Calhoun, Mary Roberts

Variant names

Dates:

Active 1959

Active 1992

Biographical notes:

Writing under the name Mary Calhoun, Mary Huiskamp Wilkins has written juvenile and young adult books chiefly in four broad categories: historical themes on the Mississippi River Valley, elfin folklore, the "Katie John" books and her animal books, ranging from Wobble (1958) to her Henry books (1990s). She is the recipient of SLJ Best Books citation, the California Young Readers Medal, the Cholorado Children't Book Award (1981), among other awards and honors.

From the description of Mary Calhoun papers, 1959-1992. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 62492569

Mary Calhoun was born in Keokuk, Iowa, in 1926, where she grew up in a large red brick house on a bluff above the Mississippi. Her Welsh mother told her stories of fairies, witches, and magical doings. She decided at the age of seven that she wanted to be a writer, and she wrote poetry and fantasies and became a storyteller. As a teenager, she worked in the local public library conducting their story hour. In 1948 she earned a B.A. degree in Journalism at the University of Iowa. She worked for the Omaha World-Herald in 1948 and for the Gresham Outlook in Gresham, Oregon, as a society editor in 1948 -- 1949. Calhoun wrote more than forty children's books, as well as stories for children's magazines. An avid student of folklore, she wrote many stories based on folklore. A cat-lover as well, many of her books feature cats.

From the description of Papers of Mary Huiskamp Calhoun, 1964-1968? (University of Iowa Libraries). WorldCat record id: 230808589

American author born on August 3, 1926 in Keokuk, Iowa. Her fascination with spirits and folklore of the nineteenth century led her to write about witches, pixies, and elves.

From the description of Mary Huiskamp Calhoun papers 1966-1983. (University of Southern Mississippi, Regional Campus). WorldCat record id: 37963200