Gwyn Hyman Rubio (born August 7, 1949) is an American author, best known for her novel Icy Sparks.
Gwyn Hyman Rubio | |
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Born | |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Florida State University, U.S. |
Known for | Writing, Icy Sparks |
Spouse | Angel Rubio (1978-present) |
Website | http://www.gwynhymanrubio.com |
Gwyn Ellen Hyman Rubio was born in Macon, Georgia and raised in Cordele to parents Gwendolyn Holt Hyman and Mac Hyman, author of No Time for Sergeants.[1] She graduated from Florida State University in 1971 with a degree in English. She then joined the Peace Corps, where she met her husband Angel and spent several years working as a teacher in Costa Rica.[2] After returning to the U.S. and settling in Kentucky she became interested in writing, ultimately receiving a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Warren Wilson College in 1986. She currently resides in Versailles, Kentucky.
She wrote for a decade before her first novel Icy Sparks was published in 1998. Drawing from Rubio's own childhood struggle with epilepsy, the book follows a girl in rural 1950s Kentucky as she develops the symptoms of Tourette syndrome.[3] Icy Sparks received favorable reviews from critics, but sales were modest until it was selected for Oprah's Book Club in 2001.[3][4] Her 2005 novel, The Woodsman's Daughter, takes place in 1800s Georgia and tells the story of Dalia Miller, the oldest daughter of a turpentine farmer whose past affects his entire family.[5] Rubio also wrote a third novel which was never published.[6] Rubio's latest novel, published in October 2014, Love and Ordinary Creatures, follows a cockatoo named Caruso as he tries to win over the affections of his owner in 1990s North Carolina.[7]