Averill, Esther Holden

American children's author/illustrator/publisher born in Bridgeport, Connecticut in 1902. Most noted for her Cat Club series and her publishing company, the Domino Press.

From the description of Esther Averill papers 1953-1971. (University of Southern Mississippi, Regional Campus). WorldCat record id: 37958930

Esther Averill was born July 24, 1902 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Beginning in her teens, Averill's expression in cartoons and writing frequented her local newspapers leading to her studies at Vassar College through 1923. With the 'printers ink in her blood', she began editorial work in a women's fashion newspaper. Averill hopped the Atlantic and resided within France's boarders for a decade where she became a free-lance writer and illustrator. The content switch from fashion to children in Averill's work hinged in 1931 with the publishing of Daniel Boone under her own imprinting. Domino Press experienced growing pains for the first few years, as Averill and her cohorts were learning the turns in the trade. Domino Press' motto was to specialize in 'children's picture books illustrated by gifted young artists and reproduced by means of the excellent color processes that were available'. Three years after the inception in France, Averill transported her publishing station back to the United States. In 1938, Domino Press ceased printing. Averill went on to write and illustrate over thirty pieces of work between 1931 and 1973, including The Cat Club, Jenny Lost her Scarf and Jenny's Birthday Book . Esther Averill passed away in 1992.

Biographical source: Something About the Author . Volume 28, 1982.

From the guide to the Esther Averill Collection, 1944-1973, (University of Minnesota Libraries Children's Literature Research Collections [clrc])