Howard Pease

Howard Pease (September 6, 1894 – April 14, 1974) was an American writer of adventure stories from Stockton, California. Most of his stories revolved around a young protagonist, Joseph Todhunter ("Tod") Moran, who shipped out on tramp freighters during the interwar years.

Life Pease was born in Stockton on September 6, 1894. For most of his life he resided in the San Francisco, California, area, except for those times when he shipped out as a member of the crew on a freighter, searching for new material.

Pease decided to become a writer while in the sixth grade, and he wrote his first short story in 1907 during that school year. He attended Stanford University in Stanford, California, interrupted his studies for two years of United States Army service in Europe, then returned to graduate. Russell Freedman, Michael Dirda and E. L. Doctorow all cited Pease's stories as childhood influences. Actor Richard Crenna as a youth, would often take the bus line to Los Angeles City Library to read Howard Pease Tod Moran stories. Reflected Dirda: "For a long period also I sought out the work of Howard Pease, old-fashioned nautical adventures teeming with frequent and arcane allusions to bilge, Lascars, and fo'csles." Freedman, who won the Newbery Medal and valued realism and accuracy in children's writing, called Pease his "literary hero."

Pease and children's literature Pease was strongly critical of the 1930s world of children's literature (in which he worked) which he stated was a "wholly and solely a woman's world—a completely feminine world" subject to "tender-minded feminine control." Pease believed that this resulted in a paucity of male authors, depressed wages and a lack of realism in children's stories. Pease expounded these views in an address he delivered in 1939 at an American Library Association "pre-conference" moderated by Frances Clarke Sayers. While the audience of 400 female librarians concurred with Pease that the lack of male authors and of social realism was a problem, his overall misogynistic tone offended many and damaged his case. Nevertheless, Pease's speech provoked discussion in the field and led to, among other things, a review of the criteria by which the Newbery Medal winner was selected. Pease remained interested in the question of realism in children's literature and corresponded with other authors on the topic, including noted librarian Julia Sauer. In a reversal, a modern critic took Pease to task for creating "traditional" male heroes who were "brave, clever and independent."

Awards Pease received two literary awards during his life. In 1944, he received the California Commonwealth Book Award for his novel Thunderbolt House, published that year, and in 1946 he was awarded the Children's Book Award (now the Bank Street College of Education, Children's Book Committee's Josette Frank Award) from the Child Study Association of America "for a book that deals realistically with problems in the childs world" for his novel Heart of Danger of that year.

Papers Pease's papers are held at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California.