Elizabeth Fama is a

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

author, best known for her book ''Monstrous Beauty'' (Farrar, Straus and Giroux Books for Young Readers, 2012), a fantasy novel for teens. Her third book is ''Plus One'', which published in April 2014.

Background

Elizabeth attended

University of Chicago Laboratory Schools The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (also known as Lab or Lab Schools and abbreviated as UCLS though the high school is nicknamed U-High) is a Private school, private, co-educational Day school, day Early childhood education, Pre-K and K� ...

. She has a BA (1985) in biology with honors from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

, and an MBA (1991) and PhD (1996) in economics and finance from the

University of Chicago Graduate School of Business The University of Chicago Booth School of Business (Chicago Booth or Booth) is the graduate business school of the University of Chicago. Founded in 1898, Chicago Booth is the second-oldest business school in the U.S. and is associated with 10 N ...

. Elizabeth is the daughter of

Eugene Fama Eugene Francis "Gene" Fama (; born February 14, 1939) is an American economist, best known for his empirical work on portfolio theory, asset pricing, and the efficient-market hypothesis. He is currently Robert R. McCormick Distinguished Servi ...

. She is married to John H. Cochrane and together, they have four children.

Works

*''Overboard'', Cricket Books, Chicago (2002) *''Men Who Wish To Drown'' (e-book), Tor.com, New York (2012) *''Monstrous Beauty'', Farrar Straus Giroux, New York (2012) *''Noma Girl'', Tor·Com, New York (2014) *''Plus One'', Farrar Straus Giroux, New York (2014)

Reception

Fama's works have generally been well received.

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

wrote about ''Overboard'', "Although some scenes seem implausible, particularly Emily’s ability to carry on complete conversations and sing in her weakened state, first-time author Fama skillfully conveys the impact of survival in human nature" and "Inspired by an actual ferry accident caused by lax safety standards, this is a powerful exploration on the will to live", while ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' asserted "Such muddled, cumbersome prose weighs down the chronicle of Emily's nightlong struggle to survive in the sea, heavily reliant upon coincidences." Kirkus was also positive about ''Monstrous Beauty'' writing "Not so much romance as suspense, this stylish fantasy mesmerizes", and while ''Publishers Weekly'' called it "a chilling and original story", they also found "The alternating narrative device can make for stutters in the momentum, and there are stretches (notably when genealogy is rehearsed) where the plot trudges." but "The horror and humanity are adroitly handled, however, and Fama never lapses into cliché." For ''Plus One'', ''Publishers Weekly'' noted "Fama smoothly unspools the details of her alternate Earth’s history in conversational flashbacks that never impede the brisk pacing, yet enhance the sense of connection with her very human characters."

Awards

The

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...

included ''Monstrous Beauty'' on its 2013 list of Best Fiction for Young Adults, and it won a silver

Odyssey Award The Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production is an annual award conferred by the American Library Association upon the publisher of "the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United State ...

for best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults. It was also a 2012 Nerdies Book Award nominee. Fama's first novel, ''Overboard'' (Cricket Books, 2002), was for ages 11 and up, and set in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. It was named a 2003

Best Book for Young Adults The American Library Association's Best Fiction for Young Adults, previously known as Best Books for Young Adults (1966–2010), is a recommendation list of books presented yearly by the YALSA division (Young Adult Library Services Association Th ...

by the

(one of only eleven books selected unanimously by the committee that year), it received the 2002–2003 honor award for children's fiction from the

Society of Midland Authors The Society of Midland Authors is an association of published authors from twelve American states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. According to its constit ...

, and it was nominated for five state readers' choice awards (New Hampshire, Texas, Illinois, Utah, and Florida).Awards and Honors for Overboard
''

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

References

External links

Author Elizabeth Fama
official website
Elizabeth Fama
at

Blogger.com Blogger is an American online content management system founded in 1999 which enables multi-user blogs with time-stamped entries. Pyra Labs developed it before being acquired by Google in 2003. Google hosts the blogs, which can be accessed thr ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fama, Elizabeth Living people American children's writers University of Chicago alumni University of Chicago Booth School of Business alumni University of Chicago Laboratory Schools alumni 1965 births