Helen Roney Sattler facts for kids

Helen Roney Sattler (March 2, 1921 – June 2, 1992) was an American author who wrote many popular books for children. She is most famous for her amazing, award-winning books about dinosaurs.

About Helen Roney Sattler

Helen Roney Sattler was born in Newton, Iowa. She grew up on a farm in the Ozarks region of Missouri. She went to Southwest Missouri State College and earned a degree in education in 1946.

After college, Helen worked as an elementary school teacher. She also spent eight years as a children's librarian. These jobs helped her understand what kids liked to read. Later, she decided to become a full-time writer.

Her First Books

Helen's first books were about fun topics like arts and crafts. She also wrote several books with Bible puzzles. Many of her early articles appeared in Christian children's magazines.

Her writing career changed when her grandson asked her for a special book. He wanted a dinosaur book "that didn't have any mistakes in it." This request inspired Helen to focus on natural history.

Writing About Dinosaurs

Helen's first big dinosaur book was Dinosaurs of North America, published in 1981. This book was the start of many popular dinosaur books she would write.

Deep Research for Dinosaurs

Helen Roney Sattler was known for how much research she put into her dinosaur books. For each book, she used more than 150 different sources. She also talked to over a dozen paleontologists. Paleontologists are scientists who study fossils, including dinosaurs. This careful research made her books very accurate.

Her most ambitious work was The Illustrated Dinosaur Dictionary. This huge project took her almost five years to research and write. John H. Ostrom, a famous paleontologist, wrote the introduction for this book. He called it the "most comprehensive book on dinosaurs for the nonscientist" at that time. A new, updated version of this dictionary was released in 1990. It was called The New Illustrated Dinosaur Dictionary.

The Sattler Award

In 1991, a group called The Dinosaur Society was started by Don Lessem. This group created an award in Helen's honor. It was called the Sattler Award for the "best juvenile dinosaur book." The first person to win this award was Dougal Dixon for his book Dougal Dixon's Dinosaurs in 1993.

Later Life and Legacy

Helen Roney Sattler was a member of important writing groups. These included the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. She was also part of the American Association of University Women.

Helen passed away on June 2, 1992. She is buried in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Her books continue to teach and inspire young readers about the amazing world of dinosaurs and natural history.