Literary Birthday – 18 August – Sonia Levitin

Happy Birthday, Sonia Levitin, born on 18 August 1934.

Sonia Levitin Quotes

1. Stories are my art and my solace. They could also be my weapons. Stories give more than facts. Stories touch the conscience and stimulate action. That is my motive and my goal, to put research and study and feeling into that cauldron called the novel.
2. Through my writing, I have made new friends and continued to learn about this world of ours in all its wonder, with all its challenges.
3. When I was only eleven years old, I decided to become a writer. I told this ambition in a letter to Laura Ingalls Wilder; the die was cast. How could I go back on my word?
4. I believe that good literature must inform as well as entertain. A good book should also take the reader into unknown places, not only in this world but into the past and future. I write mysteries, science fiction, and stories that compel the characters to move out of their comfort zone.
5. I strive for authenticity through careful research and finding new ways of rendering feelings.
6. Teaching creative writing to adults has been a vital part of my life. It is true that ‘by your students you are taught’.
7. In teaching my aim is to know every student, to find out why they are really taking this class, what story ideas are buried deep within and how I can help bring them to fruition. I teach the basics of good writing, focusing on plot, theme, and characters.

Sonia Levitin is a German-American novelist, children’s author, and teacher. Her experiences as a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany have strongly influenced her writing. Her family escaped Germany before the Second World War, and she later drew on those experiences in Journey to America, published in 1970, which remains one of her best-known books. Levitin has published more than 40 books for children, young adults, and adults, including The Return, The Singing Mountain, and Incident at Loring Groves. Her work often explores history, immigration, courage, identity, and people facing difficult challenges. She is known for careful research and has travelled to places where her stories are set to make them more authentic. Levitin has taught creative writing and literature for many years. She has received several awards, including National Jewish Book Awards and an Edgar Allan Poe Award.

Source for image: JWA, Courtesy of Rita Berman Frischer / Source for quotes: Author’s website

by Amanda Patterson
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