May Justus

May Justus (May 12, 1898 – November 7, 1989) was an American author of numerous children's books, almost all of which were set in Appalachia and reflect the traditional culture of her native East Tennessee. She also worked as a teacher and served for many years as volunteer secretary-treasurer for the Highlander Folk School.

Biography May Justus was born in Del Rio, Tennessee, in 1898. She was one of the ten children of schoolteacher Stephen Justus and his wife Margaret Brooks Justus. Traditional storytelling and major works of literature were both prominent elements in the Justus home, where family members had a regular practice of reading books aloud.

At the University of Tennessee in Knoxville she studied to become a teacher, graduating with a bachelor's degree.

May Justus died in Tennessee on November 7, 1989. She was buried in Summerfield Cemetery in Grundy County.

Books Justus wrote about 60 books published between 1927 and 1980, including children's fiction and some poetry. Justus' books for children typically combine traditional folklore with realistic fictional stories. Her characters speak in Appalachian dialect, practice traditional mountain folkways, and often are depicted singing traditional songs. Several of her books include recipes, reproduce the words and musical scores of the songs the characters sing, or provide descriptions of herbal remedies.

Only two of Justus's books for children were set outside Appalachia: New Boy in School (1963) and A New Home for Billy (1966), both of which deal with racial desegregation. New Boy in School tells the story of an African American boy who moves to Nashville from Louisiana and enters an integrated school in Nashville where his is the only brown face in his class.