Robin McKinley (born November 16, 1952 as Jennifer Carolyn Robin Turrell McKinley) is a fantasy author especially known for her Newbery Meal-winning novel The Hero and the Crown. She has also won a Newbery Honor for The Blue Sword, the Mythopoeic Award for Sunshine, the World Fantasy Award for Imaginary Lands, and the 1998 Phoenix Award honor book for Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast. She has also written Spindle's End, The Outlaws of Sherwood, Rose Daughter, A Knot in the Grain: And Other Stories, Deerskin, Sunshine, Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits, and most recently, Dragonhaven.