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Wendelin Van Draanen

Author of Flipped

49 Works 13,156 Members 388 Reviews 6 Favorited

About the Author

Wendelin Van Draanen was born on January 6, 1965 in Chicago, Illinois. She is the daughter of chemists who emigrated from Holland. She worked as a math teacher and then as a computer science teacher before becoming an author. Wendelin Van Draanen began her writing career with a screenplay and soon show more switched to adult novels and then children's books. She is best known for her Sammy Keyes series of novels, which she started writing in 1997, featuring a teenage detective named Samantha Keyes. Her popular Sammy Keyes series had been nominated four times for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Children's Mystery and won with "Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief". Her Shredderman series also yielded a Christopher Medal for Secret Identity. She has also written several novels such as: How I Survived Being a Girl and Flipped. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Series

Works by Wendelin Van Draanen

Flipped (2001) 3,930 copies
The Running Dream (2011) 1,101 copies
Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief (1998) 1,043 copies
Shredderman: Secret Identity (2004) 673 copies
Runaway (2006) 384 copies
How I Survived Being a Girl (1997) 312 copies
Wild Bird (2017) 270 copies
Swear to Howdy (2003) 255 copies
Shredderman: Enemy Spy (2005) 176 copies
Shredderman: Meet the Gecko (2005) 170 copies
Flipped [2010 film] (2010) — Writer — 21 copies
Shredderman 18 copies
The Peach Rebellion (2022) 18 copies
The Peach Rebellion (2023) 4 copies
Sammy Keyes 1 copy

Tagged

adventure (55) amputee (52) chapter book (65) chickens (39) children (54) children's (110) coming of age (54) contemporary (49) detective (52) disabilities (38) family (89) fiction (643) friendship (170) funny (40) girls (36) grade 5 (66) grade 6 (49) high school (34) homelessness (39) humor (191) juvenile fiction (57) love (43) middle grade (59) middle school (70) mystery (657) read (53) realistic fiction (308) relationships (71) romance (136) running (67) Sammy Keyes (79) school (60) series (185) sports (44) T (46) teen (68) to-read (293) YA (182) young adult (233) young adult fiction (44)

Common Knowledge

Members

Reviews

Jessica thinks her life is over when she loses a leg in a car accident. She’s not comforted by the news that she’ll be able to walk with the help of a prosthetic leg. Who cares about walking when you live to run?

As she struggles to cope, Jessica feels that she’s both in the spotlight and invisible. People who don’t know what to say act like she’s not there. Jessica’s embarrassed to realize that she’s done the same to a girl with CP named Rosa. A girl who is going to tutor her through all the math she’s missed. A girl who sees right into the heart of her.

With the support of family, friends, a coach, and her track teammates, Jessica may actually be able to run again. But that’s not enough for her now. She doesn’t just want to cross finish lines herself—she wants to take Rosa with her.
… (more)
 
Flagged
unsoluble | 64 other reviews | Nov 15, 2023 |
My daughter loved this book and recommended it to me. I found it very compelling, though sometimes sad and scary. The ending was little too neat, but overall it was very well written and engaging. I would definitely recommend it and read more by this author.
 
Flagged
lschiff | 20 other reviews | Sep 24, 2023 |
Schneider Family Book Award - Teen Book Winner
 
Flagged
vashonpatty | 64 other reviews | Sep 17, 2023 |
Realistic YA fiction about a high school track star who must face life after a heart-wrenching accident. Her recovery, both mentally and physically, is woven in to this wonderful story of family, friendships and change.
 
Flagged
deslivres5 | 64 other reviews | Sep 4, 2023 |

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Statistics

Works
49
Members
13,156
Popularity
#1,774
Rating
4.0
Reviews
388
ISBNs
573
Languages
6
Favorited
6
Touchstones
100

Charts & Graphs