Bauer, Cat

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Bauer, Cat

PERSONAL:

Born in SC. Education: Studied at Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting, New York, NY, and at University of California, Los Angeles. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, traveling, gardening, snorkeling.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Venice, Italy. Agent—William Clark, William Clark Associates, 154 Christopher St., Ste. 3C, New York, NY 10014. E-mail—cat@catbauer.com.

CAREER:

Actress, playwright, and writer. Has appeared in television commercials and daytime dramas.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Sue Alexander Award for Most Promising New Work, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, 2000, and Best Books for Young Adults, American Library Association, Top-Ten Youth First Novel, Booklist, Top-Ten Teen First Novel, Bookreporter, and Book of the Year, Young Adult Fiction, ForeWord, all 2001, all for Harley, like a Person.

WRITINGS:

Harley, like a Person, Winslow Press (Delray Beach, FL), 2000.

Harley's Ninth, Alfred A. Knopf (New York, NY), 2007.

Also writes newspaper articles for International Herald Tribune Italy Daily. Contributor to Sassy.

SIDELIGHTS:

Cat Bauer's first novel began as a short story, published in the teen magazine Sassy. A strong response from the magazine's readers compelled Bauer to tell the rest of her story in a full-length novel, Harley, like a Person. Harley, a teenage girl in a dysfunctional family, has an alcoholic, abusive father and an unsupportive mother. When Harley makes an unexpected discovery, she learns that she is adopted, leading her on a search for one of her "real" parents. However, her obsession with her birth father nearly derails her.

On Authors on the Web, Bauer described how she submitted her manuscript of Harley, like a Person for review at the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators conference. She recalled: "I was fortunate enough to have [young adult author] Walter Dean Myers read my manuscript…. He reinforced everything I felt instinctively." After this professional evaluation, Bauer left her publisher and her agent, feeling that their vision for Harley, like a Person and her own were not compatible. She soon found a new agent and a small publisher and, although they called for "radical changes" in the manuscript, Bauer wrote that "in this case, they felt right."

Readers and reviewers often found the strength of Bauer's novel in the authentic voice of its heroine, Harley. Patricia Morrow, for example, in the Voice of Youth Advocates, remarked that "Harley's voice is true to the experience of many young people." Morrow also noted: "Although the outcomes are not unexpected, they do not follow any formulas." Similarly, writing for Booklist, Frances Bradburn commented that "Harley's strength of character, her humor, and her vulnerability will resonate with teen readers." A contributor to Horn Book wrote that although the novel could have used "more structure and focus," it "offers a compelling read and a close-up look at adolescent emotional life." Francisca Goldsmith, in the School Library Journal, found some problems in the construction of the novel, remarking that some characters have "disappointingly flat walk-on roles," and noted that Harley's quest to find her father is "flawed but credible in method." Goldsmith nonetheless noted that Bauer's "well-felt story" would resonate with young adult readers.

Bauer continued the story of Harley in her next book, Harley's Ninth. It is two years after the first novel and Harley is now sixteen and living with her biological father, Sean, in New York. Harley's artwork is gaining recognition as she is named a "Most Promising Young Artist" by Beatrice Snow. She is also dating a young musician, and everything in her life seems perfect until Harley and her boyfriend, Evan, a rising young rock star, have unprotected sex. The novel follows Harley as she goes through a day with a pregnancy test in her purse worrying about what will happen to her in the future, especially if she is pregnant. School Library Journal contributor Erin Shirota noted that the story revolves around the fact that Harley "is forced to reexamine the very relationships upon which she has come to depend." For example, Harley makes an astonishing discovery about her best friend and learns more about her father as he visits his sick mother. Meanwhile, Harley's mother appears to no longer want to have anything to do with her. Janis Flint-Ferguson, writing in Kliatt, noted that "YAs will find some down-to-earth values amidst the NYC glamour and culture." A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote: "The worry about being pregnant … threads through each conversation, providing an ironic twist as Sean and Harley's own relationship develops."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 2000, Frances Bradburn, review of Harley, like a Person, p. 1880; November 15, 2000, Hazel Rochman, review of Harley, like a Person, p. 631; January 1, 2007, Lynn Rutan, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 78.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, May, 2000, Kate McDowell, review of Harley, like a Person, pp. 306-307; June, 2007, Karen Coats, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 403.

Horn Book, May, 2000, review of Harley, like a Person, p. 307.

Kirkus Reviews, January 15, 2007, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 70.

Kliatt, January, 2007, Janis Flint-Ferguson, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 8.

School Library Journal, May, 2000, Francisca Goldsmith, review of Harley, like a Person, p. 166; March, 2007, Erin Schirota, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 203.

Voice of Youth Advocates, October, 2000, Patricia Morrow, review of Harley, like a Person, p. 260; February, 2007, Kimberly Paone, review of Harley's Ninth, p. 519.