Anita Silvey is an

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, or ...

, and

literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. ...

in the genre of

children’s literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

. Born in

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequo ...

, Silvey has served as Editor-in-Chief of ''The

Horn Book Magazine ''The Horn Book Magazine'', founded in Boston in 1924, is the oldest bimonthly magazine dedicated to reviewing children's literature. It began as a "suggestive purchase list" prepared by Bertha Mahony Miller and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietres ...

'' and as vice-president at

Houghton Mifflin The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

where she oversaw children’s and young adult book publishing. She has also authored a number of critical books about children's literature, including ''500 Great Books for Teens'' and ''The Essential Guide to Children's Books and Their Creators''. In October 2010, she began publishing the Children's Book-A-Day Almanac online, a daily essay on classic and contemporary children's books.

Work

In 1975, Silvey was a co-founder of the publication that became the ''

Boston Review ''Boston Review'' is an American quarterly political and literary magazine. It publishes political, social, and historical analysis, literary and cultural criticism, book reviews, fiction, and poetry, both online and in print. Its signature form ...

''. She served from 1985 to 1995 as Editor-in-Chief of ''

The Horn Book Magazine ''The Horn Book Magazine'', founded in Boston in 1924, is the oldest bimonthly magazine dedicated to reviewing children's literature. It began as a "suggestive purchase list" prepared by Bertha Mahony Miller and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietres ...

''. She also created the spin-off magazine ''The Horn Book Guide to Children's and Young Adult Books''. Between 1995 and 2001, Silvey worked as vice-president at

where she oversaw children's and young adult book publishing for both the Houghton and Clarion divisions. Among illustrators and authors she promoted were

David Wiesner David Wiesner (born February 5, 1956) is an American illustrator and writer of children's books, known best for picture books including some that tell stories without words. As an illustrator he has won three Caldecott Medals recognizing the ye ...

Chris Van Allsburg Chris Van Allsburg (born June 18, 1949) is an American illustrator and writer of children's books. He has won two Caldecott Medals for U.S. picture book illustration, for ''Jumanji'' (1981) and ''The Polar Express'' (1985), both of which he al ...

Virginia Lee Burton Virginia Lee Burton (August 30, 1909 – October 15, 1968), also known by her married name Virginia Demetrios, was an American illustrator and children's book author. She wrote and illustrated seven children's books, including ''Mike Mulligan and ...

, and

Lois Lowry Lois Ann Lowry (; née Hammersberg; March 20, 1937) is an American writer. She is the author of several books for children and young adults, including '' The Giver Quartet,'' ''Number the Stars'', and '' Rabble Starkey.'' She is known for writing ...

. In 2002, Silvey published ''The Essential Guide to Children's Books and Their Creators, 100 Best Books for Children and 500 Great Books for Teens''. She also penned a young adult book on women soldiers in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

, ''I'll Pass for Your Comrade''. In 2008, she wrote an influential article in ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' in which she "criticized the Newbery selections as too difficult for most children.""The Graveyard Book Wins Newbery Medal"
by Motoko Rich, The New York Times, January 26, 2009. A series of interviews with people from all walks of life was published in ''Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children's Book'' in 2009. Silvey is a member of the Editorial Board of ''

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

'' magazine and the Board of Directors for the Vermont Center for the Book. At Simmons University Graduate School of Library Science in Boston, Massachusetts she teaches "Modern Book Publishing" and at St. Michael's College in Winooski, Vermont, she teaches "Children's Book Author Studies".

Awards

In 2008, she won the Ludington Award of the Educational Paperback Association for lifetime dedication to children and books. In 2000, Vermont College gave her an honorary Master in Fine Arts in Children's Book Writing. In 1994, she was acknowledged by her hometown of

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

during the town's bicentennial celebration. In 1987, she won the

Women's National Book Association Book Women Award A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

Partial bibliography

* ''Undaunted: The Wild Life of Biruté Mary Galdikas and Her Fearless Quest to Save Orangutans'', National Geographic Children's Books, 2019 * ''Let Your Voice Be Heard: The Life and Times of Pete Seeger'', Clarion Books, 2016 * ''Untamed: The Wild Life of Jane Goodall'', National Geographic Children's Books, 2015 * ''Children's Book-A-Day Almanac'', Roaring Brook Press, 2012 * ''The Plant Hunters: True Stories of Their Daring Adventures to the Far Corners of the Earth'', Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012 * ''Henry Knox: Bookseller, Soldier, Patriot'', Clarion Books, 2010 * ''Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children's Book'', Roaring Brook Press, 2009. * ''I'll Pass For Your Comrade: Women Soldiers in the Civil War'', Clarion Books, 2008. * ''500 Great Books for Teens'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2006. * ''100 Best Books for Children: A Parent's Guide to Making the Right Choices for Your Young Reader, Toddler to Preteen'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2005. * ''The Essential Guide to Children's Books and Their Creators'', Mariner Books, 2002. * ''Help Wanted: Short Stories about Young People Working'', Little Brown and Company, 1997. * ''Children's Books and Their Creators'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1995.

References

External links

Silvey's websiteVideo interview, Reading RocketsNational Book Festival, Library of Congress
{{DEFAULTSORT:Silvey, Anita 1947 births Living people People from Bridgeport, Connecticut American bloggers American children's writers American literary critics Women literary critics Children's literature criticism Writers from Boston 21st-century American non-fiction writers American women critics