About the Author

Kim van Alkemade is the author of the historical novels Orphan #8 and Bachelor Girl. Her creative nonfiction essays have appeared in literary journals including Alaska Quarterly Review, CutBank, and So To Speak. Born in New York City, she earned a BA in English and history from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, and an MA and PhD in English from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She is a Professor in the English Department at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, where she teaches writing.

Reviews

Praise for Orphan #8:

"Kim van Alkemade has moxie. In her provocative novel, family is saturated with betrayal, care is interrupted by ambition and desire, and the past is intimately explored, invoking the abandoned child in all of us. Orphan # 8 brims with complicated passions and pitch-perfect historical details. A riveting, memorable debut." --Catherine Zobal Dent, author of Unfinished Stories of Girls "Inspired by actual events, van Alkemade crafts a powerful story of festering vengeance and redemption that touches readers on many levels. Alkemade has managed to incorporate many emotions into her thoughtful debut, emotions that linger long after the last page is turned." --RT Book Reviews "This book is utterly unputdownable. At once atmospheric, disturbing and absolutely engrossing, it poses a host of moral questions; I fully anticipate that it will become popular with book clubs." --Historical Novels Review "...van Alkemade succeeds in bringing to light a fascinating and little-known chapter of history...she vividly chronicles her heroine's pain, resilience and capacity to be honest with those who loved her, with those who betrayed her, and ultimately with herself." --Lillith Magazine "A sure book club pick and a strong debut." --Lambda Literary Review "Even non-aficionados of historical fiction will find much to savor in this remarkable novel. Its themes and artistry will linger in reader memory. Orphan #8 is a remarkable work, well rooted in some little-known history... a broad landscape of issues, superbly rendered." --GLBT Reviews, American Library Association's LGBT Round Table

An utterly compelling novel about love's many dimensions--its curiosities, letdowns and limitations; and its uplift, endurance and vigor. In a sweeping look back to New York City in the Roaring Twenties, BACHELOR GIRL takes a forward stance against everything that stands in love's way."

--Silas Dent Zobal

From the first paragraphs, BACHELOR GIRL plunges the reader deep into life during the Jazz Age... [T]he mystery of Ruppert's largesse and the slow revealing of other secrets and confessions will keep readers up all night looking for answers alongside Winthrope and Kramer.-- "Booklist, starred review"