Introduction


Scott O’Dell
Scott O’Dell’s name is a mistake. He was born Odell Gabriel Scott, but while he was working as a newspaper reporter for the Los Angeles Daily News, an editor mistakenly wrote Scott O’Dell as his byline. The name stuck, and O’Dell legally changed it. After his newspaper days, he began writing books for adults. Beginning in the late 1950s, however, his focus shifted, and he started writing for young adults. He wrote over twenty-six young adult novels, three books for adults, and four nonfiction books. His most famous work is Island of the Blue Dolphins, which won the 1961 Newbery Medal, among other awards. He also wrote the popular The King’s Fifth, The Black Pearl, and Sing Down the Moon.

Essential Facts

  1. In 1981, O’Dell started the Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction Award—a $5,000 prize for exceptional works of historical fiction.
  2. O’Dell attended many different colleges, including Occidental College, the University of Wisconsin, Stanford University, and the University of Rome La Sapienza.
  3. He worked briefly as a cameraman and technical director in Hollywood before becoming a writer.
  4. Many of O’Dell’s books have been made into films, including Island of the Blue Dolphins in 1964 and The Black Pearl in 1978.
  5. The King’s Fifth was adapted into an anime series for television in 1982 and renamed The Mysterious Cities of Gold. It was shown in several different countries.