about the author: Frances Hodgson Burnett

Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (24 November 1849 – 29 October 1924) was an English playwright and author. She is best known for her children's stories, in particular The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and Little Lord Fauntleroy.

When her father died, the family was forced to sell their home and move to Salford, England. When she was sixteen, the family emigrated to Knoxville, Tennessee.

In 1872 she married Swan Burnett. They lived in Paris for two years, where their two sons were born, before returning to the United States to live in Washington D.C. When her oldest son died of Tuberculosis, she was very sad.  She divorced her husband and remarried, but it only lasted a year.  She died in New York at age 74.

We have a few things in common.  My little sister's name is Eliza.  I used to live in Tennessee.  And Frances died on my birthday, October 29.  I do wish Frances would have made different choices so she could have had a happier life.  I was sad to hear about the sad parts of her life.

about the author: Louisa May Alcott

Louisa May Alcott (November 29, 1832 – March 6, 1888) was an American novelist. She is best known for the novel Little Women.

The Alcott girls were mostly educated at home. "I never went to school," Louisa wrote, "except to my father or such governesses as from time to time came into the family. . . . so we had lessons each morning in the study. And very happy hours they were to us, for my father taught in the wise way which unfolds what lies in the child's nature as a flower blooms, rather than crammed it, like a Strasburg goose, with more than it could digest. I never liked arithmetic nor grammar . . . but reading, writing, composition, history, and geography I enjoyed, as well as the stories read to us with a skill peculiarly his own."

Running in the Concord woods early one fall morning, she stopped to see the sunshine over the meadows. "A very strange and solemn feeling came over me as I stood there," she wrote in her journal, "with no sound but the rustle of the pines, no one near me, and the sun so glorious, as for me alone. It seemed as if I felt God as I never did before, and I prayed in my heart that I might keep that happy sense of nearness all my life."

Poverty made it necessary for Alcott to go to work at an early age as an occasional teacher, seamstress, governess, domestic helper, and writer. When the American Civil War broke out, she served as a nurse in the Union Hospital at Georgetown, D.C., for six weeks.

Louisa May Alcott never married. She was a guardian for her sister's daughter and adopted a nephew. Two days after her father died, Louisa died of a stroke at the age of 55.

about the author: L.M. Montgomery

Lucy Maud Montgomery lived from November 30, 1874 – April 24, 1942. She was born on Prince Edward Island in Canada.

Her mother, Clara, died of tuberculosis when Maud was 21 months old. She was raised by her grandparents who were very strict. She had a very lonely childhood. To cope with her loneliness she created imaginary friends and worlds.

She married a minister, Ewan, when she was 34.  They had 3 boys.  The second baby was still born.  Even though she shared so much joy through her stories, she lived a sad life caring for her husband who was mentally ill.

During her lifetime, Montgomery published 20 novels, 500 short stories, an autobiography, and a book of poetry.  Her most-loved story was Anne of Green Gables.

about the author: Lesley M. M. Blume

Lesley M. M. Blume is an author, journalist, columnist, and cultural observer based in New York City. She is the daughter of a classical pianist and a journalist. She has written 3 children's books including "Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters."

about the author: Jeanne Birdsall

Jeanne Birdsall wrote The Penderwick Series.

"Jeanne Birdsall grew up in the suburbs west of Philadelphia, where she attended wonderful public schools. Jeanne had lots of great teachers, but her favorites were: Mrs. Corkhill, sixth grade, who encouraged her intellectual curiosity; Mr. Tremonte, eighth grade algebra, who taught Jeanne to love and respect math; and Miss Basehore, second and fourth year Latin, to whom Jeanne (and Mr. Penderwick) will be forever grateful. 

"Although she first decided to become a writer when she was ten years old, it took Jeanne until she was forty-one to get started.

"In the years in between, Jeanne had many strange jobs to support herself, and also worked hard as a photographer, the kind that makes art.

"Jeanne's home now is with her husband in Northampton, Massachusetts. Their house is old and comfortable, full of unruly animals, and surrounded by gardens."

about the authors: Ridley Pearson, Dave Barry

Ridley Pearson began writing at the age of ten when he taught himself to touch type and found himself with nothing to type. ... Ridley is the #1 nationally bestselling author of a dozen YA novels and picture books, including the Peter and the Starcatchers series and the Neverland Books. ... He and his wife, Marcelle, have two daughters, Paige and Storey. (That's right: page and story.)

Dave Barry has written 30 or so books. Most of them are for adults, but he wrote Peter and the Starcatchers with his fellow band member, Ridley Pearson. I don't think my parents would like me to read any of his other books except the ones about Peter Pan and Neverland.

about the author: Maud Hart Lovelace

Maud Hart Lovelace is best known for her beloved series of Betsy-Tacy books which were set from 1897 to 1917 in Mankato, Minnesota (Deep Valley).

These captivating stories of small town life, family traditions and enduring friendships have captured the hearts of young and old for over 65 years. The Betsy-Tacy books are timeless stories of small town life, family traditions and enduring friendships that have captured the hearts of young and old for over 65 years.

Most of the books are based on Maud's life as a child and young adult.