Beverly Cleary (born April 12, 1916) is an American writer of more than 30 books for young adults and children.
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As one of America's most successful authors of children's literature, 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 Quimby, and Ralph S. Mouse. She won the 1981 National Book Award for Ramona and Her Mother and the 1984 Newbery Medal for Dear Mr. Henshaw.
For her lifetime contributions to American literature Cleary has received the National Medal of Arts, recognition as a "Living Legend" by the Library of Congress, and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the children's librarians.
Born Beverly Atlee Bunn in McMinnville, Oregon, Cleary was an only child. Until she was old enough to attend school, Cleary lived on a farm in Yamhill, a town so small that 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 Yamhill.
When Cleary was six years old, her family left the farm and moved to Portland, Oregon, where she attended elementary and high school. She blamed her struggles with reading in this new school setting partly on her dissatisfaction with the books she was required to read, and partly on an unpleasant first grade teacher. After six years of living on a farm in the country, city life in Portland took a toll on her health, and she was frequently ill, which provided a further setback to her schoolwork and reading skills.
In the second grade, Cleary studied under her favorite teacher, and by the third grade, had greatly improved her reading ability and found new joy in books. She read The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins, and became a frequent visitor to the library. Her favorite book as a young girl was Dandelion Cottage by Carroll Watson Rankin.
A grammar school librarian was largely responsible for developing her love of reading, and 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.
In 1934, at age 18, Cleary moved to Ontario, California to attend Chaffey College, from which she earned an Associate of Arts degree. She worked as a substitute librarian at the Ontario City Library, and went on to attend the University of California at Berkeley. After graduating with a BA in English 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.
During the Great Depression, Cleary was a member of the University of California Student Cooperative Association (UCSCA), which was established at the University of California at Berkeley to offset the expensive cost of attending college. Students lived in housing cooperatives, where they performed workshifts in exchange for lower rent. Cleary lived at Stebbins Hall, the first all-women's co-op created in the association, and referred to her time there as "two of the most interesting years of my life."[9] One afternoon, during a break from her chores, 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. They eloped because her parents, who were Presbyterians, did not approve of her union with the Roman Catholic Cleary, even after it had occurred. The Clearys had two children, Marrienne Elizabeth and Malcolm James, twins, born in 1955. Clarence Cleary died in 2004. Beverly Cleary now[when?] lives in Carmel, California.
.jpg "to see more about Beverly Cleary, click the image.")
.jpg "to see more about Beverly Cleary, click the image.")
.jpg "to see more about Beverly Cleary, click the image.")
.jpg "to see more about Beverly Cleary, click the image.")
.jpg "to see more about Beverly Cleary, click the image.")
For her lifetime contributions to American literature Cleary has received the National Medal of Arts, recognition as a "Living Legend" by the Library of Congress, and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the children's librarians.
Born Beverly Atlee Bunn in McMinnville, Oregon, Cleary was an only child. Until she was old enough to attend school, Cleary lived on a farm in Yamhill, a town so small that 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 Yamhill.
When Cleary was six years old, her family left the farm and moved to Portland, Oregon, where she attended elementary and high school. She blamed her struggles with reading in this new school setting partly on her dissatisfaction with the books she was required to read, and partly on an unpleasant first grade teacher. After six years of living on a farm in the country, city life in Portland took a toll on her health, and she was frequently ill, which provided a further setback to her schoolwork and reading skills.
In the second grade, Cleary studied under her favorite teacher, and by the third grade, had greatly improved her reading ability and found new joy in books. She read The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins, and became a frequent visitor to the library. Her favorite book as a young girl was Dandelion Cottage by Carroll Watson Rankin.
A grammar school librarian was largely responsible for developing her love of reading, and 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.
In 1934, at age 18, Cleary moved to Ontario, California to attend Chaffey College, from which she earned an Associate of Arts degree. She worked as a substitute librarian at the Ontario City Library, and went on to attend the University of California at Berkeley. After graduating with a BA in English 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.
During the Great Depression, Cleary was a member of the University of California Student Cooperative Association (UCSCA), which was established at the University of California at Berkeley to offset the expensive cost of attending college. Students lived in housing cooperatives, where they performed workshifts in exchange for lower rent. Cleary lived at Stebbins Hall, the first all-women's co-op created in the association, and referred to her time there as "two of the most interesting years of my life."[9] One afternoon, during a break from her chores, 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. They eloped because her parents, who were Presbyterians, did not approve of her union with the Roman Catholic Cleary, even after it had occurred. The Clearys had two children, Marrienne Elizabeth and Malcolm James, twins, born in 1955. Clarence Cleary died in 2004. Beverly Cleary now[when?] lives in Carmel, California.
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