# Andrew Clements

Andrew Elborn Clements (May 29, 1949 – November 28, 2019) was an American author of children's literature. His debut novel Frindle won an award determined by the vote of U.S. schoolchildren in about 20 different U.S. states. In June 2015, Frindle was named the Phoenix Award winner for 2016, as it was the best book that did not win a major award when it was published.

## Life

Clements was born in Camden, New Jersey, and lived in nearby Oaklyn and Cherry Hill before moving to Springfield, Illinois as a pre-teen. As a child, he enjoyed summers at a lakeside cabin in Maine where he spent his days swimming, hiking, water skiing, and his evenings reading books. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Northwestern University and a Masters of Arts in Elementary Education from National Louis University, he worked as a teacher, sharing his love of reading with elementary, middle, and high school students.
He worked for several publishing companies where he published, acquired, edited, marketed, and developed quality children's books. In 1985, Clements added his own work to the market with a picture book entitled Bird Delbert. His first novel was the award-winning Frindle, which has won 16 state book awards, as well as the Christopher Award.
Clements was married to the former Rebecca Pierpont, and they had four sons. He died at his home in Baldwin, Maine, on November 28, 2019, at age 70 from an undisclosed illness.

## Awards

The Children's Literature Association named Frindle the best English-language children's book published in 1996 that did not win a major contemporary book award, thus making it the winner of the Phoenix Award for 2016.

### Contemporary Awards

* 2001: Utah Children's Choice Award
* 1999–2000: Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award
* 1999: Texas Children's Crown Award
* 1999: Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice, (WA, OR, MT, AK, ID, AB, BC)
* 1999: South Dakota Prairie Pasque Award
* 1999: Sasquatch Children's Book Award, (WA)
* 1999: Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Award, (IL)
* 1998–1999: Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award, 4–6
* 1998–1999: Young Hoosier Book Award, (IN)
* 1998–1999: North Carolina Children's Choice Award
* 1998–1999: Nevada Young Readers' Award
* 1998–1999: Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award, (AR)
* 1998–1999: Maud Hart Lovelace Award, MN Youth Reading Award
* 1998–1999: Georgia Children's Book Award
* 1998–1999: William Allen White Children's Book Award, (KS)
* 1998–1999: Massachusetts Children's Book Award
* 1998: Prize Cento, Cento, Italy
* 1998: Rhode Island Children's Book Award
* 1997–1998: Great Stone Face Book Award, (NH)
* 1997: Judy Lopez Memorial Honor Book (L.A.)Award
* 1997: Christopher Award
* 1998–1999 Georgia children's book award

### Listings and recommendations

* 1999: Capitol Choices list, best books for ages 7–10
* 1998: Chicago Public Library's Best of the Best
* 1997–1998: Indiana Read-Alouds Too Good to Miss
* 1997: Horn Book Magazine Fanfare Book
* 1997: Parents' Choice Honor Book
* 1996: New York Public Library One Hundred Titles for Reading and Sharing

### Other

* 2004: California Young Readers Medal, The School Story
* 2004: American Library Association Schneider Family Book Award, Things Not Seen
* 2007: Edgar Allan Poe Award for best juvenile book, Room One: A Mystery or Two
* 2015: Phoenix Award for Frindle