Sandy McKay

McKay was born on 25 August 1959 in Dunedin.{{Cite web|url=https://www.storylines.org.nz/Storylines+Profiles/Profiles+I-M/More+in+Profiles+I-M/Sandy+McKay.html|title=Sandy McKay|last=|first=|date=|website=Storylines|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/new-zealand-childrens-authors/sandy-mckay/|title=Interview with Sandy McKay|last=|first=|date=2005|website=Christchurch City Libraries |archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}} After leaving school at 17, she worked for several years before attending the University of Otago and graduating with a BA in political studies.{{Cite web|url=https://www.horsetalk.co.nz/reviews/onestroppyjockey-075.shtml|title=One Stroppy Jockey The Christine Lawn Story; with Sandy McKay|last=|first=|date=23 November 2007|website=Horsetalk|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}} She has been a waitress, fruit picker, office worker and fruit shop owner, and began to write children's fiction after her own children were born.{{Cite web|url=https://www.read-nz.org/writer/mckay-sandy/|title=McKay, Sandy|last=|first=|date=January 2017|website=Read NZ Te Pou Muramura|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}} In 2002, she was the University of Otago College of Education / Creative New Zealand Children's Writer in Residence.{{Cite web|url=https://www.otago.ac.nz/otagofellows/allprevious_writer.html|title=Otago Fellows|last=|first=|date=|website=University of Otago|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}

Several of her books have been shortlisted for the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults or the Esther Glen Award, or named as Storylines Notable Books. Her stories have appeared in anthologies such as Stories for 7 year olds (Random House, 2014) and Stories for 6 year olds (Random House, 2014), and she has written feature articles for several magazines including Next, More, NZ Woman’s Weekly and Kiwi Parent. Recycled won the Junior Fiction category in the New Zealand Post Book Awards for Children and Young Adults in 2002.{{Cite web|url=http://www.nzbookawards.nz/new-zealand-book-awards-for-children-and-young-adults/past-winners?year=2002|title=Past Winners: 2002|last=|first=|date=|website=NZ Book Awards Trust|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=14 January 2020}}

She also works as an adult literacy tutor for Literacy Aotearoa{{Cite web|url=https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/new-literacy-programme|title=New literacy programme|last=Harwood|first=Brenda|date=23 October 2009|website=Otago Daily Times |archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}} and visits schools as part of the New Zealand Book Council Writers in Schools programme.

She is married with three children and lives in Dunedin.

• Recycled (Longacre Press, 2001){{Cite web|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=188066|title=Sandy McKay: Recycled|last=English|first=Philip|date=10 May 2001|website=The New Zealand Herald |archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}
• My Dad, the All Black Longacre Press, 2002){{Cite web|url=https://christchurchkids.wordpress.com/2011/08/12/rugby-read-2-my-dad-the-all-black-by-sandy-mckay/|title=Rugby read #2 – My Dad, the All Black by Sandy McKay|last=|first=|date=12 August 2011|website=Christchurch Kids Blog|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}
• Becky's Big Race (Wendy Pye Publishing, 2002)
• Colin Goes Bush (Longacre Press, 2003)
• Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (Longacre Press, 2004)
• Barry & Bitsa illustrated by Anna Evans [Kiwi Bites] (Puffin, 2005)
• I'm Telling On You illustrated by Trevor Pye [Kiwi Bites] (Puffin, 2006)
• Losing It (Longacre Press, 2007){{Cite web|url=http://agnewreading.blogspot.com/2008/03/gripping-trio-of-tales-for-teens.html|title=Gripping Trio of Tales for Teens|last=Agnew|first=Trevor|date=29 March 2008|website=agnew reading|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://nzbooks.org.nz/2008/literature/strangers-and-journeys-norman-bilbrough/|title=Strangers and journeys|last=Bilbrough|first=Norman|date=1 March 2008|website=New Zealand review of books Pukapuka Aotearoa|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}
• One Stroppy Jockey (Longacre Press, 2007)
• Me and Jason Ballinger illustrated by Fraser Williamson [Kiwi Bites] (Puffin, 2008)
• Eureka! (Mallinson Rendel, 2008)
• Spiders In My Stomach (Wendy Pye Publishing, 2008)
• My Tripp Smells a Rat illustrated by Ruth Paul (Walker Books, 2011)
• Mr Tripp Goes for a Skate illustrated by Ruth Paul (Walker Books, 2011)
• When Our Jack Went to War (Longacre Press, 2013){{Cite web|url=https://nzbooks.org.nz/tag/sandy-mckay/|title=A lot to live up to|last=Hughes|first=Caoilinn|date=5 December 2013|website=New Zealand review of books Pukapuka Aotearoa|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.thesapling.co.nz/single-post/2017/04/25/Book-List-NZ-books-about-war-and-pacifism|title=Book List: NZ books about war and pacifism|last=Forster|first=Sarah|date=25 April 2017|website=The Sapling|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://bobsbooksnz.wordpress.com/2013/05/13/when-our-jack-went-to-war-by-sandy-mckay/|title=When Our Jack went to War by Sandy McKay|last=Docherty|first=Bob|date=13 May 2013|website=Bobs Books Blog|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=http://childrenswarbooks.blogspot.com/2014/08/when-our-jack-went-to-war-by-sandy-mckay.html|title=When our Jack went to war by Sandy McKay|last=|first=|date=2 August 2014|website=Children's war books|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}
• Charlotte and the Golden Promise (Penguin, 2014){{Cite web|url=https://booksellersnz.wordpress.com/2014/03/03/charlotte-and-the-golden-promise-by-sandy-mckay/|title=Book Review: Charlotte and the Golden Promise, by Sandy McKay|last=Reardon|first=Tierney|date=3 March 2014|website=Booksellers New Zealand|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://bobsbooksnz.wordpress.com/2014/01/29/charlotte-and-the-golden-promise-by-sandy-mckay/|title=Charlotte and the Golden Promise by Sandy McKay|last=Docherty|first=Bob|date=29 January 2014|website=Bobs Books Blog|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.nzbooklovers.co.nz/post/charlotte-and-the-golden-promise-by-sandy-mckay|title=Charlotte and the Golden Promise by Sandy McKay|last=McConnachie|first=JJ|date=|website=NZ Booklovers|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=19 January 2020}}

{{Reflist}}

• Profile of [https://www.read-nz.org/writer/mckay-sandy/ Sandy McKay] on Read NZ Te Pou Muramura website
• Profile of [https://www.storylines.org.nz/Storylines+Profiles/Profiles+I-M/More+in+Profiles+I-M/Sandy+McKay.html Sandy McKay] on Storylines website

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Category:Living people

Category:New Zealand children's writers

Category:New Zealand women children's writers

Category:1959 births

Category:Writers from Dunedin