Joan Lowery Nixon (1927–2003)
Author of A Family Apart
About the Author
Joan Lowery Nixon was born in Los Angeles, California. She attended the University of Southern California where she received a B.A. in journalism and later an education certificate from California State. She has written over 100 mystery books for young adults. She is known for her Orphan Train show more Adventure Series and other titles including A Family Apart, The Seance and Other Side of the Dark. Her works have earned her the honor of being the only writer to win four Edgar Allen Poe awards and in addition, two Spurs from Western Writers of America. She was a past President of the Mystery Writers of America. She died from complications of pancreatic cancer on June 28, 2003, in Houston, Texas. She was 76. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: AskTheBrain
Series
Works by Joan Lowery Nixon
Who is my neighbor?: The Good Samaritan for beginning readers : Luke 10:29-37 for children (I can read a Bible story) (1976) 38 copies
Five Loaves and Two Fishes: Feeding of Five Thousand for Beginning Readers : John 6:1-15 for Children (I Can Read a Bible Story) (1976) 27 copies
ORPHAN TRAIN ADVENTURE SET- A FAMILY APART, IN THE FACE OF DANGER, CAUGHT IN THE ACT, A PLACE TO BELONG (1999) 5 copies
A Family Apart 1 copy
The Son Who Came Home Again 1 copy
Orphan Train Children — Author — 1 copy
Associated Works
Mothers & Daughters: Celebrating the Gift of Love in 12 New Stories (1998) — Contributor — 87 copies
From One Experience to Another: Award-Winning Authors Sharing Real-Life Experiences Through Fiction (1997) — Contributor — 47 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1927-02-03
- Date of death
- 2003-06-28
- Gender
- female
- Education
- University of Southern California
Hollywood high school - Occupations
- journalist
children's book author
mystery writer
novelist - Organizations
- The Authors Guild
Society of Children's Book Writers
International Board on Books for Young People (Friends) - Short biography
- Joan Lowery grew up in Hollywood, California. She attended Hollywood High and the University of Southern California, where she majored in journalism and met her future husband, Hershell Nixon. She was a writer since very early childhood, and was first published at age 10, when one of her poems appeared in a children's magazine. She sold her first article to a magazine when she was 17. After college, she became interested in writing fiction and went on to produce more 100 books. Her books for children and young adults ranged from picture books to mysteries to historical novels. Joan Lowery Nixon won awards for her writing in all genres, but was especially recognized as a mystery writer -- she was a four-time winner of the prestigious Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America.
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Places of residence
- Los Angeles, California, USA
Houston, Texas, USA - Place of death
- Houston, Texas, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- Texas, USA
Members
Discussions
Found: Kids' mystery with blackmail and murder - similar to Westing Game but not in Name that Book (March 2025)
Found: YA Cancer survivor in Name that Book (June 2022)
YA Historical Romance - Western in Name that Book (September 2016)
(M95'12) The Seance, Joan Lowery Nixon in World Reading Circle (January 2013)
childrens to young adult; mystery in Name that Book (April 2012)
Reviews
Imagine being taken from your home. Imagine your mother is the one who lets it happen. This is the fate that befalls the Kelly children. It’s 1856, and their widowed mother has sent them west from New York City because she’s convinced that she can’t give them the life they deserve. The Kellys board an “orphan train” and are taken to St. Joseph, Missouri, where their problems only grow worse. It was bad enough that they had to say goodbye to their mother, but now they’re forced to show more part ways with their fellow siblings as well. Thirteen-year-old Frances won’t stand for it. She’s going to protect her brothers and sisters, even if it means dressing up like a boy and putting herself in danger. Will Frances be able to save her siblings? And what about her mom—was splitting up their family really her greatest act of love? Ride the rails with Frances and her siblings to find out! show less
Do not let the generic-ghost-story cliché title dissuade you. This book is far better than what the title suggests. It is, however, a book best read as an adolescent. Adults will be too quick to figure out the (unfortunately rather obvious) plot twist and children might be distressed by the sometimes graphic descriptions of violence, death, and near death.
There is much to be praised. The premise is a good one, the atmosphere uncanny and ethereal, and the pacing excellent. The story is easy show more to follow with clear and concise language, making it easy to imagine the scenes in your head. The book’s first and foremost strength is to experience this story through the lead character Sarah’s eyes. Through the book, we get to follow her journey of realizing and dealing with her newfound ability to sense presences that those around her cannot after a near-drowning accident, as well as the ensuing hydrophobia.
Sarah is a sympathetic character who shows a willingness to understand, communicate and even help the specters, which she can sense. Through the narration, you get a deep sense of Sarah’s’ solitude. The story takes place in a suburb and Sarah is surrounded by family and friends and yet, there is this feeling of isolation and loneliness to her character that stood out to me and still does even after all these years.
The obvious development is in fact the one major complaint I have, as well as a few minor. The twist is far too obvious far too early in the story. This is a book that had benefitted from a great deal of subtlety. There was also a sentence here and there that made me raise an eyebrow. The Spanish-English phrasebook, however, as I’ve seen some point out, is not one of them. A ghost is talking to you in Spanish? Of course a phrasebook would be of far better use than a dictionary. I love how this action alone shows Sarah’s empathic and pragmatic nature.
Addendum: I did read this book as an adolescent and was therefore rather forgiving with the obvious development compared to what I would have been now. I also read a translated version and not the original English script. I therefore was never exposed to problematic language, such as ‘illegals’. show less
There is much to be praised. The premise is a good one, the atmosphere uncanny and ethereal, and the pacing excellent. The story is easy show more to follow with clear and concise language, making it easy to imagine the scenes in your head. The book’s first and foremost strength is to experience this story through the lead character Sarah’s eyes. Through the book, we get to follow her journey of realizing and dealing with her newfound ability to sense presences that those around her cannot after a near-drowning accident, as well as the ensuing hydrophobia.
Sarah is a sympathetic character who shows a willingness to understand, communicate and even help the specters, which she can sense. Through the narration, you get a deep sense of Sarah’s’ solitude. The story takes place in a suburb and Sarah is surrounded by family and friends and yet, there is this feeling of isolation and loneliness to her character that stood out to me and still does even after all these years.
The obvious development is in fact the one major complaint I have, as well as a few minor. The twist is far too obvious far too early in the story. This is a book that had benefitted from a great deal of subtlety. There was also a sentence here and there that made me raise an eyebrow. The Spanish-English phrasebook, however, as I’ve seen some point out, is not one of them. A ghost is talking to you in Spanish? Of course a phrasebook would be of far better use than a dictionary. I love how this action alone shows Sarah’s empathic and pragmatic nature.
Addendum: I did read this book as an adolescent and was therefore rather forgiving with the obvious development compared to what I would have been now. I also read a translated version and not the original English script. I therefore was never exposed to problematic language, such as ‘illegals’. show less
Ann's Story: 1747: YOUNG AMERICANS Colonial Williamsburg (Colonial Williamsburg(R)) by Joan Lowery Nixon
This is a satisfactorily written story, intended for children, about a child. What stuck with me most when I read it was the strong feminist messages, which could get preachy at times. The author pointed out a time in American history when women definitely needed liberation from the strict cultural codes that kept them from pursuing careers they could have been passionate about, had they been given the chance. I just think a nine-year-old has other things on her mind than how much she wants show more to be a doctor and how unfair it is that society won't let her. Yes, she thinks about that, but she also plays games and thinks about her friends and does, you know, CHILD things. Ann's age also made these messages less compelling than they would have been with an older character. Oh no, a third grader can't be a doctor. What does a nine-year-old really know about her adult passion anyway? I think when I was nine I still wanted to be a "famous person".
The last problem was that the endingpretty much nullifies all these messages that the whole book is structured to grind into your head. The epilogue reveals that Ann doesn't end up becoming a doctor, or even a midwife. She takes care of her husband and son, just the way her parents said she would. It seems to say that they were right: women aren't meant to pursue careers. "When you're older you'll realize that women are really meant to be housewives. It's the only place they find fulfillment." We got a hundred-page crash course on Why Women in the Eighteenth Century Need Feminism (To Meet Their Pre-pubescent Hearts' Goals) and then the ending was like, Nah, never mind.
Now that all sounds bad. I did enjoy reading this book. I admire Ann's tenacity and the way shetook such good care of her family when they all got sick. But I left with the feeling that the author really wanted to right a book about feminism, not about a little girl. And then the author shot herself in the foot with the ending. So that was nice. show less
The last problem was that the ending
Now that all sounds bad. I did enjoy reading this book. I admire Ann's tenacity and the way she
After a near-death experience, 16-year-old Sarah starts to feel a presence following her. Things only intensify when she moves into a new home and her parents learn a murder occurred there years before. Now Sarah is haunted by the spirit of a woman warning of her danger and asking for Sarah's help.
This book was originally written in the late 1980s and it has that style of so many teen books written then -- the language feels nothing like the way teenagers speak and in fact has a more show more childlike narration style (but not content). The characters are completely one-note and the big reveal is so completely obvious from very early on in the text.
That all being said, however, Nixon does write a compelling story and I found myself on the edge of my seat waiting for that reveal and all the smaller ones along the way. It is incredibly readable and moves at a quick pace. This book is perfect for folks like me who like a slightly spooky thriller but don't want a full-on horror novel. show less
This book was originally written in the late 1980s and it has that style of so many teen books written then -- the language feels nothing like the way teenagers speak and in fact has a more show more childlike narration style (but not content). The characters are completely one-note and the big reveal is so completely obvious from very early on in the text.
That all being said, however, Nixon does write a compelling story and I found myself on the edge of my seat waiting for that reveal and all the smaller ones along the way. It is incredibly readable and moves at a quick pace. This book is perfect for folks like me who like a slightly spooky thriller but don't want a full-on horror novel. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 149
- Also by
- 7
- Members
- 11,604
- Popularity
- #2,025
- Rating
- 3.5
- Reviews
- 186
- ISBNs
- 722
- Languages
- 8
- Favorited
- 7