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| Jim Murphy: A Pathfinder To His Life, Work, and History |
Jim Murphy has written over 30 books for children and young adults. A New Jerseyian by birth, he spent his childhood traipsing through the Meadowlands, playing in abandoned factories, and living life with not a care or bother. He was not an early lover of books, but became intriqued when a teacher told him not to read a certain banned book. Murphy quickly ran out to find what the fuss was about and has been an avid reader ever since.
Murphy graduated from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ and completed graduate work at Radcliffe College. He started his career in juvenile publisher and moved up to Managing Editor over time. It was this position that he moved away from when he chose to devote himself entirely to his own writing. In 1978, he published his first book, Weird and Wacky Inventions. His claim to fame, however, has been his historical fiction. He has a passion for reading about subjects that interest him and is quite skilled as a researcher. His books scan a broad range of topics, from the Civil War to the terrific and deadly Blizzard of 1888.
Murphy's Books, Awards, and Accolades
Many of Jim Murphy's books have been honored with a varity of awards recognizing their quality and comprehensiveness. As an avid researcher, he is extremely detailed in the portrayal of each historical event he writes about. His forte is the ability to make the characters in his books multi-layered, entertaining and stimulating. It is rare that one would pick up a Murphy book and not be anxious to turn page after page.
This is a list of all the awards that Murphy has actualized throughout his writing career:
The American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 has earned nine awards, in and of itself.
Several of his books has been used by the media to highlight and enhance a variety of current events. Specifically, during a recent blizzard, Murphy was interviewed by ABC News to compare and contrast the modern day weatherology with the disasterous storms of the past that would surprise the residents or victims of the disaster (as the case may be). The link below leads you to a video of one such telecast interview.
Murphy has written three new books since 2009. The first, A Savage Thunder: Antietam and the Bloody Road to Thunder, published in July, 2009, is the story of the bloodiest, single day battle of the Civil War.
The School LibraryJournal says this about the book:
"It is terrible to march slowly into danger, and see and feel each second your chance at death is surer than it was the second before." These words from a Union office begin to provide some reckoning of the horror that was the 1862 Battle of Antietam, which surely changed the course of the Civil War and provided Lincoln the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. Murphy provides readers with a lucid and compelling narrative...From the drama that unfolded in the cornfield to the brutal confrontation on the sunken road, the unflinching prose compels readers forward in anticipation of the events yet to unfold...An outstanding account of a battle that was truly 'a savage thunder.' "
www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6667921.html
www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6667921.html
Soon after, in October of 2009, Murphy publishes Truce, the true story of a momentary miracle of peace during what was then called the Great World War.
Booklist, an ALA magazine, wrote this about Truce:
"Murphy's excellent telling of this unusual war story begins with an account of the events that led to WWI and follows the shift in the soldiers' mind-sets from the feverish rush to join before the war ended to the painful realization that no end was in sight. Printed in tones of sepia, the illustrations in this handsome… vividly portrays the context and events of the Christmas Truce."
In December 2010, Murphy produces his most recent book, The Crossing: How George Washington Saved the American Revolution. The Kirkus Review gives this opinion:
"Murphy brings the winter of 1776 to life with powerful prose and captivating illustrations. ….A superbly written, well-researched and attractively illustrated account…."
Internet Connections
If you are interested in learning more about his books you may want to visit his website, http://www.jimmurphybooks.com/, or you may access a list of his books at Jim Murphy Booklist.
For an interesting personal perspective on Jim Murphy, read an interview on :
To view a trailer of his book, Across America, the story of Robert Louis Stevenson's railway trip to meet his new wife, play the video below:
Contact Jim Murphy and Affiliates
To contact Jim Murphy directly: jimmurphybooks@gmail.com
To contact Clarion/Houghton Mifflin about books, appearances, or other matters:Jennifer Groves at Jennifer_Groves@hmco.com 212-420-5881To contact Scholastic Inc. about books, appearances, or other matters:
For book ordering: Houghton Mifflin's Trade Customer Service Dept. at 1-800- 225-3362
or 1-800-634-7568 (fax).
Stephanie Nooney at snooney@scholastic.com or 212-389-3772
For book ordering: 800-SCHOLASTIC or 800-724-6527 - ext. 3.
