Sally Warner breaks new ground with a powerful story about the toughest test of friendship. For as long as Cady Winton can remember, she and Nana Weber have done everything together, from cutting each other's hair to daring themselves to ride the scariest roller coaster at Magic Mountain. And both had been looking forward to starting middle school together in the fall. But just when Cady and Nana were anticipating being teenagers, their plans spin away from them. At the age of twelve, Nana is diagnosed with bone cancer, and suddenly the present is so much more important than the future. With refreshing honesty, Sally Warner helps brush aside the mysticism of dying and replaces it with the courage of friendship. Comforting and profoundly moving, Sort of Forever is, by turns, a sincere, funny, painful, and uplifting view of dying, as well as a celebration of life.
BIOGRAPHY OF SALLY WARNER
Sally Warner was born in New York City and grew up in Connecticut and California, where her family moved when she was eight years old. She attended public schools in Pasadena. She then received her B.A. degree from Scripps College in Claremont, California, and her B.F.A. and M.F.A. degrees in fine arts from Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles.
Sally Warner worked as an artist (primarily charcoal drawings) for many years, exhibiting her work at galleries, small museums, colleges, and universities across the country. Her drawings are in many private collections. She also taught art education for ten years at Pasadena City College. Her teaching led her to write her first non-fiction book for adults, ENCOURAGING THE ARTIST IN YOUR CHILD, in 1989. This book sold more than 20,000 copies. Another of her non-fiction books for adults, MAKING ROOM FOR MAKING ART (1994), is still in print and doing well.
Sally Warner then began writing fiction for young readers. Her first novel, DOG YEARS (1995), has almost 90,000 copies--in Italy! Sally Warner did the cartoons herself. IT'S ONLY TEMPORARY, another novel she has illustrated--with nearly 100 drawings---was published in 2008 and is for ages 8--12.
To date, Sally Warner has had 23 novels published, mostly for ages 8--12. One of her most popular books so far was SORT OF FOREVER (1998, still available through Scholastic Book Club), which has sold more than 220,000 copies! She also writes for younger readers, ages 7+; the books in her current funny series for Viking (ONLY EMMA, NOT-SO-WEIRD EMMA, SUPER EMMA, BEST FRIEND EMMA, and EXCELLENT EMMA) have been getting lots of positive attention. At least 3 ELLRAY JAKES books will be coming out in the next few years as well.
Sally Warner and her husband live in Southern California. She has four step-daughters, five step-grandchildren, and two sons who both have active careers in the arts: dance/choreography/teaching, and computer generated imagery for television and movies.
For photos, cartoons, and more information on her books: www.sallywarner.com
