Beverly Cleary Biography

Beverly Cleary was born in McMinnville in Yamhill County, Oregon on April 12, 1916. If you like her books, you might want to read more about her in her own memoirs, The Girl from Yamhill, published in 1988, and My Own Two Feet, published in 1995. Both books were published by the William Morrow Co. If you can't find these books, you can get them on interlibrary loan through your public library. Please ask.

She went to college and became a librarian, just like me. She and her husband, Clarence, are the proud parents of twins, a boy and a girl, who are all grown up now, of course. The Clearys live in Carmel, California. My favorite books are the Ramona Quimby books. These, with the Henry Huggins books, are considered classics in children's literature. Henry Huggins was her first published book in 1950! The settings [place where the story happens] is Portland, Oregon. Northeast Portland has a Beverly Cleary Sculpture Garden with sculptures of Ramona, Henry Huggins and his dog Ribsy. You can see Ramona's statue there. There are also some pictures of Beverly Cleary and her husband, Clarence, at that WWW link. The photo you see at the top of the page comes from that page.

Her books are among the first "chapter" books we read in school, usually anywhere from second to fourth grade. I like the Ramona books because they are realistic. It's not always easy being young. Ramona and her family are very real people to me. The family faces real life problems, as in Ramona and Her Father when her father loses his job. But the family works hard to solve their problems. Anita Silvey in the magazine, Redbook says, "Cleary's genius lies in her ability to write books that have marvelous characters, plots, and setting for a second or third grade child, which is an extraordinarily hard thing to do." If you have a favorite book or would like to learn more about her, you can visit Beverly Cleary's Home Page which is devoted to Beverly Cleary and her works.

I also like Runaway Ralph, Ralph S. Mouse, and Mouse on a Motorcycle. Ralph is such an appealing little guy. I found an article I liked, Ralph Biography about Ralph Le Gerbois. Some children found Ralph! At least they thought it was Ralph. Ralph turned out to be a gerbil instead.

Beverly Cleary has won many awards for her books. She received a long overdue Newbery Award for her book, Dear Mr. Henshaw in 1984. Leigh's parents were getting a divorce and he wrote to Mr. Henshaw, the author of his favorite book, to tell him about his problems. In the sequel, Strider, Leigh and his mother are having a hard time paying their bills. When Leigh finds the dog, Strider, his life changes. This book was illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky, one of my favorite book illustrators. She also received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for her lifetime achievements in children's literature.

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