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Allan Stratton

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Allan Stratton

Goodreads Author


Born
Stratford, Canada
Website

Genre

Influences
His mother, James Reaney, Christopher Newton

Member Since
December 2009


ALLAN STRATTON is the internationally acclaimed author of CHANDA'S SECRETS, winner of the American Library Association's Michael L. Printz Honor Book, the Children's Africana Book Award, and ALA Booklist's Editor's Choice among others. His first YA novel was the ALA Best Book LESLIE'S JOURNAL. His latest, CHANDA'S WARS, a Junior Library Guild selection, won the Canadian Library Association's Young Adult Canadian Book Award, 2009, and is on the CCBC Best Books List.

The German/South African film version of CHANDA'S SECRETS has been named an Official Selection of the 2010 Cannes International Film festival. the film title is LIFE ABOVE ALL. You can read about Allan's experiences on set on the December posts of his blog.

Allan's new novel, BORD
...more

To ask Allan Stratton questions, please sign up.

Popular Answered Questions

Allan Stratton I've used a lot of what you might call semi-mysteries. What ifs: THE DOGS is based on my mother running away from my father when I was a baby because …moreI've used a lot of what you might call semi-mysteries. What ifs: THE DOGS is based on my mother running away from my father when I was a baby because of his violence. BORDERLINE: is based on my fear as a child and teen that when I'd grow up I'd be accused of a crime I didn't commit, found guilty and hanged. CHANDA'S SECRETS is based on the fear of whether I'd die of HIV-AIDS: I had a lot of friends who died in the pandemic. Thanks for a very interesting question.(less)
Allan Stratton Hi Turtle,
I consider books like kids: they're my brain babies. So, like any parent, I can't really say my favourite. Chanda's Secrets, The Dogs and T…more
Hi Turtle,
I consider books like kids: they're my brain babies. So, like any parent, I can't really say my favourite. Chanda's Secrets, The Dogs and The Way Back Home are closest to things I've wrestled with emotionally if not literally. But The Grave Robber's Apprentice and Curse of the Dream Witch, Middle Grade novels, were most fun to write; I still get letters through my website from people who were helped by Leslie's Journal and Borderline; and my adult novels, The Resurrection of Mary Mabel McTavish and The Phoenix Lottery, are the ones I'm proudest of in terms of comedy and narrative structure.
Cheers,
Allan(less)
Average rating: 3.82 · 12,792 ratings · 2,020 reviews · 34 distinct worksSimilar authors
The Dogs

3.90 avg rating — 3,763 ratings — published 2015 — 38 editions
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Chanda's Secrets (Chanda, #1)

by
3.86 avg rating — 2,425 ratings — published 2004 — 3 editions
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The Grave Robber's Apprentice

3.80 avg rating — 974 ratings — published 2012 — 27 editions
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The Way Back Home

3.76 avg rating — 830 ratings — published 2018 — 17 editions
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Borderline

3.59 avg rating — 850 ratings — published 2010 — 20 editions
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Leslie's Journal

3.82 avg rating — 738 ratings — published 2000 — 16 editions
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Chanda's Wars (Chanda, #2)

4.04 avg rating — 620 ratings — published 2008 — 26 editions
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Curse of the Dream Witch

3.67 avg rating — 264 ratings — published 2013 — 11 editions
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The Resurrection of Mary Ma...

3.69 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2014 — 5 editions
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The Phoenix Lottery

3.82 avg rating — 22 ratings — published 1998 — 2 editions
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More books by Allan Stratton…

BLISS!



I'm having a nap in the middle room with Soly, the Abby named after Chanda's little brother. He loves to snuggle and stick his nose in my ear.

Oh yes. And I nap with Penster too...



And Misha...



And P2...



The four of them all run downstairs to greet me when I come home. I have to pet a different one with each hand, rub a third with my chin, and either use a foot or rotate hands so the Read more of this blog post »
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Published on October 12, 2010 06:17
Chanda's Secrets Chanda's Wars
(2 books)
by
3.90 avg rating — 3,044 ratings

Sensory Qualities
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Quotes by Allan Stratton  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“Where there is love there is life; where there is life there is hope.”
Allan Stratton, Chanda's Secrets

“Life doesn’t make sense. It’s against the law for somebody to steal your bike but apparently it doesn’t matter if somebody tries to steal your best friend. Well you can always get a new bike. But how do you replace a best friend”
Allan Stratton, Leslie's Journal

“Save your anger to fight injustice. Forgive the rest.”
Allan Stratton, Chanda's Secrets

Polls

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October Readathon 2022
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Comments (showing 1-17)    post a comment »
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message 17: by Allan

Allan Stratton Jaree wrote: "How have you been?"

Fine, thanks.


message 16: by Jaree

Jaree Francis How have you been?


message 14: by Neveen

Neveen Thanks for accepting my request Allan.

I am looking forward to read The Grave Robber's Apprentice .


message 13: by Jaree

Jaree Francis Hello, how are you doing, Mr. Stratton?

- Jay


message 12: by Allan

Allan Stratton Thanks! FYI: Chanda's Secrets just premiered in a film version at Cannes (under title Life, Above All) to raves from Time, roger Ebert and Variety. Here's the Time link:

http://www.time.com/time/specials/pac...

Cheers,

Allan


message 11: by Olivia

Olivia Thanks for the add! I love reading and am in the field of education so I try to stay abreast of current YA books. Chanda's Secreta was the first of yours and couldn't put it down until I finished. Its raw vulnerability helped make it real for all. Thanks for it!


message 10: by Allan

Allan Stratton Snorkle, hi --

I'm so pleased you wrote. It's equally exciting to know of fans of one's books. As a playwright I was right in the audience and could get the audience's reactions immediately. But with fiction, one has to wait for emails or sites like Goodreads.

Where did the name Snorkle come from? Snorkeling is one of my favourite things to do. I'm going for two weeks to Cayo Largo in eight days to do exactly that! :)

Happy New Year,

Allan


message 9: by Laura

Laura Hey Allen,
Thanks for the friend request. It's always exciting to get these from authors! I really enjoyed your book Chanda's Secrets and am looking forward to reading the second one.
Happy reading,
Snorkle


message 8: by Allan

Allan Stratton Dani, hi --
Thanks for your kind words. It's always great for a writer to know their book matters to people. My time in South Africa was great. Many of the same characters from Chanda's Wars appear in Chanda's Secrets and you can see who plays them on my blog.

I had a great Christmas. Hope you did too. No snow in toronto yet. Whew!

(BTW, My website has news about the new book, BORDERLINE, coming out in March.)

Cheers,

Allan


message 7: by Dani

Dani Cree Hello Allan.
Wow, never thought I would get this opportunity, this is really a great site! I'm never on it, and when I finally sign in to check things the author of on of my favorite books is following me!
Anyways, I LOVED your book,I'm trying desperately to find the second one, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. I hope you had a great Christmas (I'm from Canada too) :). Good luck with the movie, I'll definitely be seeing it!

Dani


message 6: by Allan

Allan Stratton Benita, hi --

I'm so glad Chanda's Wars was one of your favourites. Music to a writer's ears on a cold Canadian Christmas Eve! :)

Where have you been looking for Chanda's Secrets? Isn't it at your library? If not, ask them to get it. :) Or there's always amazon. :)

And yes, it's very exciting about the movie. I've been blogging about it through my website www.allanstratton.com and at my blog: http://allanstratton.blogpost.com

Happy Holidays,

Allan


Benita V. Hey there!
Thanks for the add.
I read Chanda's Wars last year for school -- I have to say, it was one of my favourites that I've ever had to read in school. I love how your characters seem so real; it really helped me disappear into the story.
Really looking forward to reading Chanda's Secrets - been looking for it on and off but it hasn't shown up yet.
By the way - congratulations on the movie! It must be exciting to see one of your works being pulled off the page and put onto the big screen. :)


message 4: by Allan

Allan Stratton Thanks. The blog (with photos) is at http://allanstratton.blogspot.com I've tried to keep it light and fun and interesting about the movie-making process.

I'm so glad reading the book made a difference to you -- and those you helped!

Cheers,

Allan


message 3: by Lys

Lys Hey,
Thanks for the add.
I read Chanda's Secrets for White Pine a few years ago, and it along with a few other books focused on AIDS in Africa inspired the group of us to create Kids Helping, and we raised money for the Stephen Lewis foundation.
So I'll pass along that it's being made into a movie! That's exciting and I hope it goes well!



message 2: by Allan

Allan Stratton Thanks!


Logospilgrim Hello, and thank you for your friendship :-)

Have a wonderful and safe trip!


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