Evelyne Holingue was born in a small town in Normandy, France. Shy and quiet, she dreamed of living the adventures of the fictional characters in the books she devoured.

Her ordinary life shifted when, shortly after being married, she followed her husband to California. Evelyne was sad to leave her career, her family and friends, and her beloved Paris behind. But there was also a distinct sense of adventure that pushed her to embrace this unexpected change.

As a child Evelyne had loved escaping the familiar for the unknown through fiction. Being a foreigner is living the unknown day after day, not only for the time of a book, and Evelyne sometimes got more than what she had wished for.

She started to write in English as she attempted to teach French to her American-born children. Since then she has published short stories and essays for both young readers and adults and two novels for young readers. Through her writing she shares her affection for her native and adoptive lands.

Evelyne still lives with the irresistible guy who told her that it would be cool to live in the United States. She and her family have moved from the West Coast to the East Coast twice. A red lake cabin in Maine is their anchor.

This American life built from scratch is pretty close to the adventures Evelyne dreamed about as a child.

You can learn more at Evelyne’s blog Chronicles, Stories and Books by a French-American Writer.