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If you are a student working on a book report or homework assignment, you’ll find most of the information you are looking for in the Biography section. Young writers should be sure to check out the “Free Resources” link on the Writing Help section or visit my How to Build a Story site.

Adult readers looking for information about my quilting stories can follow these links to learn more about Birds in the Air and Margaret Goes Modern.

New in 2022: Hazard

What Reviewers Are Saying

Learn more about the works of Frances O’Roark Dowell using the flip cards below.

Dowell spreads her wings and soars.

—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Falling In

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...buoyant prose and an uplifting message...

—Booklist

Birds in the Air

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Another quietly perceptive tour de force.

—Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)

The Sound of Your Voice, Only Really Far Away

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What’s wonderful is how Dowell, the author of several beloved books for tweens and teenagers including the Edgar-winning ‘Dovey Coe,’ gracefully draws the many concentric circles of Abby’s life.

—The New York Times Book Review

The Second Life of Abigail Walker

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This thoughtful and satisfying story is more a novel of family and growth than of war. Readers will find beauty in its resolution, and will leave this eloquent heroine reluctantly. This is Dowell’s most cohesive and engaging novel yet.

—School Library Journal (starred review)

Shooting the Moon

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...a young and unforgettable independent thinker, who uses honesty and common sense as her weapons against injustice.

—Publishers Weekly

Dovey Coe

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Dowell has given us a true hero in the character of Callie, a girl just realizing what segregation means in her life.

—Bookpage

Trouble the Water

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One of the most charmingly engaging new characters in the modern chapter-book scene.

—Kirkus Reviews

Phinease L. McGuire…Erupts

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...Emerging readers will find much to appreciate...

—The Horn Book

Sam the Man & the Rutabaga Plan

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...a refreshingly well-written encounter with richly developed and well-defined characters whom readers won’t soon forget.

—School Library Journal (starred review)

Chicken Boy

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Thanks for Visiting

New in 2022: Hazard

What Reviewers Are Saying

Dowell spreads her wings and soars.

Falling In

Learn More

...buoyant prose and an uplifting message...

Birds in the Air

Another quietly perceptive tour de force.

The Sound of Your Voice, Only Really Far Away

What’s wonderful is how Dowell, the author of several beloved books for tweens and teenagers including the Edgar-winning ‘Dovey Coe,’ gracefully draws the many concentric circles of Abby’s life.

The Second Life of Abigail Walker

This thoughtful and satisfying story is more a novel of family and growth than of war. Readers will find beauty in its resolution, and will leave this eloquent heroine reluctantly. This is Dowell’s most cohesive and engaging novel yet.

Shooting the Moon

...a young and unforgettable independent thinker, who uses honesty and common sense as her weapons against injustice.

Dovey Coe

Dowell has given us a true hero in the character of Callie, a girl just realizing what segregation means in her life.

Trouble the Water

One of the most charmingly engaging new characters in the modern chapter-book scene.

Phinease L. McGuire…Erupts

...Emerging readers will find much to appreciate...

Sam the Man & the Rutabaga Plan

...a refreshingly well-written encounter with richly developed and well-defined characters whom readers won’t soon forget.

Chicken Boy

...examines the clash between city and country life and what true wealth really means...

Anybody Shining

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...funny, wise, and artfully realistic...

Ten Miles Past Normal

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