Virginia Euwer Wolff

Award-winning author Virginia Euwer Wolff was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1937. “I grew up in rural Oregon in a log house — with bark left on inside and out. We had no electricity, a massive stone fireplace, a grand piano, and tons of books.” Books have remained Wolff's treasures throughout her life, though she didn't become a published author until relatively late in her life. After receiving her Bachelor's degree from Smith College in 1959, she taught elementary school and later high school English.

Wolff's first book for young readers, "Probably Still Nick Swansen", was published in 1988 and won both the International Reading Association Award and the PEN-West Book Award. Since then she has written several more critically acclaimed young adult novels, earning more honors, including the Golden Kite Award for Fiction and the Jane Addams Book Award for Children's Books that Build Peace.

The mother of a grown son and daughter, Wolff is also now grandmother of two. She lives in a cottage in Oregon, where she has a studio in the middle of the woods, “with lots of skylights and room to spread out, surrounded by my books.” An accomplished violinist, she is a member of the Chamber Music Society of Oregon. She also enjoys hiking, swimming, and gardening.

Virginia Euwer Wolff, the contemporary young adult and children's author, should not be confused with Virginia Woolf, the famous 20th-century author. Note the difference in spelling of their last names.