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BEVERLY CLEARYAN INTRODUCTION TO HER LIFE & WORKS
AN INTRODUCTIONBeverly Cleary (born Beverly Atlee Bunn; April
12, 1916) is an American writer of more than 30 books for young
adults and children. As one of America's most successful living
authors, she has sold 91 million copies of her books worldwide.Some
of her best-known characters are Henry Huggins, Ribsy, Beatrice
("Beezus") Quimby, her sister Ramona, and Ralph S. Mouse. She has
won many literary awards, including the 1984 Newbery Medal for Dear
Mr. Henshaw and the 1981 National Book Award for Ramona and Her
Mother.
CHILDHOOD & READINGCleary was born in McMinnville, Oregon.
She is an only child. Until she was old enough to attend school,
Cleary lived on a farm in Yamhill, a town so small it had no
library. Still, Beverly learned to love books, due largely to her
mother's arrangement with the Oregon State Library to have books
sent to their home.When Cleary was six years old, her family left
the farm and moved to Portland, Oregon, where she attended
elementary and high school. The grammar school librarian was
largely responsible for developing her love of reading. She
encouraged Cleary to check out books about subjects to which she
could relate. The librarian not only encouraged her to read but
also to write her own books, and instilled in her the belief that
she, too, could write for children some day.
BEVERLY CLEARY - LIBRARIANIn 1934, age 18, Cleary moved to
Ontario, California, to attend Chaffey College, from which she
earned an Associate of Arts degree. After graduating in 1938 from
the University of California at Berkeley, she studied at the School
of Librarianship at the University of Washington in Seattle, where
she earned a degree in library science in 1939.One afternoon,
during a break from her chores at work, she found herself having a
sandwich with a young gentleman named Clarence Cleary, her future
husband.In 1940 she married Clarence, and they moved to Oakland,
California. The Clearys had two children, Marrienne Elizabeth and
Malcolm James, twins, born in 1955.
HER FIRST BOOKThe library science degree allowed her to work
with young children and develop relationships with them. Her first
full-time job as a librarian was in Yakima, Washington, where she
met many children who were searching for the same books that she
had always hoped to find as a child herself. Cleary sympathized
with children who felt that there were no books written about
children like themselves. Their pleas convinced her to help provide
children with stories to which they could relate.In response to
this experience, she later wrote her first book, Henry Huggins,
which was published in 1950. It was about a boy, his dog and their
friends, all of whom lived on Klickitat Street in Portland (a
street only a few blocks from where Cleary grew up as a child).
According to Cleary, Henry Huggins and his friends represented all
the children she grew up with, and the ones who sat in front of her
during library story hours.
CLEARYS STYLEAs she crafted her first book, she recalled advice
from her mother and incorporated her beliefs that the best writing
was simple and filled with humor. She also remembered advice from a
college professor who emphasized writing about universal human
experience. Beezus and Ramona, Cleary's first book to center a
story around the Quimby sisters, was published in 1955, although
Beezus and Ramona made frequent appearances in the Henry Huggins
series as supporting characters.She learned to add a little wit and
charm to her writing for children, with the hope that it would
spark an interest in reading among her students and encourage them
to read more books like it.
A FEW OF HER BOOKS
HER FUNNY, GENTLE BOOKSIn writing about normal, everyday boys
& girls, brothers and sisters, pets and parents, Beverly Cleary
tapped into a universal theme: family. And by using gentle humor,
she revealed her own philosophy of life that we can smile and laugh
at everyday things.She has written two autobiographies about her
own life: A Girl From Yamhill and My Own Two Feet.Her final book
for children was Ramonas World (2009)
THE ENDA NUTSY THE SQUIRREL PRODUCTION2013 OAK HILLS MEDIA
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