"I guess everybody has something they’re not very grown-up about."
October 14, 2014 8:28 AM   Subscribe

Zilpha Keatley Snyder, author of 43 books for children and young adults, died from complications of a stroke on October 7, 2014.She won three Newberry Honor Awards
posted by jeather (53 comments total) 11 users marked this as a favorite
 
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I loved her books when I was a kid.
posted by dilettante at 8:31 AM on October 14, 2014


My childhood.

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posted by phunniemee at 8:32 AM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


{--<
posted by Iridic at 8:33 AM on October 14, 2014


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posted by skycrashesdown at 8:35 AM on October 14, 2014


I read her books partly because of playing Below the Root without a save function. So, by the time I managed to find a copy of that series, I had already spent hundreds of hours immersed in one take on Green-sky, as well as spending time in the forest pretending to be a Kindar.
posted by frimble at 8:37 AM on October 14, 2014 [7 favorites]


Oh, man. I loved The Egypt Game, but I really, really loved The Velvet Room.
posted by PussKillian at 8:44 AM on October 14, 2014 [3 favorites]


I loved the Egypt game - never realized she wrote anything else, which is surprising given how quickly I read everything else in the library. Looks like I'll have to hunt down a copy of a few of her other books in her memory.
posted by fermezporte at 8:52 AM on October 14, 2014


I love so many of her books, but I adored Below the Root. I found Below the Root at a used book store when I was in middle school or early high school, and it took me a long time to track down copies of its sequels.
posted by ocherdraco at 8:52 AM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


Below the Root was a make, MAJOR influence on me as a teenager. I think if there's any remaining belief I have that humankind can become better, it's from that stores.
posted by happyroach at 8:55 AM on October 14, 2014


I read The Witches of Worm when I was nine or ten and it was the first book that really scared me. It was also the first book that I didn't completely understand. These two facts may or may not be related.
posted by elsietheeel at 8:56 AM on October 14, 2014


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posted by Going To Maine at 8:56 AM on October 14, 2014


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I just re-read The Egypt Game. Pretty scary stuff for a kid. I liked how Berkeley it was.
posted by Duffington at 8:57 AM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


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posted by wanderingmind at 8:57 AM on October 14, 2014


I loved so many of her books. I never read The Witches of Worm because it seemed too, too sad to me even when I was little.
posted by Frowner at 9:03 AM on October 14, 2014


Oh, The Egypt Game. I loved that book! I liked some of her others, too, but The Egypt Game was my favourite. The Witches of Worm...eeesh. Dark and disturbing. That's what strikes me about Zilpha Keatley Snyder's books--they were definitely written for kids, but they were also strangely adult in tone (that's probably why I liked them so much).
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posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 9:04 AM on October 14, 2014 [3 favorites]


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posted by bowtiesarecool at 9:25 AM on October 14, 2014


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posted by gudrun at 9:26 AM on October 14, 2014


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posted by hopeless romantique at 9:28 AM on October 14, 2014


The Headless Cupid was an incredibly important book to me as a kid. I loved The Egypt Game, too.
posted by hydropsyche at 9:32 AM on October 14, 2014 [2 favorites]


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posted by Renoroc at 9:41 AM on October 14, 2014


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Her books had a very unique feel.
posted by tavella at 9:42 AM on October 14, 2014


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Oh, yeah, The Egypt Game, and even more, The Changeling.
I feel like she had such a good grasp of how intense and important friendships can be for kids, especially girls.
posted by Adridne at 9:49 AM on October 14, 2014 [2 favorites]


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The Changeling was always my favorite of hers. It's been out of print forever but they had it at my local library when I was a kid. But I loved so many of her books.
posted by sunset in snow country at 9:51 AM on October 14, 2014 [2 favorites]


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It was The Headless Cupid for me.
posted by minsies at 9:52 AM on October 14, 2014 [3 favorites]


I loved all her books, but my two favorites were The Changeling (I loved its view of the friendship between Martha and Ivy and how it changed over time) and Eyes in the Fishbowl (and as for many of her books, the illustrations by Alton Raible complemented the tone of the book so well).
posted by Emera Gratia at 9:54 AM on October 14, 2014


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posted by agatha_magatha at 10:07 AM on October 14, 2014


Oh heavens, The Velvet Room has shaped my brain since I read it. I only realized about a year or two ago when we were looking at houses. I kept looking for little rooms with alcoves and a window seat. And I realized, I was looking for the Velvet Room, over and over again, every house I've lived in since I was child, has been missing that and I've always wanted it because it was so beautifully described.

Still haven't found it yet, but I will. Even if I have to build the house myself.

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posted by teleri025 at 10:08 AM on October 14, 2014 [5 favorites]


So many of these books were my friends as a young person. They spoke to the weirdness in me, a sense of being on the outside and longing for a place to be.

I hope the books get a deluxe reissue. NYRB, are you listening?
posted by matildaben at 10:16 AM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


I remember Below the Root vividly, despite reading it only once, and never finding it again. And I loved The Egypt Game. Frankly, I was surprised to hear Snyder was still alive.

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posted by suelac at 10:20 AM on October 14, 2014


Oh sad. The Changeling really, really helped me through the tough pre-teen years. And I'm pretty sure I re-read The Headless Cupid until it literally fell apart.

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posted by lunasol at 10:29 AM on October 14, 2014


I read the Egypt Game as a kid, and loved it. Then, a few years ago as an adult, I re-read it, loved it even harder, and went on a binge of reading everything by her that I could find at the library. The Velvet Room really got under my skin. Can't wait to share her books with my own daughters.
posted by OnceUponATime at 10:32 AM on October 14, 2014


Oh, and then there was The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case, which was an incredibly fun book to read, in the way that only kids can find the prospect of being kidnapped fun and adventurous.
posted by lunasol at 10:42 AM on October 14, 2014


I also loved her books as a kid. My favorites were The Changeling, Below the Root and The Truth about Stone Hollow. I didn't realize there were sequels to Below the Root. I may have to re-read that.

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posted by auntie maim at 10:43 AM on October 14, 2014


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The Egypt Game was one of those books that I gave to all of my friends as a gift for a while, in the hopes that I would eventually find someone who loved it as much as I did. Found a bunch of people who liked it well enough but none with the same burning urge to read it a million times over.

I was also a huge fan of Libby on Wednesday. Highly recommended to anyone who considered themselves a Very Serious Writer in middle or high school; you may see a bit of yourself in the kids' writing group.
posted by ActionPopulated at 11:04 AM on October 14, 2014 [3 favorites]


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posted by LobsterMitten at 11:44 AM on October 14, 2014


As soon as I noticed a couple years ago that I could get just about any ZKS book for Kindle for less than $5 I've been rereading and collecting all my childhood favourites - all the Stanley books, definitely The Egypt Game, the Velvet Room. Every time I'd finish one I'd check her website and read her bio and think "Good. Zilpha Keatley Snyder is still alive, and still writing."

Thank you for decades of companionship and inspiration.

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posted by annathea at 11:54 AM on October 14, 2014


Oh man, I loved her books. My best friend & I did our own "The Egypt Game" for months (years?) after reading the book. I should read it again.
posted by insectosaurus at 11:57 AM on October 14, 2014


As soon as I noticed a couple years ago that I could get just about any ZKS book for Kindle for less than $5

Oh, I love you.
posted by lunasol at 12:20 PM on October 14, 2014


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posted by crush-onastick at 12:23 PM on October 14, 2014


The Velvet Room. Gosh, but I needed that book as a kid. I had no idea she was even still alive!

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posted by droplet at 12:26 PM on October 14, 2014 [3 favorites]


Her books were the first time I remember reading one, then another, then being obsessed with reading everything by the author till the school library didn't have anymore. Then I forgot about her. I have an almost-6 year old now, and found myself rereading Headless Cupid just to see if he would like it -- and was sucked right back in again. So much so that I ordered The Egypt Game as a follow-up. Sad news.
posted by Mchelly at 12:29 PM on October 14, 2014


So much free time spent in sitting in computer lab, playing Below the Root on an Apple II green screen....
posted by Esteemed Offendi at 1:01 PM on October 14, 2014


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Put me in the Egypt Game crew, complete with proto-LARPing and trying to convert my friends. I've been waiting for my friends' kids to get old enough to give them the books.

I will fully admit I was always surprised when I'd check periodically and find her still alive (and webpage up to date!)
posted by cobaltnine at 1:09 PM on October 14, 2014


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posted by dlugoczaj at 1:42 PM on October 14, 2014


no, this is so tragic. her books were the absolute touchstone of my childhood.

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posted by supermedusa at 3:38 PM on October 14, 2014


I will fully admit I was always surprised when I'd check periodically and find her still alive

I do this with Beverly Cleary. Who is 98.
posted by phunniemee at 3:41 PM on October 14, 2014 [5 favorites]


Who is 98.

*brain broken*
posted by canine epigram at 3:49 PM on October 14, 2014


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posted by jilloftrades at 3:54 PM on October 14, 2014


I read the entire Below the Root trilogy as a kid, but like frimble I had a defective [totally legitimate and not-at-all pirated, yeah, that's the ticket] copy of the game, which is what ended up making the biggest impression on me. Because it always crashed when I entered the final underground section, I was unable to finish it and as a result it came to occupy a special place of mystery and wonder in my imagination. In sum, Below the Root (video game) is among the finest adventure games of all time.
posted by flechsig at 4:28 PM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


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Below the Root! I have been trying to remember the name of that book for years but I couldn't remember enough details to figure it out. Of course it's by Zilpha Keatley Snyder--I loved her books, Egypt Game most of all. Time for a re-read!
posted by apricot at 4:52 PM on October 14, 2014


I second the shoutout to Libby on Wednesday, the book for writer nerds who got bullied. I always envied Libby for being homeschooled for so long and getting to know what she's like without being bullied from the age of 5 on by every other kid she knew like uh, me.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:12 PM on October 14, 2014


I started with The Headless Cupid and read pretty much everything that was in print; as an adult, I would occasionally wander into the children's section at the library and find something new she'd written. I especially loved the Below the Root trilogy (I really wanted to be able to glide between trees, and I tried practicing the telepathic skills endlessly, but alas, in vain) and The Changeling. So many clear memories of her characters and settings - The Truth about Stone Hollow, Black and Blue Magic (a boardinghouse in San Francisco!) - Season of Ponies! How could I forget Season of Ponies?

What a wonderful collection of work she left.

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posted by kristi at 7:35 PM on October 14, 2014


The Velvet Room was one of my absolute favourite books from childhood. What a treat it would be to scour my bookshelves and find it again but alas, I fear it has gone the way of my youth. Still going to look for it, though. RIP and thank you.
posted by h00py at 4:38 AM on October 15, 2014


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