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Schmatz, Pat

(?   -    ) US author of children's and Young Adult books. Mrs. Estronsky and the U.F.O. (2001) is primarily about growing up but includes a UFO encounter. In Circle the Truth (2007), an irruption of gentle surrealism – the geography of the young protagonist's home changes or seems to change by night – leads to even-handed exploration of faith, Religion and the nature of reality. Schmatz's tale of greatest sf interest is Lizard Radio (2015), set in a Near Future Dystopia whose authoritarian government requires teenagers to attend summer camps that instil conformity. In particular, Gender identification is enforced, with transitioning permitted (see Transgender SF) but same-sex relationships and grey-area sexuality forbidden; the "bender" protagonist's thoughtcrime is her refusal to identify as either female or male. This slangy, character-driven novel won the James Tiptree Jr Award. [DRL]

Pat Schmatz

born Wisconsin, USA

works (selected)

• Mrs. Estronsky and the U.F.O. (Port Orchard, Washington: Blue Works, 2001) [pb/photographic]
• Circle the Truth (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Carolrhoda Books, 2007) [hb/photographic]
• Lizard Radio (Somerville, Maine: Candlewick Press, 2015) [hb/]

links

• Pat Schmatz
• Internet Speculative Fiction Database

Entry from The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2011-current) edited by John Clute and David Langford.
Accessed 07:45 am on 13 December 2025.
<https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/schmatz_pat>