Robin Benway | |
|---|---|
 Benway at the 2018 U.S. National Book Festival | |
| Alma mater | New York University, University of California at Los Angeles |
| Genre | Young Adult Fiction |
| Notable works | Audrey, Wait! |
Robin Benway is an author of young adult fiction from Orange County, USA, most known for her novel Far from the Tree,[1][2] which won the 2017 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.[3]
She started her career in the publishing industry initially working as a book publicist and sales rep, coordinating events at BookSoup in Los Angeles. Feeling inspired, she quit her job and started applying to writing programs.[4]
She attended college at both New York University and the University of California at Los Angeles.[5] Benway was rejected from every Master of Fine Arts program she applied to.[4] When she wasn't accepted, she instead took a writing class at UCLA Extension taught by Rachel Cohn, where she wrote the first chapter of her eventual debut novel Audrey, Wait.[4]
The series is about a former code cracker and member of a secret association. The first novel, Also Known As, was published by Simon & Schuster in 2013, and in the Uk as Sleuth or Dare in 2014.[6]
Reviews were quite mixed. The guardian called the second book, Also Known As/Sleuth or Dare, "not one of Benway's best novels," due to its confusing story.[6] Publisher's Weekly said " readers will be sufficiently invested to see the mission through to completion."[7] School Library Journal reviewed the audiobook and recommended it for teenagers who enjoy mysteries.[8]
Far From the Tree is about three siblings who reconnect 15 years after were adopted, and thus separated. When one of them, 16-year-old Grac,e gives up her baby for adoption, she feels the desire to reconnect with her biological family.[4]
She drew on the relationship to her brother for inspiration. The book is also dedicated to him.[4]
The novel was met with positive reviews. Kirkus Reviews called it a "compassionate, funny, moving, compulsively readable novel."[2] It also won the 2017 National Book Award for Young People's Literature,[3] and received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.[9] School Library Journal called it "Well-written and accessible."[10]
The first in a new series of fairytale retellings, The Wicked Ones is a retelling of the story of Cinderella, as experienced through the eyes of her stepsisters. It was published by Disney Press in January 2023[11]
Kirkus Reviews called it "Psychologically astute entertainment with a bite,"[12] while School Library Journal called it a "secondary purchase", but suitable for Disney fans.[13]
