November 29: Today in the History of Children’s Books

🎂 November 29, 1832 – Birth: Louisa May Alcott

Amer­i­can writ­ersLouisa May AlcottLouisa May Alcott (1832–1888) was born. She is wide­ly rec­og­nized as…One of the most impor­tant female writ­ers in Amer­i­can lit­er­ary his­to­ryHis works have had a pro­found influ­ence on lat­er gen­er­a­tions of fam­i­ly nov­els.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions:
    • Her rep­re­sen­ta­tive work isLit­tle Women-Lit­tle Women(Pub­lished in 1868–1869) tells the sto­ry of the four March sis­ters grow­ing up dur­ing the Civ­il War.
  • Far-reach­ing impact: Lit­tle Women, with its influ­ence onWom­en’s aspi­ra­tions, the warmth of fam­i­ly, moral­i­ty and social rolesThe descrip­tion becameClas­sics of glob­al chil­dren’s and young adult lit­er­a­tureShe broke the stereo­type of tra­di­tion­al female roles and was includ­ed in “1001 Chil­dren’s Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up”.

born Louisa May Alcott | Louisa May Alcott (Wikipedia) |


🎂 November 29, 1898 – Birth: CS Lewis

British writer and schol­arCS Lewis(CS Lewis, 1898–1963) was born. He is wide­ly rec­og­nized as… The great­est fan­ta­sy writer and Chris­t­ian thinker of 20th-cen­tu­ry Eng­lish lit­er­a­tureone.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions:
    • His rep­re­sen­ta­tive work is the sev­en-part series.The Chron­i­cles of Nar­nia-The Chron­i­cles of Nar­nia), the first “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe-The Lion, the Witch and the WardrobeIt was pub­lished in 1950.
  • Far-reach­ing impact: The Chron­i­cles of Nar­nia series skill­ful­ly com­bines mytho­log­i­cal ele­ments with philo­soph­i­cal themes, mak­ing it a time­less clas­sic in world fan­ta­sy and chil­dren’s lit­er­a­ture.It was includ­ed in “1001 Chil­dren’s Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up”.

born | CS Lewis | CS Lewis (Wikipedia) |


🎂 Born November 29, 1981: Jon Klassen

Cana­di­an author and illus­tra­torJon Klassen(Jon Klassen) was born. He is wide­ly rec­og­nized as…The most sub­ver­sive and orig­i­nal pic­ture book in con­tem­po­rary timesOne of the mas­ters.

  • Impor­tant works and achieve­ments: Klassen’s illus­tra­tion style isMin­i­mal­ist, geo­met­ric shapes, soft col­orsAnd full ofDark humor and sus­penseIt is known for its nar­ra­tive.
    • Calde­cott Medal: He wrote and drew his own pic­ture bookThis is not my hat.-This is not my hat(2012) Award­ed 2013 Calde­cott Medal.
    • Kate Green­away Medal: his“This is not my hat.“At 2014 Win­ning the Kate Green­away Medal, achiev­ingDou­ble win­ner of the high­est awards in the British and Amer­i­can illus­tra­tion indus­try.
    • Calde­cott Hon­or: He and the writerMike Bar­nett(Mac Bar­nett) in col­lab­o­ra­tion with “Sam and David dug a hole-Sam and Dave Dig a Hole) won 2015 Calde­cott Hon­or.

born | Jon Klassen | Jon Klassen (Wikipedia) |


🎂 November 29, 1918 – Birth: Madeleine Engel

Amer­i­can writ­ersMadeleine Engel(Madeleine L’En­gle, 1918–2007) was born. She is wide­ly rec­og­nized as…A giant of 20th-cen­tu­ry Amer­i­can young adult fan­ta­sy and sci­ence fic­tion lit­er­a­ture.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions: Inge’s work clev­er­ly blendsSci­ence, The­ol­o­gy and Fan­ta­syIt explores grand themes such as love, free will, and cos­mic order.
  • Rep­re­sen­ta­tive works and hon­ors:
    • New­bery Medal: Her rep­re­sen­ta­tive work isWrin­kles of Time-A Wrin­kle in Time(Pub­lished in 1962) won awards 1963 New­bery Medal.
    • New­bery Hon­or: Her workA cir­cle of end­less light-A Ring of End­less LightAward­ed in 1980 1981 New­bery Sil­ver Medal.

born Madeleine L’En­gle | Madeleine L’En­gle (Wikipedia) |


⚰️ November 29, 1971 – Died: Maud Petersham

Amer­i­can writer and illus­tra­torMaud Peter­sham(Maud Peter­sham, 1890–1971) died. She and her hus­band…Misha Peter­sham(Miska Peter­sham) is a famous cre­ative part­ner.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions: The works of the Peter­shams are known for theirVibrant col­ors and ref­er­ences to his­to­ry and folk talesFamous for its depic­tion.
  • Rep­re­sen­ta­tive works and hon­ors:
    • Calde­cott Medal: Their col­lab­o­ra­tive pic­ture book,The roost­er crows-The Roost­er Crows(Pub­lished in 1945) won awards 1945 Calde­cott Medal.
    • Calde­cott Hon­or: TheirABC (Amer­i­can ABC)-An Amer­i­can ABCHe also won the award in 1941.

Death Maud Peter­sham | Maud Peter­sham (Wikipedia) |


🎂 Born November 29, 1965: Lauren Child

British author and illus­tra­torLau­ren ChildLau­ren Child was born. She is wide­ly rec­og­nized as…Mas­ters of con­tem­po­rary British pic­ture books and chil­dren’s nov­elsThe work is char­ac­ter­ized byA style that is inno­v­a­tive, col­lage-like, and humor­ous.And is known for it.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions:
    • Her workI absolute­ly, pos­i­tive­ly will not eat toma­toes.-I Will Not Ever Nev­er Eat a Toma­to(1999) Award­ed 2000 Kate Green­away Medal.
    • Her chil­dren’s nov­elClarice Bean-Clarice Bean) series andChar­lie and Lau­ra-Char­lie and LolaThe series is very pop­u­lar.

born Lau­ren Child | Lau­ren Child (Wikipedia) |


🎂 November 29, 1909 – Birth: Adolf Zebranski

Czech illus­tra­torAdolf Zebran­s­ki(Adolf Zábran­ský) was born. He is believed to be…Czech post­war illus­tra­tion artRep­re­sen­ta­tive fig­ures.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions: Zebran­ski’s illus­tra­tion style is full ofThe dec­o­ra­tive nature of folk artandStrong col­ors.
  • Inter­na­tion­al recog­ni­tion: He 1972 With the pic­ture bookAll things sing loud­ly-Všeli­jaké povídání(ten­ta­tive trans­la­tion) wonHans Chris­t­ian Ander­sen Award (HCAA) Hon­orary Cer­tifi­cate(Hon­orary Diplo­ma, Illus­tra­tor).

born | Adolf Zábran­ský | Adolf Zábran­ský (Wikipedia) |


🎂 Born November 29, 1946: Jane Tanner

Aus­tralian illus­tra­torJane Tan­ner(Jane Tan­ner) was born.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions: Tan­ner withSoft, real­is­tic water­col­or paint­ingsand pairAus­tralian nat­ur­al land­scapes and fam­i­ly atmos­phereFamous for its depic­tion.
  • Rep­re­sen­ta­tive works: SheAlan Bak­er(Allan Bail­lie’s) nov­elDra­co and the Fairy-Drac and the Grem­linThe illus­tra­tions by [author’s name] (1988) are includ­ed in “1001 Chil­dren’s Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up”.

born Jane Tan­ner | Jane Tan­ner (Wikipedia) |


🎂 Born November 29, 1937: Ondre Zimka

Slo­vak illus­tra­torOndre Zim­ka(Ondrej Zim­ka) was born.

  • Impor­tant works and con­tri­bu­tions: Zimka’s illus­tra­tion style is full ofHumor, exag­ger­a­tion, and folk artEle­ment.
  • Inter­na­tion­al recog­ni­tion: He has won numer­ous awards at the Bratisla­va Inter­na­tion­al Bien­ni­al of Illus­tra­tions (BIB).
    • 1969 With theGreen Deer-Zelené jelene) won BIB Medal Award(Plaque).
    • 1971 With theOnline fairy tales-Rozprávky na niti) won BIB Medal Award.

born Ondrej Zim­ka | Ondrej Zim­ka (Slo­vak Wikipedia) |