Mary Higgins Clark is a sixty-seven year old author who writes suspense and mystery stories. Some of the qualities that make her books so interesting to read are the many characters she includes in her stories, so you think it could be anybody that committed the crime. She has written over twenty books, and fifteen of them were best sellers.
Clark was born on December 24, 1929 in New York City and has always lived there. She has a husband and five children. Her first book was Where Are The Children, and it, in my opinion, is her best.
The kind of books she writes are mystery and suspense novels, usually about killings or kidnappings. Her book titles frequently come from song titles. Her books are based on memories from her childhood and take place where she has been or lives. She attended the University of New York, Villia Maria Academy, Ward Secretarial School, and Fordham School.
AUTHOR'S STYLE AND CONVENTIONS
Mary Higgins Clark uses characterization, setting, and the cliffhanger in her style of writing suspense and mystery novels.
Clark's use of characterization is very important to her style. Clark gives the reader so much information about her characters: (such as, how they look, what they are feeling, and how they interact with other characters) that you can almost imagine the people.
Chapters and chapter titles are also important in all of her books. She titles her books with names of song titles. She says all songs have a deep dark side to them just like her books.
Clark uses many alternative settings in her books, flipping around from setting to setting, and this often gets a little confusing; but if you stick with it, you can follow it. She describes the settings so well that you can really feel that you are there.
Clark leaves the reader with a cliffhanger quite often, leaving the reader in suspense. This makes the book really good. Something exciting is about to happen and you want to keep reading to find out how it ends.
MY COMMENTS ON HER BOOKS
Nancy Harmon lived in the beautiful state of California. First, her two children were murdered. She was blamed for her two children's murders and was forced to move to Cape Cod, Massachusetts after the courts found her not guilty. When she moved to Cape Cod, she found happiness in a new marriage and had two new children. While living on the Cape she sent her children out to play one nice day and they were kidnapped. She was looking for them and found a red glove in the lake by their house. This is how the real story begins. I like the idea that the story takes place in a small town on the Cape and that everyone in town knew each other. I also admired Nancy for her will to go on with her life after such a tragedy happened to her.
Catherine Dornan was in New York visiting her husband who is in a New York Hospital because he was diagnosed with leukemia. While in New York she took her children to Rockefeller Center to see the tree and the stores before going to see her husband. When her children asked her for some money to give to the Salvation Army, she gave each one 50 cents. While she was putting her wallet in her bag, she dropped it and did not realize it. Brian, her son, saw her drop it and went after the woman that took it. When Brian did not come back, his mother got really worried and called the police. All night they were looking for him, not realizing that she lost her wallet or he went after the woman who took it. That woman found out that Brian was following her and kidnapped him. Taking him for a ride in a car she told him not to talk, threatening his life with a gun. If you want to find out what happened, you will have to read this book.
CONCLUSION
Mary Higgins Clark is a very good author. For anyone who likes mysteries and suspense, this will be the author for you. She has many best sellers and has done many great things for writing. I love to read mysteries and suspense stories, which made her a good author for me to choose for my author study. Mrs. Clark has contributed many things to the writing of books. Her best sellers and her many awards prove that she is an amazing writer. She makes all of her characters seem so real that you really get involved with their lives. I would recommend Mary Higgins Clark to anyone who likes to read a good "who done it" book.
WORKS CITED
Clark, Mary Higgins. Silent Night. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1995.
Clark, Mary Higgins. Where Are the Children. New York: Simon and Schuster,1978.
Hile, Kevin S. ed. Authors And Artists For Young Adults. Vol. 43-50 Detroit,MI: Gale, 1994.
Junior Discovering Authors. CD-ROM. Detroit, MI: Gale, Research Inc. 1984.
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Created March 31, 1997, Last Updated April 7, 1997