Kimberly Pauley
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Kimberly Pauley is the award-winning author of four YA novels and an American Expat who has found a new home in London. Since moving across the pond, Kimberly has turned her hand to writing for middle grade readers and is looking forward to engaging with a new readership in the adopted new home.
Her UK debut AND debut for middle grade, The Accidental Wizard was published in Autumn (ok, Fall!) of 2020 to a great response, drawing comparisons to Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, among others. Kimberly's first novel, Sucks to Be Me (called a “vampire bat mitzvah novel” by her husband), was an ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant readers, while the sequel, Still Sucks to Be Me, was a VOYA Sci-Fi/Fantasy Best Title. |
Her third title, Ask Me, received a star review from Booklist and is set in her native Florida (the backwoods bit, not the beaches), while her fourth, Cat Girl's Day Off is a hilarious YA homage to Ferris Bueller's Chicago, Natalie must use her Talent talking to cats to solve a high-profile celebrity kidnapping.
These days, now happily settled in the UK, Kimberly has moved her focus from YA to MG and THE ACCIDENTAL WIZARD is the start of a series of adventures to feature Twig, the reluctant most powerful wizard in the world; Vile (short for Violet) a remarkably pretty hag; Glimfinkle, a teeny tiny gnome, with a VERY big sense of his own importance and Beaky, a magpie of occasionally frankly epic proportions.
Kimberly was the founder of YA Books Central, one of the largest teen lit sites on the Internet, back before blogs even existed, though she gave up ownership when she made the big move.
Kimberly has also dabbled in short stories and poetry (remarkably non-angsty given her early teenage leanings), as well as writing for newspapers and magazines, but her love is writing for children and teens. Luckily, that’s what she concentrated on at University (as well as Science Fiction and Medieval Lit, but that’s another story).
You can find out more at www.kimberlypauley.com or follow her on Twitter (@KimberlyRPauley) or Instagram, where she posts entirely too many pictures of random things (mostly London and the things she makes).
Selected Praise for Kimberly's work:
On THE ACCIDENTAL WIZARD"
"From award-winning author Kimberly Pauley, this magical, hilarious adventure is ideal for fans of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.”
Scholastic Book Club, Book of the Month
"Beautifully vivid ... funny, chaotic and heartwarming. The Accidental Wizard is unputdownable from start to finish and full of laughs, heart and unlikely friendship."
Fantastic Book Dragon
"Brilliantly funny, with bags and bags of heart, The Accidental Wizard is destined to leave you completely spellbound."
Fantastic Fiction
"With more magical mayhem than you can shake a stick at, middle-grade readers will be quickly drawn into a world of riotous adventure, competing wizards, greedy citizens and at it’s heart, an unlikely friendship between a wizard, a hag and a gnome"
The Book Activist
On ASK ME:
“[T]he writing and the character development are top notch . . . Pauley writes with humor but also manages to maintain suspense. And readers will enjoy getting a look at rural Florida—which is far different from the Disney World and beaches that most readers know.”
—Examiner.com
“A real page-turner that will have readers thinking that they know the killer and then changing their minds, leaving them wondering right up until the end . . . A dark mystery featuring a unique heroine.”
—Booklist, Starred Review
On CAT GIRL’S DAY OFF:
“Pauley’s homage to Chicago and her favorite teen movie is entertaining, hilarious, and exceptionally creative…” —School Library Journal
“…Lively conversation, strong characterizations and a fast pace make this a breezy read. The funny feline thoughts are catnip for the audience. A worthwhile adventure and an easy sell for feline fanciers who already know what their pets are saying.”
-–Kirkus Reviews
On SUCKS TO BE ME:
“Most high-school juniors face big questions about their futures, but few ask the question posed to 16-year-old Mina: should she stay human or should she become a vampire, like her parents? In this breezy, often uproarious debut novel, Pauley follows Mina through her decision-making process, which includes classes about vampire history and culture and field trips with her eccentric uncle Mortie, the first vampire in the family.”
– Booklist
“The adolescent vampire novel gets a pleasantly light, bizarrely heartwarming treatment in this novel . . . It’s an unusual mix, a welcome change from all the darker, angsty teen vampire novels around these days, and a very promising first novel.”
--Locus
These days, now happily settled in the UK, Kimberly has moved her focus from YA to MG and THE ACCIDENTAL WIZARD is the start of a series of adventures to feature Twig, the reluctant most powerful wizard in the world; Vile (short for Violet) a remarkably pretty hag; Glimfinkle, a teeny tiny gnome, with a VERY big sense of his own importance and Beaky, a magpie of occasionally frankly epic proportions.
Kimberly was the founder of YA Books Central, one of the largest teen lit sites on the Internet, back before blogs even existed, though she gave up ownership when she made the big move.
Kimberly has also dabbled in short stories and poetry (remarkably non-angsty given her early teenage leanings), as well as writing for newspapers and magazines, but her love is writing for children and teens. Luckily, that’s what she concentrated on at University (as well as Science Fiction and Medieval Lit, but that’s another story).
You can find out more at www.kimberlypauley.com or follow her on Twitter (@KimberlyRPauley) or Instagram, where she posts entirely too many pictures of random things (mostly London and the things she makes).
Selected Praise for Kimberly's work:
On THE ACCIDENTAL WIZARD"
"From award-winning author Kimberly Pauley, this magical, hilarious adventure is ideal for fans of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.”
Scholastic Book Club, Book of the Month
"Beautifully vivid ... funny, chaotic and heartwarming. The Accidental Wizard is unputdownable from start to finish and full of laughs, heart and unlikely friendship."
Fantastic Book Dragon
"Brilliantly funny, with bags and bags of heart, The Accidental Wizard is destined to leave you completely spellbound."
Fantastic Fiction
"With more magical mayhem than you can shake a stick at, middle-grade readers will be quickly drawn into a world of riotous adventure, competing wizards, greedy citizens and at it’s heart, an unlikely friendship between a wizard, a hag and a gnome"
The Book Activist
On ASK ME:
“[T]he writing and the character development are top notch . . . Pauley writes with humor but also manages to maintain suspense. And readers will enjoy getting a look at rural Florida—which is far different from the Disney World and beaches that most readers know.”
—Examiner.com
“A real page-turner that will have readers thinking that they know the killer and then changing their minds, leaving them wondering right up until the end . . . A dark mystery featuring a unique heroine.”
—Booklist, Starred Review
On CAT GIRL’S DAY OFF:
“Pauley’s homage to Chicago and her favorite teen movie is entertaining, hilarious, and exceptionally creative…” —School Library Journal
“…Lively conversation, strong characterizations and a fast pace make this a breezy read. The funny feline thoughts are catnip for the audience. A worthwhile adventure and an easy sell for feline fanciers who already know what their pets are saying.”
-–Kirkus Reviews
On SUCKS TO BE ME:
“Most high-school juniors face big questions about their futures, but few ask the question posed to 16-year-old Mina: should she stay human or should she become a vampire, like her parents? In this breezy, often uproarious debut novel, Pauley follows Mina through her decision-making process, which includes classes about vampire history and culture and field trips with her eccentric uncle Mortie, the first vampire in the family.”
– Booklist
“The adolescent vampire novel gets a pleasantly light, bizarrely heartwarming treatment in this novel . . . It’s an unusual mix, a welcome change from all the darker, angsty teen vampire novels around these days, and a very promising first novel.”
--Locus
