J. Albert Mann is the author of five novels for children. She has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Her work of historical fiction about the early life of Margaret Sanger is What Every Girl Should Know. Born in New Jersey, Mann now lives in Boston with her children, cat, and husband listed in order of affection.Mann's new young adult historical novel is The Degenerates.
From Mann's Q&A with Deborah Kalb:
Q: Why did you decide to set your new YA historical novel in the Fernald School in Massachusetts, and how did you create your four main characters?Visit J. Albert Mann's website.
A: There were many institutions created across the United States to segregate people with disabilities from the general population during the Eugenics Movement.
I chose The Massachusetts School for Idiotic and Feebleminded Youth (later renamed The Fernald School) because it’s in my own backyard. (I live in Boston, and the school was founded in South Boston.) I love researching in the place where the history happened. It’s definitely not a must, it’s just a lot...[read on]
The Page 69 Test: What Every Girl Should Know.
Writers Read: J. Albert Mann.
--Marshal Zeringue