Throughout the month of April, throngs of adoring fans across the country will gather to commemorate Cleary's 100th birthday and her treasured contributions to children's literature.
Witty, humble and private, Cleary’s beloved books were inspired by her own experiences as a child, a mother and a librarian. She wrote about the exuberance of youth mingled with the minutiae of everyday life and captured the hearts of many readers, young and old alike.
Throughout her esteemed career, Cleary has challenged herself and her storytelling abilities. While maintaining the ever-popular Ramona Quimby series, which ended in 1999 when Ramona's World was published, Cleary strayed from her familiar characters—and earned a Newbery medal in the process—with 1984's Dear Mr. Henshaw, a timeless story about the struggles of a sixth-grade boy dealing with life in the aftermath of his parents' separation.
Cleary's many awards and accolades speak to the magnitude of her success as a children's writer, but she says her greatest joy is that children love to read her stories!
To learn more about Beverly Cleary and Oregon Art Beat's upcoming television special "Discovering Beverly Cleary" head to our series page.
OPB and Producer Katrina Sarson celebrated Beverly Cleary's 100th birthday at the Vancouver Community Library with a screening of "Discovering Beverly Cleary" and a birthday party!
Join us as we wish the venerable Beverly Cleary a very Happy Birthday!
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Producer, Katrina Sarson; Editor, Lisa Suinn Kallem; Videographers, Greg Bone, Mark Doyle, Corky Miller, Tom Shrider and Todd Sonflieth; Audio, Ted Cutler, Randy Layton and William Ward; Post Production Audio, Steven Kray; Associate Producer, Tullan Spitz; Digital Assets Coordinator, Tom Hubbard.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Beverly Cleary currently works with HarperCollins Publishers.
Visit the "Discovering Beverly Cleary" series page.