Kaye Webb facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kaye Webb
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Webb in 1972
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| Born | 26 January 1914 |
| Died | 16 January 1996 (aged 81) |
| Occupation | Editor and publisher |
| Nationality | British |
| Notable awards | Eleanor Farjeon Award (1970) |
| Spouse | Ronald Searle (1948–1967) |
Kathleen ("Kaye") Webb MBE (26 January 1914 – 16 January 1996) was a very important British editor and publisher. She is known for making big changes in how children's books were published and marketed. Many people called her an "enormously influential children's editor" because of her great ideas. She even won an award called the Eleanor Farjeon Award in 1970 for her work.
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Early Life and School
Kathleen Webb was born in Chiswick, London, in 1914. Her father, Arthur Webb, was a journalist, and her mother, Ann, was a film and theatre critic. Her family had a history in publishing, as her great-great-grandfather, W. G. Webb, published toy theatres a long time ago.
Kaye went to Hornsey High School. In 1926, when she was twelve, she started boarding at Ashburton School in Ashburton, Devon. She found some parts of school tough, but her English teacher, Ben R. Gibbs, really inspired her. He wrote textbooks about literature and history.
She left school in 1930. Her teacher thought she should go to university. Instead, her parents sent her to stay with a family in Bruges, Belgium, to learn more about manners and social skills.
Her Career
Kaye Webb's first job was at The Times newspaper when she was 16. After her time in Belgium, she worked as an editor's secretary at Picturegoer magazine. She also worked for Mickey Mouse Weekly, where she replied to children's letters. Later, she worked for car magazines like Caravan World and Sports Car.
In 1938, she joined Picture Post as a secretary. By 1941, she became an assistant editor for Lilliput magazine. During the Second World War, Kaye also volunteered as an ambulance driver and helped in other ways.
After she got married in 1948, she started working freelance. This meant she worked for herself, writing for the News Chronicle and broadcasting on Woman's Hour. In 1955, she was asked to edit The Young Elizabethan, a magazine for young people.
Puffin Books and the Puffin Club
In 1961, Kaye Webb became the editor of Puffin Books. This was a very important job for children's literature. She stayed there until 1979. In 1967, she started the Puffin Club, which was a special club for young readers. She ran the club until 1981 and also edited its magazine, Puffin Post.
Kaye Webb was known for turning children's writers into "stars." She had a lot of freedom to choose which books Puffin would publish. She made sure Puffin book covers were exciting and caught people's eyes. She liked to publish books with interesting and well-written stories, especially those with fantasy and fun.
In 1993, Kaye Webb was interviewed on the famous radio show Desert Island Discs.
Her Family Life
Kaye Webb was married three times. Her third marriage (from 1948 to 1967) was to Ronald Searle, who was a famous cartoonist. They had a son and a daughter together. They created a very colorful and creative home, filling it with unique objects they found on their travels.
Her Archives
Kaye Webb's collection of papers and books is kept at the Seven Stories centre for children's books. This center is located in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Books She Worked On
Kaye Webb either wrote or edited many books, including:
- Looking at London and People Worth Meeting (1953), with Ronald Searle
- Paris Sketchbook (1958), with Ronald Searle
- The St. Trinian's Story: the Whole Ghastly Dossier (ed) (1959)
- Refugees 1960: A Report in Words and Drawings (1960), with Ronald Searle
- A Book of Goblins (1972), with Alan Garner
- I Like This Poem (ed) (1979)
- Lilliput goes to war (ed) (1985)
- I Like This Story: a taste of fifty favourites (ed) (1986)
- Meet My Friends: Favourite characters and their adventures (ed) (1991)
- Round about six: new stories and poems (ed) (1992)
- Family tree: a collection of favourite poems and stories about all kinds of families (ed) (1994)
- Let the sun shine: a read aloud collection (ed) (1998)
