Janet McDonald

Who was Janet McDonald?

Janet McDonald was an American writer of novels for young adults as well as the author of Project Girl, a memoir about her own upbringing in the Brooklyn projects and Ivy League education. Her best known children's book is Spellbound, which tells the story of a teenaged mother who wins a spelling competition and a college scholarship. The book was named as the American Library Association's Best Book for Young Adults in 2002.

In addition to books, McDonald also wrote articles for publications such as Slate, including one in which she paid psychic Sylvia Browne $700 for a reading via telephone. McDonald was a member of Mensa, the high IQ society.

After graduating from Vassar, Columbia University, and New York University, McDonald practiced law in New York City and Seattle. She took a position as an intern at a Paris law firm before moving to Olympia, Washington to work in the Attorney General's office and teach French language classes at Evergreen State College. McDonald settled in Paris in 1995 to work first as an international attorney and then as a writer, until she died of cancer in 2007.