The Lotus Cup

by Jane Louise Curry

Though two boys are paying attention to her, a seventeen-year-old in East Liverpool, Ohio, is painfully shy until she discovers in herself the eye, hand, and heart of a potter.

230 pages, Hardcover

First published April 30, 1986

About the author

Jane Louise Curry was born in East Liverpool, Ohio, on September 24, 1932. She is the daughter of William Jack Curry Jr. and Helen Margaret Curry. Curry grew up in Pennsylvania (Kittanning and Johnstown), but upon her graduation from college she moved to Los Angeles, California, and London, England.

Curry attended the Pennsylvania State University in 1950, and she studied there until 1951 when she left for the Indiana State College (now known as Indiana University of Pennsylvania). In 1954, after graduation, Curry moved to California and worked as both an art teacher for the Los Angeles Public School District and a freelance artist. In 1957, Curry entered the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) in order to study English literature, but in 1959 she left Los Angeles and became a teaching assistant at Stanford University. Curry was awarded the Fulbright grant in 1961 and the Stanford-Leverhulme fellowship in 1965, allowing her to pursue her graduate studies at the University of London. She earned her M.A. in 1962 and her Ph.D. in medieval English literature from Stanford University in 1969. From 1967-1968 and, again, from 1983-1984, Curry was an instructor of English literature at the college level. She became a lecturer in 1987. Besides her writings, Curry’s artworks are also considered among her achievements. She has had several paintings exhibited in London, and her works have even earned her a spot in the prestigious Royal Society of British Artists group exhibition. Among the many groups that Curry belongs to are the International Arthurian Society, the Authors Guild, the Children’s Literature Association, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers.

Curry illustrated and published her first book Down from the Lonely Mountain in 1965. This juvenile fiction based on Californian Native American folklore has paved the way for Curry’s expansive literary career. She has penned more than 30 novels, which are mostly based on child characters dealing with a wide variety of subjects. Many of Curry’s writings deal with folklore, such as the Native American folklore that she explores in her novels Turtle Island: Tales of Algonquian Nations and The Wonderful Sky Boat: And Other Native American Tales of the Southeast, and the retellings of famous European folk stories, such as Robin Hood and his Merry Men, Robin Hood in the Greenwood, and The Christmas Knight. Yet she also delves into the genres of fantasy, such as in her novels Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Time and Me, Myself, and I; historical fiction, such as in her novels What the Dickens and Stolen Life; and mystery, such as in her novels The Bassumtyte Treasure and Moon Window.

Curry has been honored with many awards throughout her writing career. In 1970, her novel The Daybreakers earned Curry the Honor Book award from the Book World Spring Children’s Book Festival and the Outstanding Book by a Southern California Author Award from the Southern California Council on Literature for Children and Young People. The Mystery Writers of America honored Curry two years in a row by awarding her the Edgar Allan Poe Award, or the Edgar, for Poor Tom’s Ghost in 1978 and The Bassumtyte Treasure in 1979. Also in 1979, for her complete body of work at that time, the Southern California Council on Literature for Children and Young People presented Curry with the Distingushed Contribution to the Field of Children’s Literature Award.

Curry resides in Palo Alto, California, and London, England.

Reviews

[Piepie | The Napping Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in middle school and loved it - and recently bought a copy for myself. I'm glad it was on my shelf when I needed it for a reading challenge - "a book published before you were born." (I tried - and failed - to read Wuthering Heights ... too dry and boring!)

Corry is a shy, unassuming student who lives with her mother. One day on a class trip Corry discovers an interest in pottery and has the idea to copy a piece of Lotus Ware. Family secrets come to light, and she discovers that the new kid at school is actually her second cousin ... who may be hiding things of his own. Through trial and error - and with help from friends, her mom, and people in the community - Corry goes on a journey of creating and self-discovery. She's clearly a relatable character - you can see her struggling with schoolwork; friends; and her relationship with her mother.

This book is definitely dated - you can see that in grammar and expressions that the characters use. "For crumbs' sake..."

**Nerd Alert... one of the characters makes a reference to "Dr. Who" and the "tardis." I did some digging and this might have been the sixth doctor.

All in all, not bad. Covers a subject - pottery - that I know next to nothing about, and it's fascinating to sit on the sidelines and watch Corry. I don't remember this book ending so abruptly though...

This will be a book that I will keep on my bookshelf! I remember opening the package that this book was in and feeling so sentimental at seeing this intriguing cover again :)

[Ann Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book not long after it was published. My family business was gifted a copy because we were mentioned and interviewed for this book. My late aunt was the Secretary that the little girl interviewed, I chuckled with delight as I read that section of the book, because Ms. Curry recited her word for word. I was born and raise in East Liverpool just like the author and I had a wonderful time placing every section of town and the surrounding area that was mentioned. This is a wonderful read for the pre-teens in your life, if you can find a copy of it.