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Harris is a patron of the charities [[Médecins Sans Frontières]] (Doctors Without Borders), to which she donated the proceeds of her cookery books,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.msf.org/journey-land-world-forgot-author-joanne-harris-congo-brazzaville|title=Journey to the land the world forgot - author Joanne Harris in Congo Brazzaville |website=Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International}}</ref> and [[Plan UK]], and she has travelled to [[Togo]] and to [[Republic of the Congo|the Congo]] to report on their work.<ref>{{cite book |title=Writing on the Edge: Great Contemporary Writers on the Front Line of Crisis: |id={{ASIN|0847832910|country=uk}} }}</ref> Harris sits on the Board of the [[Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Our team |url=https://www.alcs.co.uk/about-alcs/team/ |website=ALCS |access-date=7 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
Harris is a patron of the charities [[Médecins Sans Frontières]] (Doctors Without Borders), to which she donated the proceeds of her cookery books,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.msf.org/journey-land-world-forgot-author-joanne-harris-congo-brazzaville|title=Journey to the land the world forgot - author Joanne Harris in Congo Brazzaville |website=Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International}}</ref> and [[Plan UK]], and she has travelled to [[Togo]] and to [[Republic of the Congo|the Congo]] to report on their work.<ref>{{cite book |title=Writing on the Edge: Great Contemporary Writers on the Front Line of Crisis: |id={{ASIN|0847832910|country=uk}} }}</ref> Harris sits on the Board of the [[Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Our team |url=https://www.alcs.co.uk/about-alcs/team/ |website=ALCS |access-date=7 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>


Harris has also been involved in a number of musical projects, including twice collaborating with Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival,<ref>{{cite web |title=Clockwork Tête à Tête |url=https://www.tete-a-tete.org.uk/event/clockwork/ |publisher=Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Storytime Joanne Harris and the Storytime Band |url=https://www.tete-a-tete.org.uk/event/storytime/ |publisher=Tête à Tête |access-date=12 January 2024}}</ref> and developing an original stage musical, ''Stunners'', with [[Howard Goodall]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wild |first1=Stephi |title=Musical Theatre Network Appoints New Patron and Board Members |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/Musical-Theatre-Network-Appoints-New-Patron-and-Board-Members-20230327 |website=BroadwayWorld.com |access-date=12 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.howardgoodall.co.uk/news/joanne-harris-author-of-chocolat-and-howard-goodall-musical|title=Joanne Harris (author of Chocolat) and Howard Goodall musical: News - Howard Goodall|website=www.howardgoodall.co.uk}}</ref>
Harris has also been involved in a number of musical projects, including collaborating with Lucie Treacher and the Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival to create two mini-operas,<ref>{{cite web |title=Clockwork Tête à Tête |url=https://www.tete-a-tete.org.uk/event/clockwork/ |publisher=Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival}}</ref> <ref>https://bachtrack.com/review-moonlight-last-seed-tete-a-tete-august-2015/amp=1</ref>building a stage show based on her work with the band she has played with since school, <ref>{{cite web |title=Storytime Joanne Harris and the Storytime Band |url=https://www.tete-a-tete.org.uk/event/storytime/ |publisher=Tête à Tête |access-date=12 January 2024}}</ref> and co-writing and developing an original stage musical, ''Stunners'', with [[Howard Goodall]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wild |first1=Stephi |title=Musical Theatre Network Appoints New Patron and Board Members |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/Musical-Theatre-Network-Appoints-New-Patron-and-Board-Members-20230327 |website=BroadwayWorld.com |access-date=12 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.howardgoodall.co.uk/news/joanne-harris-author-of-chocolat-and-howard-goodall-musical|title=Joanne Harris (author of Chocolat) and Howard Goodall musical: News - Howard Goodall|website=www.howardgoodall.co.uk}}</ref>


In 2021, Harris was a guest on BBC's ''[[Desert Island Discs]]'', where her chosen book was the collected works of [[Victor Hugo]], her luxury was her own shed, and the record she "would save from the waves" was [[Johnny Cash]]'s "[[I Can See Clearly Now]]"<ref name="did">{{cite web |title=Desert Island Discs, Joanne Harris, writer |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0011bx7 |website=BBC Radio 4 |access-date=12 January 2024 |date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
In 2021, Harris was a guest on BBC's ''[[Desert Island Discs]]'', where her chosen book was the collected works of [[Victor Hugo]], her luxury was her own shed, and the record she "would save from the waves" was [[Johnny Cash]]'s "[[I Can See Clearly Now]]"<ref name="did">{{cite web |title=Desert Island Discs, Joanne Harris, writer |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0011bx7 |website=BBC Radio 4 |access-date=12 January 2024 |date=12 November 2021}}</ref>

Revision as of 19:25, 14 January 2024

Joanne Harris

OBE FRSL
Harris in 2020
Harris in 2020
Born (1964-07-03) 3 July 1964 (age 60)
Barnsley, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
(now in South Yorkshire)
Occupationwriter
NationalityBritish/French
EducationWakefield Girls' High School
Barnsley Sixth Form College
Alma materSt Catharine's College, Cambridge
Genreliterary fiction
magic realism
fantasy
psychological thriller
folklore
gothic
Notable worksChocolat
Blackberry Wine
Five-Quarters of the Orange
Gentlemen & Players
The Lollipop Shoes
Runemarks
Runelight
Peaches for Monsieur le Curé
Spouse
Kevin Harris
​
(m. 1988)​
Children1
Joanne Harris's voice
Recorded December 2011 from the BBC Radio 4 programme Woman's Hour
Website
www.joanne-harris.co.uk

Joanne Michèle Sylvie Harris OBE FRSL (born 3 July 1964) is an English-French author, best known for her novel Chocolat (1999) adapted (2000) as the film Chocolat.

Early life

Joanne Harris was born in Barnsley, Yorkshire, to an English father and a French mother. Both worked as French teachers at Barnsley Girls' High School (Hall Balk School).[1] She began writing at an early age. She was strongly influenced by Grimms' Fairy Tales and Charles Perrault's work, as well as local folklore, Norse mythology and classic adventure stories.[2] She was educated at Wakefield Girls' High School, Barnsley Sixth Form College, and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where she studied modern and mediaeval languages.[3]

Literary career

After a single, unsuccessful year as an accountant, which she describes as "like being trapped in a Terry Gilliam movie",[4] she trained as a teacher at the University of Sheffield, and for 15 years she taught modern languages, mostly at Leeds Grammar School, a boys' independent school in Yorkshire. She also taught at Sheffield University, lecturing on aspects of French literature and film.[5] During this period she worked on a number of book projects; The Evil Seed, Sleep, Pale Sister and Chocolat were published while she was still teaching.[6]

In 1999 her third novel, Chocolat won the Creative Freedom Award and was shortlisted for the 1999 Whitbread Novel of the Year Award. Following the success of the motion picture Chocolat starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp, the book sold more than a million copies.[7] Harris went on to write three more novels in the Chocolat series: The Lollipop Shoes (titled The Girl With No Shadow in the US), Peaches for Monsieur le Curé (Peaches for Father Francis in the US), and The Strawberry Thief,[8] as well as three French cookbooks (co-written with Fran Warde).[9].

In 2007, Harris published Runemarks, a fantasy novel based on Norse mythology, aimed at both children and adults. The sequel, Runelight, was published in 2011 and follow ups The Gospel of Loki in 2014 and Testament of Loki in 2017. In addition, Harris has published two collections of short stories and a number of dark psychological thrillers, including Gentlemen and Players, Different Class, Blueeyedboy, A Narrow Door and Broken Light.[10]

Harris has published three novellas – A Pocketful of Crows, The Blue Salt Road, and Orfeia, loosely based on Child Ballads – and illustrated by Bonnie Helen Hawkins. In 2021 she published Honeycomb, a collection of original fairytales, illustrated by Charles Vess. She has donated short stories to various charitable anthologies.

She has judged a number of literary prizes, including the Orange (Women's) Prize,[11] the Whitbread Prize,[12] the Desmond Elliott Prize,[13] the Primadonna Prize[14] and the Winton Prize for Science Books.[15]

Other activities

Harris is a patron of the charities Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), to which she donated the proceeds of her cookery books,[16] and Plan UK, and she has travelled to Togo and to the Congo to report on their work.[17] Harris sits on the Board of the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society.[18]

Harris has also been involved in a number of musical projects, including collaborating with Lucie Treacher and the Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival to create two mini-operas,[19] [20]building a stage show based on her work with the band she has played with since school, [21] and co-writing and developing an original stage musical, Stunners, with Howard Goodall.[22][23]

In 2021, Harris was a guest on BBC's Desert Island Discs, where her chosen book was the collected works of Victor Hugo, her luxury was her own shed, and the record she "would save from the waves" was Johnny Cash's "I Can See Clearly Now"[24]

In 2022, Harris was Pink News Ally of the Year.[25]

Harris became chair of the management committee of the Society of Authors in 2020.[26] She assisted in several SOA campaigns, including raising awareness on author pay and conditions.[27][28]

Honours and awards

Harris is the holder of honorary doctorates in literature from the University of Huddersfield and the University of Sheffield, and is an Honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge.

Harris was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2013 Birthday Honours and Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2022 Birthday Honours for services to literature.[29]

In 2022, she was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.[30]

Harris's Book Awards include:

  • Chocolat: Creative Freedom Award (2000); Whittaker Gold Award (2001). Shortlisted: Whitbread Novel of the Year Award (2000), Scripter Award (2001); film version nominated for 8 BAFTAs and 5 Oscars.[31] Whittaker Platinum Award (2012).
  • Blackberry Wine: 2000 Winner of both the Foreign and International categories of the Salon du Livre Gourmand (France). Whitaker Gold Award (2002).
  • Five-Quarters of the Orange: Shortlisted: 2002 RNA Novel of the Year; Author of the Year 2002; WHSmith Award 2002 (UK).
  • The French Kitchen: (a cookbook with Fran Warde): 2005 Winner of the Golden Ladle for Best Recipe Book (softcover) in the World Food Media Awards.[32]
  • Gentlemen & Players: Shortlisted for the Edgar Award, 2007 (USA)[31] and the Grand Prix du Polar de Cognac (France).[33]
  • Flavours of Childhood: (a piece co-written for the BBC Radio 4 series First Taste with poet Sean O'Brien) Winner of the Glenfiddich Award, 2006.[34]
  • Every Scent Tells a Tale: (a piece written for Good Housekeeping): Winner of Fragrance Foundation Jasmine Award (Literary Category), 2017.[35]


Personal life

Harris lives in Yorkshire with her husband Kevin, and has a son.[36] She works from a shed in her garden.[37]

Harris was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020, and discussed the diagnosis and her ongoing treatment on social media and at the Hay Festival.[38]

Publications

"The Strawberry Thief" redirects here. For the William Morris design, see Strawberry Thief.

Stories featured in the following anthologies:

  • Magic (2002). A collection of stories in aid of Piggybank Kids.
  • Bosom Buddies (2003). A collection of stories in aid of Breast Cancer UK.
  • Journey to the Sea (2005). A collection of stories in aid of Piggybank Kids.
  • Mums – a Celebration of Motherhood (2006). A collection of stories in aid of Piggybank Kids.
  • Dads – a Celebration of Fatherhood (2007). A collection in aid of Piggybank Kids.
  • In Bed With... (2009). A collection of erotic stories by well-known female writers.
  • Because I am a Girl (2010). Charity anthology in aid of Plan UK.
  • Stories (2010). A collection of fantasy tales, edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio.
  • Writing on the Edge (2010). A collection of eyewitness accounts by well-known authors of extreme conditions and war-torn locations. In aid of MSF.
  • Why Willows Weep (2011). Charity anthology in aid of the Woodland Trust.
  • Beacons (2013). Charity anthology in aid of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition.
  • Fearie Tales (2014)
  • That Glimpse of Truth – the 100 Finest Short Stories Ever Written (2014), edited by David Miller.
  • Time Trips (2015). A collection of Doctor Who stories by various authors, including the Joanne Harris novella The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Time Traveller.
  • Twice Cursed (2023). An anthology of stories on the subject of curses, edited by Marie o'Regan and Paul Kane.

References

  1. ^ Lane, Harriet (15 July 2001). "Chocolat and chips". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  2. ^ "Interview: Joanne Harris novelist". www.churchtimes.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  3. ^ "Joanne Harris - Literature". literature.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  4. ^ Harriet Lane (14 July 2001). "Interview: Joanne Harris". The Observer. London. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  5. ^ "Joanne Harris: Modern Myths". Locus Online. 12 July 2015. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Joanne Harris, About the Author". Mostly Fiction Book Reviews. Retrieved 27 May 2008.
  7. ^ Book Reviews (18 May 2012). "The Millionaire Authors' Club". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  8. ^ "The Strawberry Thief". Joanne Harris. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  9. ^ "Joanne Harris, writer". Desert Island Discs. BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  10. ^ "Joanne Harris". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  11. ^ Crown, Sarah (14 March 2005). "Old hands join with new on Orange longlist". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  12. ^ "ReadingZone". ReadingZone. Whitbread Prize. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Female authors lead Desmond Elliott Prize longlist". BBC News. 24 April 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  14. ^ "2019 Prize announcement – primadonnafestival.com". primadonnafestival.com. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  15. ^ "Higgs boson tale wins Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books | Royal Society". royalsociety.org. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  16. ^ "Journey to the land the world forgot - author Joanne Harris in Congo Brazzaville". Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International.
  17. ^ Writing on the Edge: Great Contemporary Writers on the Front Line of Crisis:. ASIN 0847832910.
  18. ^ "Our team". ALCS. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  19. ^ "Clockwork Tête à Tête". Tete-a-Tete Opera Festival.
  20. ^ https://bachtrack.com/review-moonlight-last-seed-tete-a-tete-august-2015/amp=1
  21. ^ "Storytime Joanne Harris and the Storytime Band". Tête à Tête. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  22. ^ Wild, Stephi. "Musical Theatre Network Appoints New Patron and Board Members". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  23. ^ "Joanne Harris (author of Chocolat) and Howard Goodall musical: News - Howard Goodall". www.howardgoodall.co.uk.
  24. ^ "Desert Island Discs, Joanne Harris, writer". BBC Radio 4. 12 November 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  25. ^ Hansford, Amelia (19 October 2022). "PinkNews Awards 2022: Stars unite to celebrate LGBTQ+ heroes and icons". PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  26. ^ "Joanne Harris - The Society of Authors". 16 January 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  27. ^ Harris, Joanne (7 December 2022). "Horribly low pay is pushing out my fellow authors – and yes, that really does matter". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  28. ^ Jessop, Vicky (18 March 2022). "Londoner's Diary: Book world can help Ukrainian voices, says Joanne Harris". Evening Standard.
  29. ^ "No. 63714". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 2022. p. B13.
  30. ^ Shaffi, Sarah; Knight, Lucy (12 July 2022). "Adjoa Andoh, Russell T Davies and Michaela Coel elected to Royal Society of Literature". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  31. ^ a b "Mrs Joanne Harris Authorised Biography – Debrett's People of Today, Mrs Joanne Harris Profile". Debretts.com. Archived from the original on 21 January 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  32. ^ "2010 World Food Media Awards". Worldfoodmediaawards.com. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  33. ^ "Le Rocher de Montmartre – – Joanne Harris | Editions Points". Lecerclepoints.com. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  34. ^ "Institute of Advanced Study : Lecture 5". Durham University. 3 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  35. ^ https://perfumesociety.org/jasmine-awards-list-couldnt-pleased-even-though-didnt-win/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  36. ^ Harris, Joanne (9 December 2022). Today 09/12/2022. Today. BBC Radio 4. Event occurs at 2h52m21s. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  37. ^ Alex Johnson (23 February 2011). "Exclusive: interview with shed-working author Joanne Harris". Shedworking. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  38. ^ Knight, Lucy (30 May 2022). "Joanne Harris says she saw her cancer as a fictional 'monster' she could 'destroy'". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
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