Alexandra Flinn (born October 23, 1966) is an American writer of novels for young adults. Her books have appeared on the ''New York Times'' and ''USA Today'' Bestseller lists and have been translated into over twenty foreign languages. Many of her books have made the American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults lists, as well as Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. Many of her novels are modernized versions of classic fairy tales.

Personal life

Flinn was born in Long Island, New York and grew up in Syosset, New York and Miami, Florida. At the age of five, she started thinking about being a writer and submitted early efforts to magazines like '' Highlights'', which did not publish them. At twelve, she moved to

Palmetto Bay, Florida Palmetto Bay is a suburban incorporated village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,439 as of the 2020 US census. Palmetto Bay includes three neighborhoods that were former census-designated places, Cutler, Ro ...

, a suburb of Miami, where she still lives. She struggled to make friends at her new school, and she has said that this experience inspired much of her writing for young adults, particularly her book, ''Breaking Point.'' She graduated from Miami-Palmetto High School and was in a performing arts program called PAVAC (Performing And Visual Arts Center), which inspired some of her book, ''Diva.'' She graduated from the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, i ...

with a degree in vocal performance (opera), then went to law school at

Nova Southeastern University Nova Southeastern University (NSU or, informally, Nova) is a private nonprofit research university with its main campus in Davie, Florida. The university consists of 14 total colleges, centers, and schools offering over 150 programs of study ...

. She practiced law for 10 years before quitting her day job to devote herself full-time to writing, following the acceptance of her third book.

Books

*''Breathing Underwater'' (2001), chosen as a Top 10

ALA Best Books 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 ...

and won the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award *''Breaking Point'' (2002), chosen as a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers *''Nothing to Lose'' (2004), chosen as a Booklist Top 10 Youth Mystery, American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults, and an American Library Association Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers *''Fade to Black'' (2005) *''Diva'' (2006), a sequel to ''Breathing Underwater'' *''A Kiss in Time'' (2009), a modern version of Sleeping Beauty *''Cloaked'' (2011), based upon several fairy tales, including

The Frog Prince "The Frog Prince; or, Iron Henry" (german: Der Froschkönig oder der eiserne Heinrich, literally "The Frog King or the Iron Henry") is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in 1812 in ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' (KHM 1). ...

, The Shoemaker and the Elves, and

The Six Swans "The Six Swans" (German: ''Die sechs Schwäne'') is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' in 1812 (KHM 49). It is of Aarne–Thompson type 451 ("The Maiden Who Seeks Her Brothers"), commonly found throu ...

*''Towering'' (2013), a retelling of Rapunzel *''Girls of July'' (2019)

Kendra Chronicles series

*'' Beastly'' (2007), won the Detroit Public Library's Author Day Award and was a #1 New York Times bestseller after being adapted into a 2011 film *''Beastly: Lindy's Diary'' (2012), an original e-book and also published as part of a special edition of ''Beastly'' *''Bewitching'' (2012), a retelling of

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

, with mini-stories about

Hansel and Gretel "Hansel and Gretel" (; german: Hänsel und Gretel ) is a German fairy tale collected by the German Brothers Grimm and published in 1812 in ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' (KHM 15). It is also known as Little Step Brother and Little Step Sister. Hansel ...

, The Princess and the Pea, and

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a ...

*''Mirrored'' (2015), a retelling of

Snow White "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is a 19th-century German fairy tale that is today known widely across the Western world. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection '' Grimms' Fairy Tales'' and numbered as T ...

*''Beheld'' (2017), based upon several fairy tales, including

Little Red Riding Hood "Little Red Riding Hood" is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th century European folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Brot ...

Rumpelstiltskin "Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; german: Rumpelstilzchen) is a German fairy tale. It was collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of '' Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about a little imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a ...

East of the Sun and West of the Moon "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" ( no, Østenfor sol og vestenfor måne) is a Norwegian fairy tale. It was included by Andrew Lang in ''The Blue Fairy Book'' (1890). "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" was collected by Peter Christen ...

, and

The Ugly Duckling "The Ugly Duckling" ( da, Den grimme ælling) is a Danish literary fairy tale by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published on 11 November 1843 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. First Collection'' ...

References

External links

Official blog
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flinn, Alex 1966 births American children's writers American young adult novelists 21st-century American novelists Living people People from Syosset, New York American women novelists American women children's writers People from Palmetto Bay, Florida Novelists from Florida University of Miami Frost School of Music alumni Nova Southeastern University alumni 21st-century American women writers Women writers of young adult literature Writers from Glen Cove, New York Novelists from New York (state)