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Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom

by Leonard S. Marcus

An editor’s correspondence from a formative era in children’s publishing

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AlbakiReads Editorial

An editor’s correspondence from a formative era in children’s publishing

Drawn from the HarperCollins archives, this collection gathers Ursula Nordstrom’s letters from her years directing Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls, 1940–1973. The correspondence offers a documentary view of editorial work: exchanges that helped shape books including Goodnight Moon, Charlotte’s Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, and The Giving Tree. Organized around Nordstrom’s own written voice, the volume illuminates her role as an editor and mentor while tracing an era of experimentation and change in American children’s literature.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in the history of children’s books and publishing
  • Fans of the authors and classics associated with Nordstrom’s editorial career
  • Young readers and adults curious about letters, archives, and literary biography

Themes

Children’s publishingEditorial collaborationLiterary correspondenceTwentieth-century American literatureMentorship

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

She trusted her immense intuition and generous heart--and published the most. Ursula Nordstrom, director of Harper's Department of Books for Boys and Girls from 1940 to 1973, was arguably the single most creative force for innovation in children's book publishing in the United States during the twentieth century. Considered an editor of maverick temperament and taste, her unorthodox vision helped create such classics as Goodnight Moon, Charlotte's Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, and The Giving Tree.

Leonard S. Marcus has culled an exceptional collection of letters from the HarperCollins archives. The letters included here are representative of the brilliant correspondence that was instrumental in the creation of some of the most beloved books in the world today. Full of wit and humor, they are immensely entertaining, thought-provoking, and moving in their revelation of the devotion and high-voltage intellect of an incomparably gifted editor, mentor, and publishing visionary.Ursula Nordstrom, director of Harper's Department of Books for Boys and Girls from 1940 to 1973, was arguably the single most creative force for innovation in children's book publishing in the United States during the twentieth century. Considered an editor of maverick temperament and taste, her unorthodox vision helped create such classics as Goodnight Moon, Charlotte's Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, and The Giving Tree.

Leonard S. Marcus has culled an exceptional collection of letters from the HarperCollins archives. The letters included here are representative of the brilliant correspondence that was instrumental in the creation of some of the most beloved books in the world today. Full of wit and humor, they are immensely entertaining, thought-provoking, and moving in their revelation of the devotion and high-voltage intellect of an incomparably gifted editor, mentor, and publishing visionary.

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