Virginia Lee Burton
Encyclopedia
Virginia Lee Burton was an American illustrator and children's book author. Burton wrote and illustrated seven self-illustrated children's books, including the Caldecott Medal
winning The Little House
. Also known by her married name Virginia Demetrios. She died in 1968 of lung cancer
. The importance of Virginia Lee Burton's work for the development of modern environmentalism is discussed in a 2011 academic article published by the Journal of Urban History..
"I did for both Aris and Mike [her children] in an attempt to wean them away from comic books."
"was based on our own little house which we moved from the street into a field of daises with apple trees growing around."
"the story of our Gloucester Highway Department."
"was made in memory of my school days in San Francisco."
"This book took me eight years to complete. The research from book—museums of natural history—and direct observation from life was an education in itself."
Caldecott Medal
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...
winning The Little House
The Little House
The Little House is the title of a 1942 book written and illustrated by Virginia Lee Burton.-Inspiration:Author Virginia Lee Burton has stated that "The Little House was based on our own little house which we moved from the street into "a field of daisies with apple trees growing around." Burton...
. Also known by her married name Virginia Demetrios. She died in 1968 of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
. The importance of Virginia Lee Burton's work for the development of modern environmentalism is discussed in a 2011 academic article published by the Journal of Urban History..
Content
Virginia Lee Burton's books are notable for their swirling, stylized illustrations and her stories concerning technological change. Characters are apt to be buildings or machines.Books by Burton
- Choo Choo, © 1937. ISBN 0-395-47942-8
- Mike Mulligan and His Steam ShovelMike Mulligan and His Steam ShovelMike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel is a classic children's book by Virginia Lee Burton, the author and illustrator of the Caldecott Medal-winning The Little House...
, © 1939. ISBN 0-590-75803-9 - Calico the Wonder Horse, or the Saga of Stewy Stinker, © 1941.
"I did for both Aris and Mike [her children] in an attempt to wean them away from comic books."
- The Little HouseThe Little HouseThe Little House is the title of a 1942 book written and illustrated by Virginia Lee Burton.-Inspiration:Author Virginia Lee Burton has stated that "The Little House was based on our own little house which we moved from the street into "a field of daisies with apple trees growing around." Burton...
, © 1942. (Caldecott MedalCaldecott MedalThe Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...
winner)ISBN 0-395-18156-9
"was based on our own little house which we moved from the street into a field of daises with apple trees growing around."
- Katy and the Big Snow, © 1943. ISBN 0-395-95991-8
"the story of our Gloucester Highway Department."
- Maybelle the Cable Car, © 1952. ISBN 0-618-16440-5
"was made in memory of my school days in San Francisco."
- Life Story, © 1962. ISBN 0-039-552017-7 (Revised in 2009, ISBN 0-547-20359-4)
"This book took me eight years to complete. The research from book—museums of natural history—and direct observation from life was an education in itself."
- Mike Mulligan and More: Four Classic Stories by Virginia Lee Burton, 2002, omnibus volume ISBN 0-618-25627-X
Illustrated by Burton
- The Emperor's New Clothes, Hans Christian Andersen, 1973. ISBN 0-618-34420-9
- The Song of Robin Hood, stories compiled by Anne Malcolmson, adaptation for musical scores Grace Castagnetta, © 1947. ISBN 0-618-07186-5
- LA Casita by Virginia Lee Burton, Maria Elena Herrera, 1994. ISBN 970-629-050-8
- Fast Sooner Hound, Arna Bontemps and Jack Conroy, 1975. ISBN 0-395-18657-9
- Sad-Faced Boy, Arna Bontemps, © 1937. ISBN 0-395-06643-3
- Don Coyote, Leigh Peck, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1942).
Resources
- Virginia Lee Burton: A Life in Art, by Barbara Elleman, 2002, ISBN 0-618-00342-8
- Virginia Lee Burton: A Sense of Place, a documentary film narrated by Lindsay CrouseLindsay Crouse-Early life:Crouse was born in New York City, the daughter of Anna and Russel Crouse, a playwright. Her full name—Lindsay Ann Crouse—is an intentional tribute to the Broadway writing partnership of Lindsay and Crouse. Her father and his writing partner, Howard Lindsay, wrote much of...
, had its world premiere at the Cape Ann Museum on December 8, 2007. The film is produced by Christine Lundberg of Red Dory Productions, Gloucester MA in partnership with filmmaker Rawn Fulton of Searchlight Films, Bernardston MA, with music composed by Steven Schoenberg of Quabbin Music, New Salem MA. It had its initial broadcast on WGBHWGBH-TVWGBH-TV, channel 2, is a non-commercial educational public television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. WGBH-TV is a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service , and produces more than two-thirds of PBS's national prime time television programming...
, BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
Channel 44) on December 30, 2007 at 7 p.m.http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/11/18/seuss_on_the_loose. For more information, visit www.virginialeeburtonthefilm.com