Gary James Paulsen (May 17, 1939 – October 13, 2021) was an American writer of children's and young adult fiction, best known for coming-of-age stories about the wilderness. He was the author of more than 200 books and wrote more than 200 magazine articles and short stories, and several plays, all primarily for teenagers. He won the Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 1997 for his lifetime contribution in writing for teens. Early life Gary Paulsen was born on May 17, 1939, in Minneapolis to Oscar Paulsen and Eunice Paulsen, née Moen. His father was a career Army officer who departed soon after Gary’s birth to join General Patton’s staff. Gary next saw his father at age 7 when he and his mother sailed to the Philippines to join him at his Army base. He and his mother lived in Thief River Falls, Minnesota. When Gary was 4, his mother took him to live in Chicago. Before World War II ended, she sent him to live with relatives on a farm for a year. He wrote some fragmented autobiographical works describing his early life, such as Eastern Sun, Winter Moon: An Autobiographical Odyssey. The book, which is written in the first person, begins when he was seven, living in Chicago with his mother. Paulsen described several traumatic occurrences that transpired during the three years that are chronicled by the book. For example, one day while his mother was napping, Gary sneaked outside to play. There a vagrant snatched him and attempted to molest him, but his mother suddenly appeared on the scene and beat the man. Paulsen reported an affair his mother had in Eastern Sun. He also discussed his mother's alcoholism. When World War II ended, Gary's father sent for him and his mother to come to join him in the Philippines, where he was stationed. A great part of the book Eastern Sun, Winter Moon is dedicated to the voyage by naval vessels (liberty ships) to the Philippines. During the trip, Gary witnessed a plane crash. He, his mother, and the people who were also being transported on this liberty ship looked on as many of the airplane's passengers were killed or maimed by the sharks that would follow the ship consuming waste. His mother, the only woman aboard, helped the ship's corpsman care for the surviving victims. After arriving in Hawaii, according to Paulsen,