Susan Vaught – författare

Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best mystery Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year “Like its heroine, this contemporary mystery is compelling, offbeat, and fearless.” —The Horn Book “A sensitive, suspenseful mystery that deftly navigates the uncertainty of mental illness.” —Kirkus Reviews Footer Davis is on the case when two kids go missing after a fire in this humorously honest novel that is full of Southern style.Here are some things that are true about Footer Davis: 1. She has a BB gun named Louise. 2. Walruses freak her out. 3. Her mom has bipolar disorder. But she wants you to know that it’s not that big a deal. She’s just Mom, and usually she’s fine except sometimes when she doesn’t take her pills. But right now what’s most important to Footer is what happened to those kids at the Abrams farm. See, there was a fire there a few nights ago, and those kids haven’t been seen since. Pretty sure they got burned up. What Footer and Peavine—that’s her best friend—want to know is who started the fire? This middle grade mystery is funny, honest, populated with interesting characters, and Southern to the core. Kirkus Reviews called it “a sensitive, suspenseful mystery that deftly navigates the uncertainty of mental illness.”

CBC/NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Book Finalist for the Edgar Allan Poe Award ILA Young Adults’ Choices “A provocative, sensitive, and oh-so-timely read.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “Ambitious, thought-provoking, and very readable.” —Booklist (starred review) “Vaught brings history to life as she connects the past with the present, showing how acts of violence, betrayal, and courage both color and blend the histories of two families.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) A mysterious note takes Dani Beans into the secrets of Ole Miss and its dark past in this compelling middle grade novel from the author of Footer Davis Probably Is Crazy.“Sooner or later, we’re all gonna be okay.” That’s what Dani’s Grandma Beans used to say. But that was before she got Alzheimer’s. Lately, Dani isn’t so sure Grandma Beans was right. In fact, she isn’t sure of a lot of things, like why Mac Richardson suddenly doesn’t want to be her friend, and why Grandma Beans and Avadelle Richardson haven’t spoken in decades. Lately, Grandma Beans doesn’t make a lot of sense. But when she tells Dani to find a secret key and envelope that she’s hidden, Dani can’t ignore her. So she investigates, with the help of her friend, Indri, and her not-friend, Mac. Their investigation takes them deep into the history of Oxford, Mississippi, and the riots surrounding the desegregation of Ole Miss. The deeper they dig, the more secrets they uncover. Were Grandma Beans and Avadelle at Ole Miss the night of the Meredith Riot? And why would they keep it a secret? The more Dani learns about her grandma’s past, the more she learns about herself and her own friendships—and it’s not all good news. History and present day collide in this mystery that explores how echoes of the past can have profound consequences.

“An excellent addition to middle grade shelves, with a differently-abled main character that readers will root for.” —School Library Journal “Vaught makes Max the brash, bold star of the book, exchanging stereotypes and sympathy cards for a well-drawn character whose disability is part of who she is but not her complete identity; hopefully Max will roll ahead as the advance guard of a literary cadre.” —BCCB A Parents’ Choice Recommended Book It’s going to take more than a knack for electronics and a supercharged wheelchair for twelve-year-old Max to investigate a haunted mansion in Edgar Award–winning author Susan Vaught’s latest middle grade mystery.Max has always been a whiz with electronics (just take a look at her turbo-charged wheelchair). But when a hacker starts a slanderous Facebook page for her grandpa, Max isn’t sure she has the skills to take him down. The messages grow increasingly sinister, and Max fears that this is more than just a bad joke. Here’s the thing: Max has grown up in the shadow of Thornwood Manor, an abandoned mansion that is rumored to be haunted by its original owner, Hargrove Thornwood. It is said that his ghost may be biding his time until he can exact revenge on the town of Blue Creek. Why? Well, it’s complicated. To call him a jerk would be an understatement. When the hacking escalates, suddenly it looks to Max like this could really be Thornwood’s Revenge. If it is, these messages are just the beginning—and the town could be in danger.

“Edgar-winning Vaught, a neuropsychologist, has both personal and professional experience to draw on in crafting a narrator who is admirably smart and resilient despite an ‘itchy’ brain and a compulsion to count things.” —Booklist (starred review) “Deeply smart and considerate.” —BCCB “An absorbing mystery.” —Kirkus Reviews “A strong addition to help diversify realistic fiction collections to include neuroatypical characters and heroines.” —School Library Journal Jesse is on the case when money goes missing from the library and her dad is looking like the #1 suspect in Edgar Award­–winning author Susan Vaught’s latest middle grade mystery.I could see the big inside of my Sam-Sam. I had been training him for 252 days with mini tennis balls and pieces of bacon, just to prove to Dad and Mom and Aunt Gus and the whole world that a tiny, fluffy dog could do big things if he wanted to. I think my little dog always knew he could be a hero. I just wonder if he knew about me. When the cops show up at Jesse’s house and arrest her dad, she figures out in a hurry that he’s the #1 suspect in the missing library fund money case. With the help of her (first and only) friend Springer, she rounds up suspects (leading to a nasty confrontation with three notorious school bullies) and asks a lot of questions. But she can’t shake the feeling that she isn’t exactly cut out for being a crime-solving hero. Jesse has a neuro-processing disorder, which means that she’s “on the spectrum or whatever.” As she explains it, “I get stuck on lots of stuff, like words and phrases and numbers and smells and pictures and song lines and what time stuff is supposed to happen.” But when a tornado strikes her small town, Jesse is given the opportunity to show what she''s really made of—and help her dad. Told with the true-as-life voice Susan Vaught is known for, this mystery will have you rooting for Jesse and her trusty Pomeranian, Sam-Sam.

Del is a good kid who''s been caught in horrible circumstances. When we meet him, he is 17, trying to put his life together after an incident in his past that made him a social outcast - and a felon. As a result, he can''t get into college; the only job he can get is digging graves; and when he finally meets a girl he might fall in love with, there''s a whole sea of complications that threaten to bring the world crashing down around him again. But what has Del done? In flashbacks to Del''s 14th year, we slowly learn the truth: his girlfriend texted him a revealing photo of herself, a teacher confiscated his phone, and soon the police were involved.Basing her story on real-life cases of teens being charged with sex crimes for texting explicit photos, Susan Vaught has created a moving portrait of an immensely likable young character caught up in a highly controversial legal scenario.