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Ruth Sawyer

ルース・ソーヤー

Ruth Sawyer

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1880-08-05 （Boston, Massachusetts, United States）
Died
1970-06-03 （Lexington, Massachusetts, United States） age 89
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
New York City → Maine (summer cottage) → Ithaca, New York → Boston, Massachusetts → Lexington, Massachusetts

Career

Occupations
storyteller, teacher, writer
Active Years
1900-1970
Affiliations
New York Public Library (established storytelling program), Cornell University Extension Services (lecturer & storyteller), West Virginia Federal Reformatory for Women (regular storytelling visits)

Education

Columbia University (Teachers College)
Teachers College / Education / Storytelling & Folklore
Degree: B.S. (Education)
Period: 1901–1904
Year of Graduation: 1904
Country: United States
Attended on scholarship; studied storytelling and folklore.

Awards

Newbery Medal
1937
Work: Roller Skates
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (American Library Association)
Result: winner
Children's Literature Legacy Award (formerly Laura Ingalls Wilder Award)
1965
Organization: Association for Library Service to Children (American Library Association)
Result: winner (lifetime achievement)
Regina Medal
1965
Organization: Catholic Library Association
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Roller Skates

1936 Children's literature (fiction / fictional autobiography)

A fictional autobiography about ten-year-old Lucinda who spends a year given great freedom in New York City, roller-skating through the city and encountering people of many ages and backgrounds; addresses themes of friendship and loss.

coming of agefreedomfriendshiploss

The Year of Jubilo

1940 Children's literature

A sequel to Roller Skates following Lucinda and her family as they move to Maine after the death of her father.

familyloss and recoverynature

The Primrose Ring

1915 Adult fiction

Sawyer's first novel for adults; it was adapted into a silent film in 1917.

romancefantasy
Adaptations
  • [Film (silent)] The Primrose Ring (film) (1917)

The Way of the Storyteller

1942 Non-fiction (manual / folktales)

A guide to storytelling techniques combined with a collection of tales suitable for oral performance; used as a textbook for teachers, librarians and storytellers.

storytelling techniquefolktales

The Christmas Anna Angel

1944 Children's literature (Christmas tale)

Based on stories told to Sawyer by a Hungarian woman she met at a prison visit; it tells of a girl in wartime Hungary who believes an angel will bring a Christmas miracle. Illustrated by Kate Seredy; it received a Caldecott Honor.

faithhopewar and deprivationChristmas

Journey Cake, Ho!

1953 Children's picture book

A take on the runaway-food theme (like The Gingerbread Man); Sawyer wrote the story and her son-in-law Robert McCloskey provided the illustrations.

adventurehumorcooperation

Bibliography

  • The Primrose Ring (1915)
  • Roller Skates (1936)
  • The Year of Jubilo (1940)
  • The Way of the Storyteller (1942; revised 1962)
  • The Christmas Anna Angel (1944)
  • Journey Cake, Ho! (1953)
  • Daddles, The Story of a Plain Hound-Dog (1964)

Adaptations

  • 1917 silent film adaptation of The Primrose Ring
  • Audio recording 'Ruth Sawyer, Storyteller' (1965)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
oral/storytelling stylefolklore-based narrativeslyrical, audience-conscious narration
Recurring Motifs
folktales and traditionChristmas and celebrationchild's perspective and freedomjourneys and encounters

Legacy

Ruth Sawyer is regarded as a major 20th-century American storyteller and children's author who greatly contributed to the promotion of storytelling in libraries and education. She won the Newbery Medal for Roller Skates and received lifetime-recognition awards such as the Children's Literature Legacy Award (1965). Her papers are held at St. Catherine University.

Museums

  • Ruth Sawyer Collection (St. Catherine University) St. Paul, Minnesota (St. Catherine University)

Academic Societies

  • Recognition by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

Archives

  • St. Catherine University Libraries (Ruth Sawyer Collection)

Trivia

  • Influenced in childhood by an Irish nanny named Joanna who inspired her love of storytelling.
  • Started the first storytelling program for children at the New York Public Library in 1910.
  • Won the 1937 Newbery Medal for Roller Skates.
  • Her daughter Margaret (Peggy) married Robert McCloskey, the noted children's author/illustrator.
  • Her papers are held by St. Catherine University.