Jeff Shaara
 |
Jeffrey Shaara | |
|---|---|
 Shaara at a book signing in Dallas, TX. | |
| Born | February 21, 1952 New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Florida State University |
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Notable works | Gods and Generals, The Last Full Measure |
| Relatives | Michael Shaara (father) |
| Website | |
| jeffshaara | |
Jeffrey M. "Jeff" Shaara (born February 21, 1952) is an American novelist and the son of Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Shaara.[1]
Biography
[edit]Jeffrey Shaara was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and grew up in Tallahassee, Florida. He graduated from Florida State University in 1974 with a degree in Criminology[2] and lives in Gettysburg.[3]
He wrote Gods and Generals and The Last Full Measure, which is the prequel and sequel, respectively, to his father Michael's award-winning novel The Killer Angels.[4] Jeff followed his father's footsteps upon the latter's death, writing historical fiction and documenting the American wars and their most historically relevant characters. In total, Jeff has written fifteen New York Times bestselling novels.[5]
Jeff delivered the commencement speech at the University of Delaware's 2005 undergraduate ceremony. Jeff has deemed this "one of the most important moments in his life."[6]
He completed a trilogy in 2010 about World War II in the European and North African theaters. A fourth World War II novel, titled The Final Storm, covers the end of the war in the Pacific, and was released on May 17, 2011.[7]
Awards
[edit]Shaara received the W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction from the American Library Association in 2022 for The Eagle's Claw,[8] in 2018 for The Frozen Hours,[9] in 2005 for To The Last Man: A Novel of The First World War,[10] and in 1997 for Gods and Generals.[11] The American Library Association's Reference and Users Services Association recognized The Steel Wave as a 2009 Notable Book.[12]
He has also been awarded The Lincoln Forum's "Richard Nelson Current Award of Achievement",[13] New York Civil War Round Table's "Bell I. Wiley Award",[14] and Florida State University's "Artes Award" as a Distinguished Alumnus.[15] In 2011, Shaara was inducted into the FSU College of Criminology Hall of Fame and awarded FSU's first annual Distinguished Writer's Award.[16]
Film adaptations
[edit]In 2003, Warner Brothers made the major motion picture Gods and Generals, which was based upon his book of the same title.[17]
Works
[edit]- Jeff Shaara's Civil War Battlefields: Discovering America's Hallowed Ground (2006) ISBN 9780345464880
Novels
[edit]- Gods and Generals (1996)—Civil War (1858–1863) ISBN 9780345409577
- The Last Full Measure (1998)—Civil War (1861–1865) ISBN 9780345404916
- Gone for Soldiers (2000)—US-Mexican War (1847–1848) ISBN 9780345427502
- Rise to Rebellion (2001)—Pre-American Revolutionary War (1770–1776) ISBN 9780345427533
- The Glorious Cause (2002)—American Revolutionary War (1776–1783) ISBN 9780345427564
- To the Last Man (2004)—World War I (1914–1918) ISBN 9780345461346
- The Rising Tide (2006)—World War II (1939–1945), Trilogy Part 1 of 3 ISBN 9780345461414
- The Steel Wave (2008)—World War II (1939–1945), Trilogy Part 2 of 3 ISBN 9780345461421
- No Less Than Victory (2009)—World War II (1939–1945), Trilogy Part 3 of 3 ISBN 9780345497925
- The Final Storm (2011)—World War II (1939–1945), Pacific Theater ISBN 9780345497949
- A Blaze of Glory (2012)—Civil War (1861-1865), Western Theater, Tetralogy Part 1 of 4 ISBN 9780345527356
- A Chain of Thunder (2013)—Civil War (1861-1865), Western Theater, Tetralogy Part 2 of 4 ISBN 9780345527387
- The Smoke at Dawn (2014)—Civil War (1861-1865), Western Theater, Tetralogy Part 3 of 4 ISBN 9780345527417
- The Fateful Lightning (2015)—Civil War (1861-1865), Western Theater, Tetralogy Part 4 of 4 ISBN 9780345549198
- The Frozen Hours (2017)—Korean War (1950-1953) ISBN 9780345549228
- To Wake The Giant (2020)—Pearl Harbor, World War II (1939–1945) ISBN 9780593129623
- The Eagle's Claw (2021) - Battle of Midway, World War II (1939–1945) ISBN 9780525619444
- The Old Lion (2023) - Teddy Roosevelt's life and times, including Amazon exploration ISBN 9781250279941
- The Shadow of War (2024) - Cuban Missile Crisis ISBN 9781250279965
References
[edit]- ^ "CNN - Like father, like son - July 14, 1998". www.cnn.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Author Q&A: Jeff Shaara". The Clarion Ledger. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Jeff Shaara | Penguin Random House". www.penguinrandomhouse.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Bookmarks Presents Jeff Shaara, Best-Selling Military Author - Salisbury Post". Salisbury Post. May 28, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Jeff's Bio | Jeff Shaara". jeffshaara.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Commencement speaker felt 'part of UD family'". University of Delaware. June 30, 2005.
- ^ "The Final Storm: A Novel of World War II in the Pacific (World War II: 1939-1945 #4)". Goodreads. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
- ^ "'The Eagles Claw' by Jeff Shaara wins the W. Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction". News and Press Center. May 25, 2022.
- ^ CMALDEN (May 8, 2018). "'Frozen Hours: A Novel of Korean War' by Jeff Shaara wins 2018 W. Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction". News and Press Center.
- ^ "W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction | Awards & Grants". www.ala.org. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction | Awards & Grants". www.ala.org. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Awards and Honors". Archived from the original on December 21, 2014.
- ^ "lincolnforum | Richard Nelson Current Award". lincolnforum. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Civil War Round Table of New York | Bell I. Wiley Award". www.cwrtnyc.org. Retrieved November 27, 2018.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Vires, Artes, Mores | A university-wide donor recognition society". vam.fsu.edu. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Cassidy & Fishman Inc » Blog Archive » Jeff Shaara". www.cassidyandfishman.com.
- ^ "Gods and Generals". www.warnerbros.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- "Interview with Jeff Shaara", by Gene Santoro, HistoryNet.com, September 2009.
- "Meet Jeff Shaara" official web site
- "Author Jeff Shaara" 3 interviews at BookReporter.com: May 16, 2008; November 10, 2006; October 2004.
- "Interview with Best-Selling Author Jeff Shaara", by Greg Caggiano, January 24, 2011.
External links
[edit]- Author's website
- Interview on The Rising Tide at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library on November 30, 2006
- Video or audio interview by Karen Saupe on Inner Compass
- Video interview on The Steel Wave
- Interview on his father and No Less Than Victory at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library on February 4, 2010
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- 20th-century American novelists
- 21st-century American novelists
- American historical novelists
- American male novelists
- Writers of historical fiction set in the modern age
- Novelists from Florida
- Florida State University alumni
- 1952 births
- Living people
- American writers of Italian descent
- Writers from New Brunswick, New Jersey
- 20th-century American male writers
- 21st-century American male writers
- Novelists from New Jersey
- Leon High School alumni