Jump to content

Byrd Baylor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Byrd Baylor
Born(1924-03-28)March 28, 1924
San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
DiedJune 16, 2021(2021-06-16) (aged 97)
Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
OccupationAuthor
GenreChildren's literature
Notable worksAmigo, When Clay Sings, The Desert is Theirs, Hawk, I'm Your Brother, The Way to Start a Day

Byrd Baylor (March 28, 1924 – June 16, 2021) was an American novelist, essayist, and author of picture books for children. Four of her books have achieved Caldecott Honor status.

Background

[edit]

Byrd Baylor was born in March 1924 in San Antonio, Texas.[1] She was related to Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor, the namesake of Baylor University, and to Admiral Richard E. Byrd. Her first name, Byrd, is taken from her mother's maiden name.[2]

Baylor attended the University of Arizona.[1]

Writing

[edit]

Baylor's work presents images of the Southwest and an intense connection between the land and the Native American people.[1] Her prose illustrates vividly the value of simplicity, the natural world, and the balance of life within it.[3] She wrote an essay entitled Good Women Who Love Bad Trucks which she read aloud for radio station KXCI.[4] Byrd contributed essays to Tucson's City Magazine in the late 1980s.[5]

Personal life

[edit]

Baylor latterly lived in Arivaca, Arizona, in an adobe house that did not have electricity. She worked with three manual typewriters.[6]

She died in June 2021 at the age of 97.[7][8]

Caldecott Honors

[edit]

Baylor was awarded Caldecott Honors for her books When Clay Sings (1973) with illustrator Tom Bahti, and The Desert is Theirs (1976), Hawk, I'm Your Brother (1977), and The Way to Start a Day (1979) with illustrator Peter Parnall.[9]

Bibliography

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Byrd Baylor Papers". The Children's Literature Research Collections. University of Minnesota. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Bonnie Henry : Desert druid writes on". 17 May 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  3. ^ "Birthday Bios: Byrd Baylor". Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  4. ^ "Good Women Who Love Bad Trucks – Byrd Baylor". Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  5. ^ https://archive.org/search?sort=-date&query=%28byrd%29+AND+title%3A%28%22City+Magazine%22%29. Retrieved 27 March 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. ^ "Authors Attending the 2004 Northern Arizona Book Festival". Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  7. ^ Davis, Tony (June 25, 2021). "Tucson writer Byrd Baylor, 'voice of the desert and its people,' dies at 97". Arizona Daily Star.
  8. ^ Maughan, Shannon (1 July 2021). "Obituary: Byrd Baylor". Publishers Weekly.
  9. ^ "Caldecott Medal & Honor Books, 1938-Present". Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  10. ^ Baylor, B., Everybody Needs a Rock, accessed 3 August 2023