Ten Facts You Didn't Know About Your Favorite Children's Authors

As a sophomore in college, I took a Children’s Literature course as part of my requirement as an English major. I’m not English major anymore, but the trivia I learned in class not only allowed me to revisit some of my favorite childhood books with a new perspective, it gave me a newfound appreciation for the authors and the stories they told. I hope you enjoy them as well:

1. Many people know that Mark Twain is a pen name—Twain’s real name is Samuel Clemens. What you may not know is the origins of the pen name: Mark Twain wanted to be a riverboat captain in his younger years. “Mark Twain” was a phrase shouted by those working on riverboats to warn against sand bars in shallow parts of the Mississippi.  

2. Laura Ingalls Wilder’s first book, Little House in the Big Woods, was originally titled “When Grandma Was A Little Girl.” She titled the book as a jab at her daughter and editor, Rose, because Rose did not want to have children.

3. There are more visitors’ attractions tied to Laura Ingalls Wilder than any other author in the United States.

4. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis was written in the middle of a children’s library—Curtis enjoyed writing in noisy, chaotic environments (he also wrote on his breaks at an automobile factory).

5. Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh (one of my personal favorites) was the first book ever written about a child visiting a psychologist.

6. L. Frank Baum and W.W. Denslow, the author and illustrator of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz were so adamant about the book being illustrated in color that they paid the extra cost out-of-pocket, which was expensive in the 1900s.

7. Roald Dahl, author of classics like Matilda and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (and my favorite children’s author), did most of his writing in a garden shed on legal pads…in pencil. If he didn’t like what he had written, he would burn the pages outside.

8. The stuffed animals that inspired the characters in A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh are still on display at the New York Public Library.

9. Not only was Beatrix Potter (author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit) an accomplished author and illustrator, she was also an expert on fungi.

10. Before writing Where The Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak painted window displays at the F.A.O. Schwartz toy store in New York City. 

-Carley Foster, #readysetread