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Tim Federle

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Tim Federle
File:Federle photo GENERAL.jpg
BornTimothy Michael Federle
March 24
Foster City, California, United States
OccupationWriter
GenreHumor, Children's
Notable awardsGolden Kite Award 2014 Lambda Literary Award 2015 Odyssey Award 2014 and 2015
Website
www.timfederle.com

Tim Federle is an award-winning American novelist[1] and theater librettist. He also has been a performer in Broadway musicals.

Biography

Federle wrote the novel Better Nate Than Ever,[2] the cocktail recipe book Tequila Mockingbird,[3] and co-wrote the book for the Broadway musical adaptation of Tuck Everlasting,[4] also titled Tuck Everlasting.[5]

Federle was born in San Mateo, California, and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,[6] the setting for much of his fiction.[7] Prior to his writing career, Federle appeared in the original casts of The Little Mermaid and Gypsy (2003 Bernadette Peters revival), as an actor, dancer and singer. He worked on the resident choreographic staff of Billy Elliot the Musical where he was the dance captain.[8]

Works

Fiction

Better Nate Than Ever (2013, Simon & Schuster [9]) Federle’s debut novel for middle schoolers, Better Nate Than Ever, tells the story of a teenage boy named Nate, who sneaks away from his home in Pennsylvania to audition for E.T: The Musical on Broadway.[10][11] In a CNN article about the book, Federle said: "I think so often when you're a kid, we mellow out those more interesting edges in order to coast through middle school quietly. By the time you get to high school, you're left asking, who the heck am I? I would encourage kids to try and figure out the thing that sets you apart, not publicly but that you're passionate about internally."[12] Nate was published to critical acclaim[13] and as of December 2, 2014, is in its seventh printing.[14] Described by the Huffington Post as "Judy Blume as seen through a Stephen Sondheim lens,"[15] and the New York Times as "inspired and inspiring,"[16] Better Nate Than Ever has been celebrated as unique for being a "book where teenage sexuality is treated with a light touch".[17] The novel is an Amazon Best Book of 2013,[18] a New York Times Notable Book of 2013,[19] a Stonewall Book Award Honor Book,[20] and a Lambda Literary Award[21] finalist. The audio book is an Odyssey Award Honor Book,[22] and was narrated by Federle.

Five, Six, Seven, Nate! (2014, Simon & Schuster) In December 2013, Entertainment Weekly ran an excerpt of Five, Six, Seven, Nate!, Federle’s follow-up to Better Nate Than Ever.[23] The sequel charts Nate’s continued adventures in New York City as he navigates his role in the creation of a major Broadway musical.[24] A Kirkus starred review called the novel an "Encore performance that will leave them standing in the aisles."[25] Five, Six, Seven, Nate! was chosen as a Junior Library Guild selection,[26] an Amazon Best Book of 2014, and an American Booksellers Association Best Book for Children.[27] Federle won his second Odyssey Honor Book award[22] for the audio book edition.

Summer Days and Summer Nights (2016, St. Martin's Press)

On March 3, 2015 young adult fiction author Stephanie Perkins announced on Twitter[28] that she will be editing a forthcoming YA anthology, Summer Days and Summer Nights, featuring twelve new stories from bestselling authors Leigh Bardugo, Francesca Lia Block, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Brandy Colbert, Tim Federle, Lev Grossman, Nina LaCour, Stephanie Perkins, Veronica Roth, Jon Skovron, and Jennifer E. Smith. According to a Publishers Weekly announcement,[29] St. Martins Press is set to release the collection in the summer of 2016. The anthology is a follow-up to Perkins’ My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories, published to acclaim[30] in 2014.

The Great American Whatever (2016, Simon & Schuster) In June 2015 Huffington Post revealed the cover of Federle’s forthcoming novel, The Great American Whatever.[31] Federle’s first title for young adults is about Quinn Roberts, "a sixteen-year-old smart aleck",[32] who dreams of Hollywood and becoming a professional screenwriter. The novel is receiving advance praise from authors and critics alike, with Veronica Mars' Rob Thomas calling it "original, authentic, engaging".[33] It has also received starred reviews from the publishing trade journals School Library Journal, Booklist,[34] and Kirkus Reviews, who called it "a Holden Caulfield for a new generation."[35] A Huffington Post article about the creation of the book stated that "Federle had a mature audience in mind when he began writing the book, originally titled Quinn, Victorious, five years ago, basing the plot on his personal experiences as seen through characters in their mid-20s."[31] Following the novel's publishing, the Huffington Post called The Great American Whatever "The gay young adult novel you've been waiting for."[36]

Cocktail Books

Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist (Perseus Books, 2013 [37] Federle’s first novelty cocktail recipe book, Tequila Mockingbird won the Goodreads Best Cookbook of 2013 Award,[38] and was featured as a clue on Jeopardy! in October 2014.[39] Federle has said the inspiration for the book was his own mother’s book club, which "would dissolve into opening wine".[40] In an April 2014 interview with School Library Journal, Federle was quoted as saying, "Tequila Mockingbird came out of a silly one line email to my agent, Brenda Bowen—‘Hey, do you think the Urban Outfitters crowd would go for a literary cocktail guide?’ I truly wrote the proposal on a whim."[41] The book went on to be sold at Urban Outfitters [42] and ModCloth,[43] among other specialty retailers, and was cited as one of Perseus Book Publisher’s leading titles, along with Friday Night Lights and Black Mass, in a September 2015 [[Wall Street Journal]] article.[44] According to a December 2014 article in The Atlantic, Tequila Mockingbird has thus far sold over 100,000 copies.[14]

Hickory Daiquiri Dock: Cocktails with a Nursery Rhyme Twist (Perseus Books, 2014) The second installment in Federle’s cocktail book series, Hickory Daiquiri Dock features twists on popular nursery rhymes, such as "Jack and Coke (and Jill)," "Baa, Baa, Black Russian," and "Old MacDonald Had a Flask." The Tampa Bay Times called it "More fun at a baby shower than a Diaper Genie"[40] and The Atlantic called it "naughty, but never crass," and compared its irreverent take on parenting to the viral phenomenon Go the Fuck to Sleep.[14]

Gone with the Gin: Cocktails with a Hollywood Twist (Perseus Books, November 2015) In December 2014, Federle asked his Twitter followers to help him name his next cocktail recipe book, this one featuring twists on classic movies.[45] Gone with the Gin published in October 2015, and features drinks including "A Sidecar Named Desire," "No Country for Old Fashioneds," and "Bonnie and Mudslide." Like Tequila Mockingbird, Gone with the Gin includes recipes for bar bites and ideas for drinking games.[46][47][48]

Broadway

Federle makes his debut as a musical theater co-librettist in 2016 with the Broadway adaptation of Natalie Babbitt’s classic book Tuck Everlasting, titled Tuck Everlasting. Following a pre-Broadway tryout at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, the musical began its Broadway engagement at the Broadhurst Theatre in March 2016. The Broadway iteration was nominated for two Drama League Awards, and three Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding Musical for both.[49][50]

The book and the musical version tell the story of Winnie Foster, a 10-year old who stumbles upon a family that has discovered the secret to immortality. Andrew-Keenan Bolger and Sarah Charles Lewis star as Jesse Tuck and Winnie Foster, respectively. The artistic team is led by director-choreographer Casey Nicholaw, with music and lyrics by Chris Miller and Nathan Tysen. Federle is co-writing the musical’s libretto with Claudia Shear.[51]

References

  1. ^ "Lambda Awards" Los Angeles Times, June 2, 2015
  2. ^ "Best Novels and Children's Books of 2013" Slate, December 2013
  3. ^ Tequilla Mockingbird Huffington Post, May 9, 2013
  4. ^ Tuck Everlasting ibdb.com
  5. ^ Viagas, Riobert. "Best-Selling Author Tim Federle Will Co-Write Libretto for Broadway's 'Tuck Everlasting'" Playbill, January 4, 2016
  6. ^ "Tim Federle" Great River Shakespeare Festival, July 2015
  7. ^ Zuchowski, Dave. "‘Better Nate’ author returning to city for book tour" Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, January 16, 2014
  8. ^ "Tim Federle Broadway" Playbill (vault)
  9. ^ "Tim Federle" simonandschuster.com
  10. ^ "Kids From 'Newsies' Talk Dream Roles With "Better Nate Than Ever" Author Tim Federle" Playbill
  11. ^ Sagnella, Lauren. "QA With 'Better Nate Than Ever' Author Tom Federle" stagenotes.net, February 19, 2013
  12. ^ DuChateau, Christian. "'Idol' fans will love 'Better Nate Than Ever'" cnn.com, February 8, 2013
  13. ^ Better Nate Than Ever' publishersweekly.com
  14. ^ a b c O'Keefe, Kevin. "The Pun-Slinging Guru of 'Drinking Through Parenthood'" The Atlantic, December 2, 2014
  15. ^ "Tim Federle 'Better Nate Than Ever'" Huffington Post, March 12, 2013
  16. ^ Balaban, Bob. "Sunday Book Review. Rising Stars" New York Times, March 8, 2013
  17. ^ Healy, Patrick. "A Boy Finds His Love for Theater" New York Times, February 22, 2013
  18. ^ [1] amazon.com
  19. ^ "Notable Books of 2013" New York Times
  20. ^ Award ala.org
  21. ^ Annual Lambda Literary Award Finalists Announced" lambdaliterary.org
  22. ^ a b "Awards" ala.org
  23. ^ Walker, Jodi. "'Five, Six, Seven, Nate!': read an exclusive excerpt from Tim Federle's kid-gone-Broadway sequel" ew.com, December 5, 2013
  24. ^ DuChateau, Christian. "5 questions for 'Five, Six, Seven, Nate!' author Tim Federle" cnn.com, January 21, 2014
  25. ^ "Kirkus Review" kirkusreviews.com, January 28, 2014
  26. ^ Five, Six, Seven, Nate! juniorlibraryguild.com
  27. ^ "ALA 2014 Awards" juniorlibraryguild.com
  28. ^ Perkins, Stephanie. Summer Days and Summer Nights twitter.com, March 3, 2015
  29. ^ "Rights Report: Week of March 2, 2015" publishersweekly.com, March 3, 2015
  30. ^ My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories publishersweekly.com
  31. ^ a b Wong, Curtis. "Tim Federle Reveals Cover For ‘The Great American Whatever,’ His New Young Adult Novel" Huffington Post, June 4, 2015
  32. ^ Federle amazon.com
  33. ^ The Great American Whatever simonandschuster.com
  34. ^ Tim Federle booklistonline
  35. ^ "Book Reviews" kirkusreviews.com
  36. ^ Wong, Curtis. "The Gay Young Adult Novel You’ve Been Waiting For Is Finally Here" Huffington Post, March 30, 2016
  37. ^ "Tim Federle" perseusbooksgroup.com
  38. ^ "Results for Best Food & Cookbooks. 2013" goodreads.com
  39. ^ [2] archive.com
  40. ^ a b Reiley, Laura. "Tim Federle's 'Tequila Mockingbird' cookbook mixes literature, cocktails" The Tampa Bay Times, January 27, 2014
  41. ^ Interviews slj.com, April 2014
  42. ^ Catalog urbanoutfitters.com
  43. ^ Books modcloth.com
  44. ^ Article Wall Street Journal
  45. ^ [3] twitter.com
  46. ^ "Gone With the Gin"Parade, October 30, 2015
  47. ^ Goodman, Jessica. "See the cover and first recipe from 'Gone With The Gin'" ew.com, June 29, 2015
  48. ^ Mondry, Sydney. "This Gone with the Wind-Inspired Cocktail Will Make You, Frankly Our Dears, Not Give a Damn" Instyle, November 18, 2015
  49. ^ http://dramaleague.org/events/awards/nominees
  50. ^ http://www.playbill.com/article/2016-outer-critics-circle-nominees-announced-com-347165
  51. ^ Viagas, Robert. "Full Cast Announced for Broadway's 'Tuck Everlasting'" Playbill, January 15, 2016

Further reading

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