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Eleanor Estes

エレノア・エステス

Eleanor Estes

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1906-05-09 （West Haven, Connecticut, United States）
Died
1988-07-15 （Hamden, Connecticut, United States） age 82
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
West Haven, Connecticut, United States → New York, New York, United States (worked at New York Public Library) → Los Angeles, California, United States (c.1948) → Hamden, Connecticut, United States (later life)

Career

Occupations
children's writer, illustrator, children's librarian
Active Years
1941-1988
Affiliations
New York Public Library (employment), Pratt Institute (husband later head of Pratt Institute Library), University of New Hampshire Writer's Conference (instructor)

Education

Pratt Institute School of Information and Library Science
Period: 1931-1932
Country: United States
Attended on Caroline M. Hewins scholarship
West Haven High School
Period: 1919-1923
Year of Graduation: 1923
Country: United States
High school graduate

Awards

Newbery Medal
1952
Work: Ginger Pye
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (ALA)
Result: winner
Newbery Honor
1942
Work: The Middle Moffat
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (ALA)
Result: honor
Newbery Honor
1943
Work: Rufus M.
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (ALA)
Result: honor
Newbery Honor
1944
Work: The Hundred Dresses
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (ALA)
Result: honor
Lewis Carroll Shelf Award
1961
Work: The Moffats
Organization: Unknown
Result: winner
Certificate of Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Literature
1968
Result: recipient
Pratt Institute Alumni Medal
1968
Organization: Pratt Institute
Result: recipient
Laura Ingalls Wilder Award Nominee
1970
Result: nominee

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Hundred Dresses

1944 Children's literature

A story about Wanda Petronski, a Polish girl bullied by classmates for her name and the same blue dress she wears each day. She claims to have a hundred dresses at home; later she wins a school art contest with one hundred dress drawings, prompting her classmates' regret.

bullyingprejudicechildhoodguilt and atonement

The Moffats

1941 Children's literature

A series-like family story portraying everyday life of the Moffat family in a small town from a child's perspective, based on the author's hometown and family.

familysmall-town lifechild's perspective

Ginger Pye

1951 Children's literature

A family story centered on the family's dog, Ginger Pye, featuring adventure, friendship, courage, and domestic bonds. Estes illustrated the book and it won the 1952 Newbery Medal.

friendshipadventurefamily

The Middle Moffat

1942 Children's literature

A volume in the Moffats series focusing on the growth and everyday life of the young daughter; recognized as a Newbery Honor book.

growing upfamilyeveryday discoveries

Rufus M.

1943 Children's literature

A story centered on Rufus, a member of the Moffat family; domestic events are portrayed with a child's perspective and humor. Newbery Honor book.

humorchildish adventuresfamily

Pinky Pye

1958 Children's literature

A light children's story portraying family life and children's imagination.

imaginationfamily

Bibliography

  • The Moffats (1941)
  • The Middle Moffat (1942)
  • The Sun and the Wind and Mr. Todd (1943)
  • Rufus M. (1943)
  • The Hundred Dresses (1944)
  • The Echoing Green (1947)
  • Sleeping Giant and Other Stories (1948)
  • Ginger Pye (1951)
  • A Little Oven (1955)
  • Pinky Pye (1958)
  • The Witch Family (1960)
  • Small but Wiry (1963)
  • The Alley (1964)
  • The Lollipop Princess (1967)
  • Miranda the Great (1967)
  • The Tunnel of Hugsy Goode (1972)
  • The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree (1973)
  • The Lost Umbrella of Kim Chu (1978)
  • The Moffat Museum (1983)
  • The Curious Adventures of Jimmy McGee (1987)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
plain, unadorned narrationchild-centered perspectivesensitive depiction of domestic and quotidian details
Recurring Motifs
familysmall-town lifechildren's imagination and responsibilityatonement and growth

Health

  • tuberculosis
    1930年代〜1940年代（発病時は長期療養）
    She began writing while confined to bed by tuberculosis.

Legacy

Eleanor Estes is recognized for her delicate portrayals of everyday life from a child's perspective. Winner of the Newbery Medal and multiple Newbery Honor recognitions, her Moffats books and The Hundred Dresses remain classics of children's literature. Her papers are held by several university archives.

Archives

  • University of Southern Mississippi Special Collections (Eleanor Estes Papers)
  • University of Minnesota Libraries Special Collections (Eleanor Estes Papers)
  • University of Connecticut Archives (Eleanor Estes Papers)

In Popular Culture

  • The Hundred Dresses is widely used in school curricula and anti-bullying education.

Quotes

  • She had the ability to distill the very essence of childhood.
    Source: Carolyn Shute (review)
  • She possessed a rare gift for depicting everyday experiences from the fresh perspective of childhood.
    Source: Anita Silvey (criticism)

Trivia

  • She wrote about 20 books in her lifetime.
  • The Hundred Dresses was based on an incident from her childhood and written partly to atone for remaining silent when a peer was bullied.
  • She won the 1952 Newbery Medal for Ginger Pye.
  • She began writing while confined by tuberculosis.