Historian, Author Milton Meltzer Dies at 94
Milton Meltzer, the famed historian and author of more than 110 books for young people, died Saturday his home in New York City following a battle with esophageal cancer. He was 94.
A five-time National Book Award finalist, Meltzer’s nonfiction works have long been a staple in library collections, helping to support the history curriculum of schools around the country. Meltzer’s books addressed such subjects as crime, ancient Egypt, the immigrant experience, labor movements, photography, piracy, poverty, racism, and slavery.
In Brother Can You Spare a Dime (Fact on File, 1991), he wrote about the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression; in Never to Forget (HarperCollins, 1991) he dealt with the Holocaust, and in There Comes a Time (Random House, 2001), he addressed the Civil Rights movement.
His many biographies included champions of social justice like Mary McLeod Bethune, Lydia Maria Child, Samuel Gridley Howe, Dorothea Lange, Margaret Sanger, and Thaddeus Stevens, as well as American writers like Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry David Thoreau, and Mark Twain.
Meltzer continued publishing books through 2008. Among his last titles were Up Close: John Steinbeck (Viking, 2008), and his second historical novel, Tough Times (Clarion, 2007).
According to his biographer, Edward T. Sullivan , “Among Milton's many groundbreaking contributions to nonfiction for young people was his "warts and all" approach to portraying historical figures. He offered young readers the best and least admirable sides of such giants as Andrew Carnegie, Christopher Columbus, and Andrew Jackson.”
For his body of work, Milton received the 2000 Regina Medal presented by the Catholic Library Association and the American Library Association’s 2001 Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, both of which recognize someone who has made a substantial and lasting contribution to children’s literature.
“Milton Meltzer's contribution to American literature for children spans five decades and continues to be a model for informational writing today,” says Pat Scales, chair of the 2001 Wilder Committee. "Over the years, children have read his books and expanded their knowledge of social issues and historical events.”
Read entire article at School Library Journal
A five-time National Book Award finalist, Meltzer’s nonfiction works have long been a staple in library collections, helping to support the history curriculum of schools around the country. Meltzer’s books addressed such subjects as crime, ancient Egypt, the immigrant experience, labor movements, photography, piracy, poverty, racism, and slavery.
In Brother Can You Spare a Dime (Fact on File, 1991), he wrote about the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression; in Never to Forget (HarperCollins, 1991) he dealt with the Holocaust, and in There Comes a Time (Random House, 2001), he addressed the Civil Rights movement.
His many biographies included champions of social justice like Mary McLeod Bethune, Lydia Maria Child, Samuel Gridley Howe, Dorothea Lange, Margaret Sanger, and Thaddeus Stevens, as well as American writers like Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry David Thoreau, and Mark Twain.
Meltzer continued publishing books through 2008. Among his last titles were Up Close: John Steinbeck (Viking, 2008), and his second historical novel, Tough Times (Clarion, 2007).
According to his biographer, Edward T. Sullivan , “Among Milton's many groundbreaking contributions to nonfiction for young people was his "warts and all" approach to portraying historical figures. He offered young readers the best and least admirable sides of such giants as Andrew Carnegie, Christopher Columbus, and Andrew Jackson.”
For his body of work, Milton received the 2000 Regina Medal presented by the Catholic Library Association and the American Library Association’s 2001 Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, both of which recognize someone who has made a substantial and lasting contribution to children’s literature.
“Milton Meltzer's contribution to American literature for children spans five decades and continues to be a model for informational writing today,” says Pat Scales, chair of the 2001 Wilder Committee. "Over the years, children have read his books and expanded their knowledge of social issues and historical events.”