Pauline Gedge (born December 11, 1945) is a Canadian novelist best known for her

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

novels, including the best-selling ''Child of the Morning'', ''The Eagle and the Raven'', her fantasy novel ''Stargate'', and her Egyptian trilogies, ''Lords of the Two Lands'' and ''The King's Man''. She also writes

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

and horror. Her 13 novels have sold more than six million copies in 18 languages. Her first four novels were published with cover art by

Leo and Diane Dillon Leo Dillon (March 2, 1933 – May 26, 2012) and Diane Dillon (''née'' Sorber; born March 13, 1933) were American illustrators of children's books and adult paperback book and magazine covers. One obituary of Leo called the work of the hu ...

. The Dillons almost never authorized their work for sale beyond that directly commissioned, but reproductions of their covers of Gedge's novels were made available for sale via an agreement between Gedge and Diane Dillon, who met in the late 1970s.

Personal Life

Pauline Gedge was born December 11, 1945 in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand. In 1951, the family relocated to England so her father could study for the

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

ministry. In 1956, Gedge attended the Oxford Central School for Girls, studying chemistry, violin, piano, and recorders. In 1959, her father accepted a parish in

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, and the family relocated again, this time to Canada. Gedge attended a local high school and then a boarding school while there, saying her time at the boarding school was "the most dehumanizing, miserable experience". In 1961, Gedge began her studies at University of Manitoba Brandon College, but did not end up graduating. The family returned to New Zealand so Gedge's sister, who was ill, could die in the country of her birth. Gedge's father ended up accepting a parish in New Zealand and the family stayed. Gedge worked as a substitute teacher in three rural schools for a year, and in 1964, began to attend the Teacher's Training College in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

, New Zealand. She did not return to the school for a second year. In 1966, Gedge was married and moved to

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada with her husband. Her first son was born in 1968, and her second son was born in 1970. She was married again in the 1980s and continued moving about Canada and writing books. She and her second husband divorced some time later, and Gedge and now lives in Edgerton, Alberta, Canada.

Career

Gedge wrote unpublished poetry for years. She tried to write contemporary mainstream fiction in the early 1970s and then gave up, turning to ancient Egypt for inspiration.Talk like an Egyptian, by Derek Weiler, Quill & Quire, April 1999
/ref> She based her first published novel, ''Child of the Morning'', on the historical figure of

Hatshepsut Hatshepsut (; also Hatchepsut; Egyptian: '' ḥꜣt- špswt'' "Foremost of Noble Ladies"; or Hatasu c. 1507–1458 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. She was the second historically confirmed female pharaoh, aft ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

's only female pharaoh. She wrote the novel in six weeks and went on to win the Alberta Search-for-a-New Novelist Competition in 1975. ''The Eagle and the Raven'' received the Jean Boujassy award from the

Société des Gens de Lettres Lactalis is a French multinational dairy products corporation, owned by the Besnier family and based in Laval, Mayenne, France. The company's former name was Besnier SA. Lactalis is the largest dairy products group in the world, and is the sec ...

in France and ''The Twelfth Transforming'' won the Writers Guild of Alberta Best Novel of the Year Award.Pauline Gedge Interview, Words At Large, CBC Radio, November 2007
She has also written in other genres. ''Stargate'' is

, ''The Covenant'' is contemporary

horror fiction Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J ...

, and ''Scroll of Saqqara'' incorporates some

elements. Gedge's ex-husband, Bernie Ramanauskas, helped to provide the historical research for many of her later novels.

Prizes and honours

*1977 Alberta Search-for-a-New Novelist Competition *1978 Jean Boujassy award from the Société des Gens des Lettres *1985 Writers' Guild of Alberta's Georges Bugnet Award for Novel

Bibliography

Novels

*''Child of the Morning'' (1977) *''The Eagle and the Raven'' (1978) *''Stargate'' (1982) *''The Twelfth Transforming'' (1984) *''Scroll of Saqqara'' (1990) (published under the title ''Mirage'' in the U.S.) *''The Covenant'' (1992) *''House of Dreams'' (1994) (a.k.a. ''Lady of the Reeds'') *''House of Illusions'' (1996) *''Lords of the Two Lands'' trilogy: **''The Hippopotamus Marsh: Lords of the Two Lands, Volume One'' (1998) **''The Oasis: Lords of the Two Lands, Volume Two'' (1999) **''The Horus Road: Lords of the Two Lands, Volume Three'' (2000) *''The King's Man'' trilogy: **''The Twice Born'' (2007) **''Seer of Egypt'' (2008) **''The King's Man'' (2011)

References

External links

Official siteOfficial Facebook page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gedge, Pauline 1945 births Living people Canadian women novelists Canadian science fiction writers Canadian fantasy writers Canadian historical novelists Writers from Manitoba People from Virden, Manitoba Women science fiction and fantasy writers 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian women writers Women historical novelists