Bilston, Sarah

PERSONAL:

Born in England; married; children: two daughters, one son. Education: University College, London, undergraduate and master's degrees; University of Oxford, doctorate.

ADDRESSES:

Home—CT. Office—Trinity College, Department of English, 115 Vernon St., Rm. 308, Hartford, CT 06106. E-mail—[email protected]; [email protected].

CAREER:

Writer and educator. Trinity College, Hartford, CT, assistant professor of English literature.

WRITINGS:

The Awkward Age: Girls in the Transition to Womanhood in Women's Popular Fiction, 1850-1900, University of Oxford (Oxford, England), 1999, published as The Awkward Age in Women's Popular Fiction, 1850-1900: Girls and the Transition to Womanhood, Oxford University Press (New York, NY), 2004.

Bed Rest (novel), HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2006.

Contributor to periodicals, including the New York Times.

ADAPTATIONS:

Bed Rest was adapted as an audiobook.

SIDELIGHTS:

Sarah Bilston is a college English literature professor who wrote her first novel while confined to bed and home rest because of medical complications during her first pregnancy. Aptly titled Bed Rest, the novel focuses on British born Quinn "Q" Boothroyd, a twenty-eight-year-old lawyer with an American husband who is living in the United States. When confined to bed during her pregnancy, Q undergoes a period of self-reflection about her past, her family, and her life with her husband, which the reader is privy to via Q's daily diary entries. The novel's subplots include Q's accidental involvement in a real estate deal and a friend who appears to be on the verge of having an affair with one of Q's married friends. "Bed Rest is brightened by Bilston's witty repartee and enticing tangents," wrote Leslie Morgan Steiner in the Washington Post. A Publishers Weekly contributor noted that the author "creates an authentic voice for Q." Mary Ann Smyth, writing on the BookLoons Web site, commented that the author "is a welcome new kid on the block." Smyth added that the book "is a beguiling read that keeps the reader turning the pages." A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote: "A bright spot is the author's rendering of the untenable relationship between Q and her headstrong mother and two competitive sisters."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Bookseller, June 24, 2005, "TW signs British teacher," p. 15.

Kirkus Reviews, March 1, 2006, review of Bed Rest, p. 196.

Library Journal, March 15, 2006, Nanette Wargo Donohue, review of Bed Rest, p. 61.

Publishers Weekly, February 13, 2006, review of Bed Rest, p. 62.

Washington Post, June 11, 2006, Leslie Morgan Steiner, review of Best Rest, p. BW07.

ONLINE

Bella Online,http://www.bellaonline.com/ (October 30, 2006), Paula Petrie, review of Bed Rest.

BookLoons,http://www.bookloons.com/ (October 30, 2006), Mary Ann Smyth, review of Bed Rest.

MamaZine.com,http://www.mamazine.com/ (October 30, 2006), Amy Anderson, "Bed Rest: An Interview with Sarah Bilston."

Sarah Bilston Home Page,http://sarahbilston.typepad.com (October 30, 2006).

Trinity College Department of English Web site,http://www.trincoll.edu/Academics/Study/English/ (October 30, 2006), author contact information.