior to Marvel's Black Panther film.[12] Reviewing the book in the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Literature, Kate Quealy-Gainer wrote, "Fans will notice allusions to T'Challa's future adventures as the ruling Black Panther, but even the comic-book averse will relate to T'Challa's negotiating of middle-school dynamics and may also appreciate his cleverness as he faces down his enemies."[13] The School Library Journal named the book to a list of eight fantasy "must-reads" featuring a black protagonist; their January 2018 review called it a "must-purchase for all collections."[14]

Personal life[]

Smith lives in Baltimore.[15]

References[]

  1. ^ "About". Strange Black Flowers — Ronald L. Smith. 2015-03-09. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  2. ^ Danielson, Julie (October 1, 2015). "Ronald L. Smith's Magic Touch". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  3. ^ "HOODOO by Ronald L. Smith". Kirkus Reviews. May 6, 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  4. ^ Quealy-Gainer, Kate (15 September 2015). "Hoodoo by Ronald L. Smith (review)". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. 69 (2): 114. doi:10.1353/bcc.2015.0714. ISSN 1558-6766. S2CID 143266530. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Children's Book Review: Hoodoo by Ronald L. Smith. large, $16.99 burger (224p) ISBN 978-0-544-44525-3". Publishers Weekly. October 5, 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Rita Williams-Garcia, Bryan Collier win 2016 Coretta Scott King Book Awards". News and Press Center. American Library Association. 11 January 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  7. ^ Hetter, Katia (January 11, 2016). "Best children's books: 2016 Newbery, Caldecott winners". CNN. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
  8. ^ Quealy-Gainer, Kate (29 December 2016). "The Mesmerist by Ronald L. Smith (review)". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. 70 (5): 237. doi:10.1353/bcc.2017.0065. ISSN 1558-6766. S2CID 201722767. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  9. ^ "THE MESMERIST by Ronald L. Smith". Kirkus Reviews. October 18, 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  10. ^ "Children's Book Review: The Mesmerist by Ronald L. Smith. Clarion, $16.99 (272p) ISBN 978-0-544-44528-4". Publishers Weekly. January 16, 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  11. ^ "THE YOUNG PRINCE From the "Black Panther" series, volume 1 by Ronald L. Smith". Kirkus Reviews. October 28, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  12. ^ Deahl, Rachel (March 10, 2017). "Book Deals: Week of March 13, 2017". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
  13. ^ Quealy-Gainer, Kate (2018). "Black Panther: The Young Prince by Ronald L. Smith (review)". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. 71 (5): 221–222. doi:10.1353/bcc.2018.0065. ISSN 1558-6766. S2CID 201767471.
  14. ^ Farrell, Della (January 24, 2018). "8 Fantasy Must-Reads Featuring Black Main Characters". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  15. ^ Quattlebaum, Mary (October 27, 2015). "'Hoodoo' is a haunting tale from the Alabama woods". Washington Post. Retrieved 3 September 2017.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""