🎂⚰️ Born in 1889 / Died in 1973: Elmer Hader
A renowned American children’s picture book author and illustrator (1889–1973). He and his wife, Berta Hader, were a legendary couple in the golden age of American picture books. They built a stone house by hand on the banks of the Hudson River in New York, where they lived a secluded life observing wildlife. His style is known for its simple, warm, realistic watercolors, tranquil and peaceful natural light and shadow, and deep affection for the ecosystem. Interestingly, Hader… Born on September 7, 1889, and died on September 7, 1973.His birth date and death anniversary happened to be the same day.
- Top Award and Representative Works:
- “Snowflakes Are So Heavy” (The Big Snow(1948) — Awarded 1949 Caldecott MedalA winter epic about nature and human warmth. The book vividly depicts the changing weather in late autumn, as deer, chipmunks, hares, skunks, and migratory birds in the forest prepare for winter. A heavy snowfall blankets the entire forest, and the hungry and cold wild animals gather at the foot of the mountain in front of an elderly couple’s cabin. The couple opens the door and scatters grains and nuts on the snow to help the creatures survive the long, harsh winter.
- Twice awarded the Caldecott Honor: His representative work, “The Rooster Crows,” which he wrote and painted himself.Cock-a-Doodle Doo(1939) and The Great Hunter (The Mighty HunterThey won the Caldecott Silver Medal in 1943.
| In Memory of | Elmer Hader | Elmer Hader (Wikipedia) |
⚰️ 1973 – Died: Holling C. Holling
A renowned American nonfiction author and illustrator of geography and history for children (1900–1973). He was a master at blending children’s fictional adventures with meticulous and sophisticated historical, geographical, and biological evolution illustrations, pioneering a unique picture book format of “central panoramic illustration + detailed anatomical illustrations along the page edges”.
- Multiple Newbery and Caldecott Medals:
- Sailing with Seabirds (Seabird(1948) — Awarded Newbery Honor, 1949The story tells of a seabird statue carved from ivory by a young sailor on a whaling ship in 1832, which served as a talisman for four generations of the family of seafarers, witnessing the rise of modern steamships and airplanes from the era of whaling ships and clipper sailing. It is an epic 100-year history of American maritime history.
- The Unusual River Traveler (Minn of the Mississippi(1951) — Awarded Newbery Honor, 1952Featuring Min, an alligator snapping turtle born in Minnesota at the source of the Mississippi River and missing a leg, the documentary chronicles her perilous journey of drifting 2,500 miles downstream to the Gulf of Mexico, offering a panoramic view of the changing landscape, Native American sites, and aquatic ecosystems along the banks of North America’s great rivers.
- Rowing into the Sea (Paddle to the Sea(1941) — Awarded 1942 Caldecott HonorA classic work of geography that tells the story of a Canadian Indigenous boy who carved a canoe and a wooden figure, which drifted across the Great Lakes and headed straight for the Atlantic Ocean.
- His representative works also include the children’s marine science classic “The Mystery of Hermit Crab Growth” (Pagoo).
| Deceased | Holling C. Holling | Holling C. Holling (Wikipedia) |
🎂 1927 – Born: Eric Hill
A renowned British children’s picture book author, illustrator, and pioneer of early interactive books (1927–2014). He innovatively introduced the folding interactive technique from advertising design into infant and toddler books, and is widely recognized as the father of the modern children’s “lift-the-flap book”.
- Timeless classic picture books:
- ““Little Glass” series（Spot the Dog The series, starting with “Where’s Spot?“Where’s Spot?(1980) — Selected for “1001 Children’s Books,” a pioneering work of interactive picture books for young children that has been popular worldwide for over forty years. Sally the dog looks for her puppy Spot for dinner, and young readers search for hidden hippos, lions, and monkeys by turning the pages behind doors, in clocks, under piano lids, and under beds, ultimately finding Spot in a small basket. This “peek-a-boo” game greatly stimulates infants’ and toddlers’ interest in exploring the physical world and developing language skills.
| Birth | Eric Hill | Eric Hill (Wikipedia) |
🎂 1944 – Born: Houshang Moradi Kermani
A renowned Iranian children’s and young adult literature writer and screenwriter (1944). He is the leading representative of contemporary Iranian children’s literature on the international stage, and is skilled at using extremely simple and austere realism and a restrained humorous tone to portray the optimism, self-respect and resilience of children in poor rural areas when facing the hardships of life.
- Top international awards and representative works:
- respectively at He was shortlisted for the Hans Christian Andersen Award (HCAA) Finalist twice, in 1992 and 2014..
- Teacher, the water tank is broken! (Khomreh / The Water Urn(1989) — A famous Iranian children’s realist novel: The story takes place in a remote, arid desert village primary school, where the only giant clay water vat used to hold drinking water for the children freezes and cracks in the harsh winter. In the face of extreme water shortage and poverty, the village teacher leads the children to find ways to repair the soil and seek help from all sides, protecting the dignity and hope of their pursuit of education with simple cohesion.
- His representative works also include the humorous novel series “The Story of Majid,” which depicts the growth of orphans.The Tales of Majid) and “Sweet Jam“A Sweet Jam).
| Birth | Houshang Moradi Kermani | Houshang Moradi Kermani (Wikipedia) |
🎂 Born 1972: David Levithan
A renowned American author of young adult literature and a veteran children’s book editor (1972). He is one of the core promoters of contemporary English-language young adult (YA) literature. His works are adept at breaking through traditional narrative frameworks, using philosophically rich settings to analyze adolescents’ identity, love, and self-existence.
- Top Award and Representative Works:
- Every Day (Every Day2012, German translation Letztendlich sind wir dem Universum egal— Award 2015 German Youth Literature Prize (DJLP) Young Jury Grand PrizeThis is a fantasy-realist novel with a profound philosophical concept. The protagonist, “A,” is a being without a physical body. Every morning, he wakes up and inhabits the body of a different person of the same age, spending 24 hours in each before moving on to the next life. After experiencing lives with diverse families, personalities, and genders, A meets and falls in love with a girl named Leanne. Through this unique perspective, the work profoundly explores “what is the pure soul and love after stripping away the external shell?”
| Birth | David Levithan | David Levithan (Wikipedia) |
🎂 Born 1960: Michelle Paver
A renowned British children’s author and anthropological historical novelist (1960). She worked as a barrister in her early years, and later went deep into the Arctic Circle and the wilderness of Northern Europe to experience primitive survival. Her works are known for their extremely meticulous details of Stone Age archaeology, animistic beliefs, and descriptions of wild nature.
- Representative works and content:
- ““Ancient Dark Chronicles” series（Chronicles of Ancient Darkness The series, beginning with “Wolf Brothers: Traces of the Holy Mountain”.Wolf Brother(2004) — Selected for “1001 Children’s Books,” a globally popular prehistoric fantasy adventure masterpiece. The story takes place in the Paleolithic forest six thousand years ago. Twelve-year-old Torak, a Kro boy, witnesses his father being killed by a demonized bear and is forced to embark on a solo escape to the sacred mountain. He encounters a wolf cub who has lost its parents, and the two become life-and-death companions, protecting the forest’s creatures amidst frigid glaciers, ancient tribal conflicts, and threats from evil spirits.
| Birth | Michelle Paver | Michelle Paver (Wikipedia) |
🎂 Born in 1960: Hiromi Beppu
Japanese picture book artist and illustrator (1960). His painting style is delicate and pure, and he is good at using meticulous realism and clear colors to capture the vivid luster of bird feathers and natural ecology.
- International Awards and Representative Works:
- With the picture book “When It Takes Off“Tobitatsu Toki Exquisite illustrations of wild bird ecology drawn by (original Japanese name: 飛び立つとき), which won an award. 1995 Bratislava International Biennial of Illustrations (BIB) Children’s Jury Award.
| Birth | Hiromi Beppu | Beppu Komi (Wikipedia) |
🎂 1896 – Born: Margaret Alison Johansen
American children’s historical adventure novelist (1896–1959). She often co-authored with her sister Alice Allison Reed, focusing on cross-cultural explorations of polar marginal communities and medieval history.
- Top Award and Representative Works:
- The Wanderer Ud-le-Uk (Ood-Le-Uk the Wanderer(Illustrated by Raymond Lufkin, 1930) — Awarded Newbery Honor, 1931The story tells of Ud-le-Uk, an Inuit boy considered a coward by his tribe for his fear of whaling, who is swept away by ice floes to the Chukchi Peninsula in Siberia across the Bering Strait during an ice storm. There, he endures hardships, learns to survive and herd reindeer, and ultimately establishes a trade route between the two continents, proving true courage through his resilience.
| Birth | Margaret Alison Johansen | Margaret Alison Johansen (Wikipedia) |
🎂 1904 – Born: CB Colby
American children’s nonfiction and mystery novelist and outdoor sports journalist (1904–1977).
- Representative works and content:
- Very Bizarre (Strangely enough!(1959) — A classic collection of mystery short stories that has been a bestseller in the United States for decades. It collects and objectively records nearly a hundred folk tales about ghost ships, disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle, mysterious celestial phenomena, and inexplicable supernatural phenomena. It has been a popular introductory book for generations of children and teenagers in North America.
| Birth | CB Colby | CB Colby (Wikipedia) |