Today is author Patricia MacLachlan's 68th birthday. She was born March 3, 1938. I don't think I've ever read a Patricia MacLachlan book I didn't like, but there are three in particular that have meant a lot to me over the years: Sarah, Plain and Tall (for which she won the Newbery Medal in 1986), Baby, and All the Places to Love.
From time to time, I plan to do "Happy Birthday" posts here for some of my favorite authors. Several months ago I began compiling a birthday list of authors, with an emphasis on children's authors, in the hopes that I can one day do a sort of "literary calendar" for children, with ideas for ways to celebrate a particular author's books, themes and life. It's a longterm project, but fun to plug away at from time to time.
At any rate, I love MacLachlan's work so much I couldn't resist posting here today. If you've never read her work, it's worth checking out. She writes musical prose about characters who are easy to love. Stories filled with small graces.
I've only read "Sarah Plain and Tall" thus far, but I really liked it. I would definitely like to read some of her others.
ReplyDeleteI think you'd really like her other stuff as well! She's written two or three sequels to *Sarah* (about the same family) and while none is perhaps as much a masterpiece as the original, they're all very good. After a while, you begin to catch on to the themes and images she loves, which crop up again and again.
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