Louise Seaman Bechtel facts for kids

Louise Seaman Bechtel (June 29, 1894 – April 12, 1985) was an American editor, critic, author, and teacher. She became famous for her work with children's books. She was the first person to lead a special department for juvenile books at an American publishing company.

Her Life and Work

Early Years

Louise Seaman was born in 1894 in Brooklyn, New York. She went to Vassar College and graduated in 1915. In 1929, she married Edwin DeTurck Bechtel. He was a lawyer and also loved art and roses.

A Career in Books

In 1919, Louise Bechtel started working at Macmillan Publishers. She became the editor of their brand-new department for children's books. This was a big deal because she was the first person to ever lead such a department in an American publishing house.

The president of Macmillan, George P. Brett, believed that women understood children's books better. He gave Louise a lot of freedom to build the new department. She took over popular children's stories like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Water Babies.

During her 15 years at Macmillan, Louise Bechtel helped publish over 600 new children's books. This was a huge step for children's literature in America!

Even during the Great Depression, when money was tight, she managed to keep publishing books. However, things got harder, and she left Macmillan in 1934. Later, from 1949 to 1956, she wrote about "Books for Young People" for the New York Herald Tribune newspaper.

Award-Winning Books

Louise Bechtel helped publish some very famous children's books. Three of these books won the prestigious Newbery Medal:

• The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly (1929)
• Hitty, Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field (1930)
• The Cat Who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth (1931)

Louise Bechtel also wrote her own books. Her most well-known stories are The Brave Bantam (1946) and Mr. Peck's Pets (1947).

Her Amazing Book Collection

Over her long career, Louise Bechtel collected many children's books. She gathered more than 3,500 books! This amazing collection included rare folk tales, legends from Asia and Africa, and Greek mythology. It also had Aesop's fables and stories inspired by Shakespeare. She collected books illustrated by famous artists like Arthur Rackham and Kate Greenaway. This collection was later given to Vassar College and the University of Florida.

Later Life

Louise Seaman Bechtel passed away on April 12, 1985, in Mount Kisco, New York.

The Bechtel Prize

The Bechtel Prize is an award named after Louise Bechtel. It is given out every year by the Teachers & Writers Collaborative in New York. The prize celebrates great articles or essays about teaching creative writing or studying literature.

The winning essay is published in Teachers & Writers magazine. The author also receives $1,000. Topics for the prize can include new ways to teach writing or how literature and creative writing connect.

Bechtel Prize Winners

The winner is shown in bold.

2004

• Mary Cappello for "Can Creative Writing Be Taught?"
• Sam Swope for "The Tree Project"

2005

• Diane LeBlanc for "Weaving Voices: Writing as a Working Class Daughter, Professor, and Poet"

2006

• Sarah Porter for “‘The Pen Has Become the Character’: How Creative Writing Creates Us”

2007

• Anna Sopko for “Writing Standards”

2008

• Michael Bazzett for “Within Words: Making Students At Home in the Language of Literature”

2009

• Emily Raboteau for “Jazz Poetry”

2010

• Garth Greenwell for “A Native Music: Writing the City in Sofia, Bulgaria”

2011

• Janet L. Bland for "The Possum"

2012

• Barbara Flug Colin for "Now Let’s Stare at the Purple"

2013

• Chris Belden for “Inside Words: How to Teach Writing in Prison"

2016

• Christian McEwan for "Alastair Reid: Traveling Light"

2017

• M.K. Rainey for “I Hate Writing: On the Necessity of Being Vulnerable"

The Louise Seaman Bechtel Fellowship

The Bechtel Fellowship is another award named after Louise Bechtel. It is given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), which is part of the American Library Association. This fellowship gives $4,000 to an experienced librarian who works with children. The librarian uses the money to spend a month reading and studying at the Baldwin library at the University of Florida.

Books Written by Louise Seaman Bechtel

• The Brave Bantam. 1946
• Mr. Peck's Pets. 1947
• The boy with the star lantern: Edwin De Turck Bechtel, 1880-1957: a memoir. published privately, 1960
• About Bedford Corners and Our Home in One Corner. Luneburg, Vt., Stinehour Press, 1963

Books Edited by Louise Seaman Bechtel

• The Trumpeter of Krakow. Eric P. Kelly, 1929
• Hitty, Her First Hundred Years. Rachel Field, 1930
• The Cat Who Went to Heaven. Elizabeth Coatsworth, 1931