Kate Seredy

Kate Seredy (November 10, 1899 – March 7, 1975) was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. She won the Newbery Medal once, the Newbery Honor twice, the Caldecott Honor once, and the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award. Most of her books were written in English, which was not her first language. Life Kate Seredy was born on November 10, 1899 in Budapest, Hungary. She was the only child of a schoolteacher, Louis Peter Seredy, and his wife, Anna Ireny. Seredy received a diploma to teach art from the Academy of Arts in Budapest. During World War I Seredy traveled to Paris and worked as a combat nurse. After the war she illustrated several books in Hungary.

In 1936 Seredy wrote and illustrated Listening, set in rural New Jersey. That same year she purchased, "Listening Hill", a farm near Montgomery, New York. It was here that she wrote The White Stag, a historical retelling of the legends of Huns settling Hungary. Seredy learned these stories from her father when she was a child.

The Singing Tree appeared in 1939. A sequel to The Good Master, it tells of the effects of World War I on Kate and all of her family. The book shows the terrible effects of war on ordinary people, especially those forced to leave their lands and homes to fight. The Singing Tree was also named a Newbery Honor book.

Seredy had 12 children's books published, but she considered herself an illustrator more than an author. She had a unique style, primarily based on drawing, and considered her books "an excuse for making pictures". Her last book, Lazy Tinka, is dedicated to her long-time editor, May Massee.

Later in her life Seredy moved from her farm to a house in the nearby village of Montgomery. She died on March 7, 1975, in Middletown, New York, at the age of 75. Her papers and illustrations are held at the May Massee Collection at Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas, and the University of Oregon Library.

Works

Written and illustrated The Good Master, Viking Press, 1935 ^ Listening, Viking, 1936 The White Stag, Viking, 1937 + The Singing Tree, Viking, 1939 ^ A Tree for Peter, Viking, 1941. Reissued Purple House Press, 2004, 2014. The Open Gate, Viking, 1943 The Chestry Oak, Viking, 1948. Reissued Purple House Press, 2015. Gypsy, Viking, 1951 Philomena, Viking, 1955 The Tenement Tree, Viking, 1959 A Brand New Uncle, Viking, 1961 Lazy Tinka, Viking, 1962

Selected illustrated books Friendly Stories by Arthur I. Gates and Miriam Blanton Huber, Macmillan, 1930 The Pathfinder : Readings from Modern Literature by Lawton B. Evans, Macmillan, 1930 God our Father by Virgil George Michel and Basil Augustine Stegmann, Macmillan, 1934 The Prince Commands by Andre Norton (Norton's debut), D. Appleton–Century Company, 1934 Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink, Macmillan, 1935 + Common Sense for Mothers on Bringing up Your Children from Babyhood to Adolescence by Estelle Mulqueen Reilly, Funk & Wagnalls, 1935 Young Walter Scott by Elizabeth Janet Gray, Viking, 1935 ^ The Selfish Giant and Other Stories compiled by Wilhelmina Harper, David McKay, 1935 Winterbound by Margery Bianco, Viking, 1936 ^ Smiling Hill Farm by Miriam Evangeline Mason, Junior Literary Guild and Ginn and Co., 1937 An Ear for Uncle Emil by E.R. Gaggin, Junior Literary Guild and Viking, 1939 The Christmas Anna Angel by Ruth Sawyer, Viking, 1943 < The Wonderful Year by Nancy Barnes, Junior Literary Guild and J. Messner, 1946 ^ Little Vic by Doris Gates, Viking, 1951 A Dog Named Penny by Clyde Robert Bulla, Ginn, 1955

+ Newbery Award Winner ^ Newbery Honor Book < Caldecott Honor Book