Draper, Sharon (1948-…), is an African American author and educator. Many of her books for young adults deal seriously with controversial subjects, such as racism, suicide, sexual abuse, and drug addiction.
Draper has won a number of literary awards. She received the John Steptoe New Talent Award in 1995 for her novel Tears of a Tiger (1994). She won a Coretta Scott King Award in 1998 for the sequel, Forged by Fire (1997). Both books deal with social problems among inner-city young people. Draper received another Coretta Scott King Award in 2007 for Copper Sun (2006), a historical novel about a 15-year-old African girl who is kidnapped and taken to America to be enslaved. Draper’s other novels for young adults include Romiette and Julio (1999); Darkness Before Dawn (2001); Double Dutch (2002); The Battle of Jericho (2003) and its sequels, November Blues (2007) and Just Another Hero (2009); and Fire from the Rock (2007). She also wrote Out of My Mind (2010) and its sequel, Out of My Heart (2021), as well as Stella by Starlight (2015).
Draper wrote a series of novels for young readers about a 10-year-old African American boy named Ziggy. In the series, Ziggy and his three friends explore African American and Native American history and folklore. The series began with Ziggy and the Black Dinosaurs (1994).
Sharon Renee Mills was born on Aug. 21, 1948, in Cleveland. She married Larry Draper, a teacher, in 1970. She received a B.A. degree from Pepperdine University in California in 1970 and an M.A. degree from Miami University in Ohio in 1974. Draper taught in the Cincinnati public school system from 1970 to 1997. In 1997, she was named National Teacher of the Year. Draper then became a spokesperson for teaching and traveled widely to speak about the importance of excellence in schools.
See also Coretta Scott King Awards.
