Beverly Bunn Cleary (1916-2021)
This is a short tribute to Beverly Cleary who died last week aged 104. She was a much loved author of 42 books for children that are now being enjoyed by a third generation of readers.
At a time when "worthy" was the keynote for children's literature, Cleary added fun and championed the non-perfect child. Her most famous character, Ramona, has a life full of misunderstandings and embarrassments that Cleary deftly made endearing.
Ramona the Pest
Judy Blume, a dedicated Cleary fan, said that there was "both gentle humour and laugh out loud humour" in her books.
I've written a blog on Cleary in the past but on her death wanted to again acknowledge one of the grand dames of children's literature.
5 comments:
I'm sorry to say I'd never heard of Beverly Cleary before. Now I have, I'll look out for her books; Ramona sounds like fun. Thanks for the post.
Thanks for this reminder of Beverly Cleary and her books, so full of understanding and the (sometimes painful) emotions and joys of being a child.
Nick, hope you enjoy them. :)
Penny, yes she seems to be one of the first children's authors to value humour and embrace quirkiness in her characters. :)
I don't think I've ever read anything by her - another one to add to the tbr pile!
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