The idea for this book first arose when I was translating *Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom*. After two and a half years, it was finally completed through the collective efforts of many. Using the characters from *Dear Genius* as a thread, this book tells their life stories one by one, in chronological order of their birth dates. And when these stories are strung together, a stunning picture emerges: a vast cross-section of the American children’s book landscape for about half a century after the 1930s! Although incomplete, it is enough to offer a glimpse into its essence.
A long scroll made of letters
“Dear Genius” is a collection of letters from Ursula, a brilliant editor in the American children’s book industry, to her authors, illustrators, critics, and readers. It comprises nearly 300 letters selected from over 100,000 letters written during her nearly half-century-long career. Many of the authors and illustrators are renowned figures in the American (and even international) children’s book world, many of whom are gradually becoming familiar to Chinese readers and have countless fans in China. Many of the works discussed in those letters have gradually become classics of world children’s literature. Readers who love children and children’s books often yearn to understand the stories behind these wonderful books, while children’s literature enthusiasts and researchers hope to clarify the context by understanding the creators and their backgrounds. Ursula’s collection of letters is indeed a rare and invaluable source of firsthand information.
However, simply reading that collection of letters can be confusing: if one is unfamiliar with the recipients, understanding the content will be difficult; and due to copyright and other reasons, the collection only contains one-sided correspondence, making it challenging to fully comprehend the topics discussed. Therefore, these letters may initially appear as scattered fragments. But with enough patience, arranging these “fragments” in a certain order, searching for more relevant information to transform them into clearly defined, fleshed-out characters and stories, and employing a bit of detective work to uncover the connections between them, gradually, a rather complete scroll emerges before our eyes. Ursula is precisely the scroll itself.
Early childhood reading promotion campaigns in the United States
To fully appreciate this long scroll, a general understanding of the progress of children’s reading promotion in the United States in the early 20th century is necessary. Today, the United States is clearly a superpower in the field of children’s books, but in the early 20th century, it was merely a follower of Europe (especially Britain), and piracy was rampant. Beatrix Potter’s *Peter Rabbit*, hailed as the “founding work of modern picture books,” was published in Britain in 1902, and pirated copies appeared in the United States just two years later! However, in this rising superpower, a movement was flourishing, and it was this movement that greatly propelled the development of American children’s books, gradually elevating them to the top of the world. This was the American Children’s Library Movement, or, in modern terms, the American children’s reading promotion movement.
This book introduces the movement while recounting the story of the legendary children’s librarian Virginia Haviland. Haviland can be considered a third-generation promoter, while Anne Carole Moore, the head of the children’s book department at the New York Public Library, and Alice Jordan, Haviland’s mentor at the Boston Public Library, can be seen as second-generation standard-bearers. Because of this movement, the United States began establishing dedicated children’s reading rooms in public libraries in the early 20th century. Librarians and enthusiastic members of the community frequently read children’s books aloud as a primary means of promoting reading. At least by 1902, the Boston Public Library had dedicated storytellers for children. Later, Miss Potter expressed great envy in a letter to Ms. Moore, as Britain was still quite conservative in this regard at the time.
It was precisely because this promotion became increasingly popular that the demand for children’s books (especially trendy children’s books) grew, leading major publishing houses to establish dedicated children’s book departments. In 1919, the world’s first children’s book editorial department was established at Macmillan American Company, with its founding editor, Louise Beckett, only 25 years old and a few years after graduating from the prestigious Vassar College. Subsequently, Doubleday, Virgin, Harper, and other companies also established children’s book departments. Also in 1919, Ms. Moore, Mr. Matthews of the Boy Scouts of America, and Mr. Melcher, editor of Publishers Weekly, jointly launched the first Children’s Book Week event; a few years later, also at Melcher’s initiative and sponsorship, the American Library Association’s Children’s Library Division established the Newbery Medal, and in 1922, 212 librarian representatives voted to select the first winner, *The Story of Mankind*. With this continued impetus, in 1928, “The Million Cats,” created by Wanda Geiger, a native American artist, was published. This work made children’s librarians, represented by Moore, particularly proud, because it can be said to be the first original American picture book of world-class quality—the soil that had been cultivated for a long time finally bore fruit.
Greenwich Village
Ursula arrived in the early 1930s. Initially, she was a shy clerk in the college textbook department of Harper’s Books. A few years later, when she moved to the children’s book department, she quickly adapted to her role and eventually became a landmark editor in the history of American children’s book publishing. In those early years, she primarily lived in Greenwich Village.
Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan, New York, is a place name mentioned in many stories in this book. We will see: William Pene de Bois and Kara Kuskin growing up in this area; Ezra Jack Keats’ father working as a waiter in a café here, lying to young Keats that he had traded soup for paint from a down-on-his-luck artist; Marco Simon and Robert McCloskey raising ducks in the bathtub of their shared apartment here, which later became models for “Make Way for Ducklings”; Margaret Wise Brown studying early childhood education here and becoming a writer, and she also bought a detached house here as a studio, where she completed classic picture books such as “The Runaway Bunny” and “Goodnight Moon”; Margaret and Ursula often met at a corner café at breakfast time. It was a place where people would talk business; Clement Hurd, Leonard Weisgard, Maurice Sendak, and Tommy Unger all lived in this area. Sendak and Unger had similar schedules and often met to chat during mealtimes; H.A. Ray and his wife Margaret Ray lived here before moving to Boston. Seeing Ursula living alone and feeling lonely, Mrs. Ray even brought her a small dog to care for her. Mr. Ray observed astronomy from the rooftop of a six-story apartment building here and completed his book, *Stars: A New Way of Observing the Night*; E.B. White and Katherine White also lived here in their New York apartment, and Charlotte Zolotov and her husband rented a place here early in their marriage… It was once a gathering place for writers, artists, and various radicals and alternative individuals (including homosexuals). Even today, although it has transformed from a cheap apartment area into an upscale residential area with high land prices, many people in the arts still prefer to live there.
Looking back at Greenwich Village before the 1970s, it feels like a truly symbolic village (even though it’s actually made up of concrete and steel blocks). Everyone in the village seemed to know each other and had harmonious relationships, yet they were all keen to do their own thing, especially enjoying being unconventional. Many landmark works in the history of American children’s literature were conceived or nurtured there.
From Bank Street to Fifth Avenue
There’s a Bank Street in Greenwich Village, actually a small street nestled between West 11th and West 12th Streets, named after a New York bank that once stood there. But what truly made this street world-famous was the Bank Street Education Institute, an experimental early childhood education institution founded there.
Fifth Avenue is a major north-south thoroughfare in Manhattan, New York, and is always associated with ultimate luxury, as many of the world’s most prestigious luxury boutiques are located there. However, surprisingly, in the heart of this prime location, there are also two libraries—the New York Public Library’s main branch and its Manhattan branch.
The distance from the former site of the Bank Street Teachers College to the New York Public Library is about 3 kilometers, a mere 40-minute walk, which is quite close for a metropolis like New York. However, in the first half of the 20th century, they surprisingly became almost mortal enemies in the field of children’s books.
The standard-bearer of the Bank Street Academy of Education was its founder, Lucy Michelle, who was also Margaret Wise Brown’s mentor. She founded the academy and an experimental kindergarten at the same time. Later, she encouraged a parent of a kindergarten child to found Scott Company, which mainly published works by members of the “Here and Now” creative experimental group. Margaret was the founding editor and leading writer.
The standard-bearer of the library camp was Ms. Moore, mentioned earlier. She played a crucial role in promoting children’s reading, but in terms of reading taste, she preferred traditional classics and fairy tales with the elegant style of the Victorian era. She disliked realistic works and works that deviated from traditional techniques, and she was also averse to incorporating modern art into children’s books. She was extremely opposed to the “here and now” creative concept advocated by Michelle Obama, which emphasized contemporary life experiences, and naturally disliked Margaret. In her later years, Ms. Moore became even more narrow-minded, disliking both the “Little House” series and “Charlotte’s Web.” Because of Moore’s significant influence in the children’s library community, works she disliked often missed out on major awards and were even excluded from public library recommended reading lists, thus greatly affecting the promotion and sales of her works.
Although Margaret was Michelle Obama’s most prized student and assistant, her unique poetic temperament and literary sensitivity allowed her to surpass (and to some extent “betray”) her mentor. Her most successful works, while embodying the “here and now” concept, also fully retained poetic fantasy and fairytale charm. Ursula, born in the same year as her, was actually three months older than Margaret, but she greatly admired her and was deeply influenced by her in children’s book creation and editing. They also shared a love for modern art that emphasized free expression, naturally attracting artists like Hart and Weisgard to their side. Although Margaret tragically passed away prematurely, the influence of the experimental creative group at the Bank Street Teachers College continued to ferment and gradually expand. Her successor, Ruth Krause, joined forces with her husband, Kroger Johnson, a left-wing artist, and with the help of the fledgling Maurice Sendak, to create a series of innovative works that were quite subversive for that era.
Fortunately, the children’s library and children’s literature criticism communities gradually opened up. We saw influential critics such as Lindqvist, editor of *Horn Book* magazine; Havilland, a prominent figure in children’s libraries; Gina Sutherland, editor of *Children’s Book Center Newsletter*; and George Woods, editor of the children’s section of *The New York Times Book Review*, all siding with the reformist camp represented by Ursula and others. More and more children’s librarians re-examined their previous judgments and gradually revised them in various ways. Although they were unable to award any of the books in the “Little House” series a major prize, they eventually established a new lifetime achievement award for their creators—the Roland Ingalls Wilder Award, which was later awarded to E.B. White, author of *Charlotte’s Web*. In 1964, they even awarded the Caldecott Medal to *Where the Wild Things Are*, which was quite controversial upon its release. Even Sendak later said, “That was perhaps the most surprising event of my entire life.”
Before the curtain of history
The 61 individuals featured in this book are cultural elites active in the American children’s book world after the 1930s, all of whom are heavyweight figures in terms of their achievements and status. Let’s take a look at their composition through some data.
Of these, 34 were women, a slight majority. Considering that children’s book editors (such as Ursula and Susan Hirschman) and children’s librarians at that time were all women, the gender ratio among children’s book creators was roughly 50–50. In terms of birthplace, over 20% of the creators were born in Europe, a characteristic of the United States as a nation of immigrants. In terms of ethnicity, Jewish people made up over a quarter of the creators. What explains this?
Let’s try placing these geniuses of children’s literature within the broader context of American history.
Starting with Roland Ingalls Wilder, her upbringing was shaped by the westward expansion of the United States in the mid-to-late 19th century. Janet Sperber Lowry and Fred Gibson also experienced similar pioneering family life. However, you might notice that Wilder’s “Little House” series was published after 1932, during the most difficult years of the Great Depression. It is precisely at this time that such stories resonated so widely.
From the mid-19th century to the early 20th century, the United States experienced several large-scale waves of immigration, with European Jews being the most prominent. Among the immigrants were relatively wealthy German and Austrian Jews, such as the ancestors of Ruth Krauss and Mary Rogers, but many more were impoverished Jews from Eastern Europe and Russia, such as the fathers of Ezra Jack Gitzo, Maurice Sendak, Nat Hentoff, and Shel Silverstein. These impoverished Jews primarily clustered in the slums of Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn, later dispersing to cities like Boston and Chicago. The two World Wars, primarily fought in Europe, further drove a large number of European cultural elites to the United States. Isaac Singer, H.A. Ray and Margaret Ray, Maya Wojciochska, and Leo Lionni, among others, essentially fled to America. After the war, Tommy Ungerer, Eric Carle, Anita Lobel, and others, who had suffered greatly from the conflict, immigrated to the United States. The two world wars and the Great Depression that occurred in between, while having a significant economic impact on the United States, actually provided this immigrant nation with excellent development opportunities, even in the field of children’s books.
In the early Cold War following World War II, the political atmosphere in the United States was extremely tense, with McCarthyism rampant. Many left-wing writers were persecuted, unable to publish their works or teach normally—in other words, their livelihoods were almost cut off. Fortunately, censorship in the field of children’s books was not so strict, and there were also children’s book editors like Ursula who yearned for freedom and were fearless. This attracted a group of left-wing writers, such as Johnson Krogert and Millicent E. Selsum, to showcase their talents in the field of children’s books. We can probably owe a debt of gratitude, in part, to the period of McCarthyism that allowed us to have such a brilliant children’s book as *Arrow Has a Colored Pencil*.
Moving into the 1960s, we entered one of the most eventful periods in American history: the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War and the anti-war movement, the assassinations of President Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., the women’s rights movement, the sexual liberation movement, and violent clashes between homosexuals and police… Interestingly, many landmark works in the world of children’s literature were also born during this era. For example, the first picture book featuring a Black child as the protagonist, *Snowy Day*, won the 1963 Caldecott Medal; in 1969, John Steptoe, a Black artist not yet 19 years old, published his acclaimed debut picture book, *Steve*; and in the same year, the first young adult novel to address homosexuality, *The Way We Were*, was also published.
This is no accident. When we place the trajectories of these geniuses before the backdrop of history, everything seems natural.
Maverick geniuses
However, while it is said that heroes are made by the times—some special figures always emerge in a particular era—why are these the specific people who emerge? There must be some mystery behind it.
In this book, we’ve compiled a resume for each genius, imagining them applying for jobs. We envisioned these resumes as boasting enviable experiences, but in reality, most resumes, judging solely from family background, education, and work experience, are quite unremarkable. In the job market, they’d likely be just candidates for office clerks or graphic designers. For example, H.A. Ray dropped out of college, and his main work experience was selling bathtubs; Sandak only had a high school diploma, attended a few nights of art school, and his main work experience was window decorating a toy store; Silverstein also struggled in college, drew comics during his military service, and after his discharge, worked as a hot dog stand owner; E.B. White, despite attending the prestigious Cornell University, changed jobs at least five times in four years after graduation, either resigning or being fired… In short, before reaching their peak, most of these individuals lived ordinary, aimless lives, some even struggling to make ends meet for nearly half their lives. Yet, they all ultimately surpassed themselves. What’s the secret?
Ursula revealed a bit of the secret in a letter she wrote to Sendak on January 31, 1963. She wrote, “You don’t belong to the ‘difficult genius’ type. First of all, geniuses are naturally difficult…” This statement, coming from Ursula who dealt with these kinds of people every day, seems quite reasonable. However, in the eyes of another brilliant editor, Susan Hirschman, only Ursula truly deserved the title of genius, because Ursula herself was difficult enough. Back then, it was Ursula who fired Susan from Harper! This “difficulty” was actually a state of being unconventional, which to outsiders seemed simply to be doing things her own way, even to the point of being obsessive.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that these “geniuses” are top figures in the children’s book world, and their works are so captivating, especially for so many children worldwide. Almost every one of them has some “quirks,” and often, the greater their achievements, the more pronounced these quirks become. Of course, “quirks” here simply refers to their uniqueness. Some of these quirks are perfectly healthy from any perspective. For example, Romain Rolland, a pioneering farmer, always wrote diligently in his spare time—a writing habit that can be considered a virtue. M.E. Kerr’s pen name preference, originating from necessity, gradually became a celebrated story. However, once these quirks delve deeper, even challenging the entrenched ethical values of society, they often become embroiled in conflict and controversy. This is precisely what makes the stories of these geniuses so intriguing; landmark works often emerge from controversy, and when they ultimately overcome it, they become even more powerful.
In the words of the restless Eva Gallian: “Those who are born gentle, calm, and free from trouble, who are always able to stay away from violent emotions and evil temptations—those who never have to fight alongside angels at night and win with a limp at dawn—can never become great saints.”
Growth in various forms
Every participant in compiling the information and writing the stories of these geniuses in this book is a parent of one of the children. We couldn’t help but want to explore their growth path in the hope of learning something from them.
In summary, the paths to success for these geniuses are incredibly diverse. Some came from very wealthy families, but geniuses raised in privileged circumstances often seem more prone to rebellion, such as Clement Hurd and Mary Rogers. Others came from impoverished backgrounds, but this fostered resilience, like Ezra Jack Kitz. Generally speaking, however, most of these geniuses came from families with modest economic circumstances. Wealthier families tended to have a stronger artistic atmosphere, while those less affluent seemed to have closer family bonds. We often see that in less affluent families, the bonds between siblings are often deeper. Parents may be preoccupied with making a living, but the influence between the children is immeasurable. In the development of Singer, Syd, White, Gibson, Dejoun, and Kitz, the influence and support from their siblings played a crucial role.
As mentioned above, their educational background reveals that only 60% of this group completed college, 20% attended college but did not graduate, and another 20% either completed high school or had unknown educational backgrounds. Of those who graduated, only seven went on to obtain a master’s degree or a dual degree. Of these, only one was male: Mr. Donovan, who completed his Master of Laws, but he later changed careers. Nearly 60% of these graduates were women, perhaps because, in their era, women seeking to make a living were more reliant on a college degree. However, for the vast majority of these individuals, the majors they studied in college often differed significantly from the successful careers they ultimately pursued. Their career success is largely due to interests and habits cultivated from childhood, primarily drawing and reading in the field of children’s books. If there was one common thread growing up, it was reading. Regardless of their family backgrounds, they all shared a passion for reading from a young age. Those who have a penchant for art often develop a habit of constantly painting from a young age. For example, HA Lei, who traveled to the Amazon Basin in Brazil to sell bathtubs, sketched monkeys along the way. It would be strange if such people didn’t become painters.
Another point worth noting is that these geniuses in the field of children’s literature, regardless of whether their childhoods can be interpreted as happy, are certainly memorable. Childhood memories are an inexhaustible source of wealth for their creations. Moreover, even in the least remarkable childhoods, they were always surrounded by people who deeply loved and cared for them, offering encouragement and support. The power of love is more beneficial to growth than abundant material conditions. And the most enviable childhoods are often those very close to nature—on the grasslands, on farms, in the mountains, by rivers, lakes, and seas—whether settled down or on extended vacations. Such environments, coupled with good education and warm family affection, are how geniuses like Roland Ingalls Wilder and E.B. White were nurtured.
Success and happiness
When discussing literary history, people usually only ask about the value of the works, the authors’ contributions, and their place in literary history. Almost no one asks: Were those authors happy? Does reading their works bring happiness to readers? — Such questions seem to have no historical value, or perhaps are unanswerable. However, when we talk about children’s books, these questions seem very valuable: Was the author of *Charlotte’s Web* happy? Does reading *Charlotte’s Web* bring happiness to readers (mainly children)? — If you love children and cherish childhood, how could you not care about such questions?
In compiling the stories of these geniuses, we paid special attention to this question. While it’s impossible to interview each of them, let alone ask questions like “Are you happy?”, by reading their autobiographies, biographies, and interviews, accessing relevant audiovisual materials, and observing their actions, I discovered that, as a creative group, successful children’s book creators are perhaps the happiest group among all literary creators. Perhaps there are one or two exceptions, but almost all children’s book creators are very satisfied with their readers. They may leave behind quite intense conflicts in their stories, revealing the potentially darker side of human nature, but almost all of them ultimately make a fairytale-like promise: they lived happily ever after… And those particularly sincere geniuses don’t see this promise as a convenient deception, but rather genuinely seek solutions, comforting young readers while also healing their own past traumas. Just as Hayao Kawai discovered in *The Universe of Children*, childhood possesses a powerful force that not only helps children but also greatly benefits adults.
Maurice Sendak was perhaps one of the most profound geniuses to discover this secret, and his entire creative life seemed to be a form of healing, especially for the deep trauma he himself suffered from fear during his childhood. Approaching 80, his partner of over half a century was about to pass away. He stayed by her side in the hospital, while he himself fell ill on his own bed; the loneliness, helplessness, and grief he felt were unimaginable to others. It was during this time that he conceived a new picture book. After his partner’s passing, he continued to immerse himself in his work, finally publishing “Adi the Pig” at the age of 83 (the year before his death). This is perhaps the most lighthearted and cheerful picture book Sendak created in his lifetime. Although born into a very orthodox Jewish family, Sendak was not religious. He said he greatly envied those who were religious, because living in this world without faith is destined to be much more difficult. However, he ultimately persevered, completing a very fulfilling and almost regretless life, probably because he found his own way of praying—creating children’s books for children, and for himself.
Those geniuses who create children’s books must experience an indescribable happiness when their success is built on a perfect connection with childhood.
Ajia …
Written in Beijing on April 23, 2015