Ruth Krauss facts for kids

Ruth Ida Krauss (born July 25, 1901 – died July 10, 1993) was an American writer. She was famous for her children's books, like The Carrot Seed. She also wrote poems for adults. Many of her books are still popular today.

Ruth Krauss's Early Life and School

Ruth Krauss was born on July 25, 1901, in Baltimore, Maryland. Her parents were Julius Leopold and Blanche Krauss. When she was a child, Ruth often had health problems. She started writing and drawing her own stories when she was young. She even sewed the pages together to make her own books!

Ruth went to high school but left in 1917 to study art. She joined the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts. This school focused on practical arts, which wasn't quite right for her. She left after about a year.

Next, she went to Camp Walden in Maine. There, she found her love for writing. Her first published writing appeared in the camp's yearbook in 1919. After camp, she studied violin at the Peabody Institute of Music. Her teachers thought she was talented but didn't always follow the rules.

In 1921, Ruth's father passed away. This meant Ruth had to leave school. She took several office jobs. In 1927, she decided to go to the Parsons School of Design in New York. She finished school in 1929, just as the Great Depression was starting. It was hard to find work as an illustrator then. One of her jobs was creating the first picture book jacket for the Modern Library's Alice in Wonderland in 1932.

In the 1940s, Ruth was part of the Writers' Laboratory at the Bank Street College of Education in New York.

In the 1930s, Ruth was married to Lionel White, a journalist. They later divorced before World War II.

Ruth Krauss's Family and Writing Career

Ruth Krauss married Crockett Johnson in 1943. He was also a children's book author. They worked together on many books. Some of their joint books include The Carrot Seed, How to Make an Earthquake, Is This You?, and The Happy Egg.

Eight of her books were illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Their first book together was A Hole Is to Dig (1952). This book helped start Sendak's career. The books Ruth Krauss and Maurice Sendak made together inspired many other writers. Their stories often featured "unruly" and "rebellious" child characters.

A Hole Is to Dig was famous for its unique way of defining things. For example, it said, "A party is to make little children happy." This style became very popular and helped the book stay well-loved.

Ruth Krauss also drew pictures for some of her own books. Besides her children's books, she wrote three collections of poetry and plays for adults.

Awards and Recognition

Two of Ruth Krauss's books were honored with the Caldecott Medal. This award is given to the best illustrations in children's books. These books were The Happy Day (1950) and A Very Special House (1954).

Maurice Sendak, the famous illustrator, called Ruth Krauss a "giant" in children's literature. He said she "broke rules and invented new ones." He believed her writing truly captured what was real in children's lives. Sendak even honored her on the cover of The New Yorker magazine in 1993. The picture showed a boy using her book A Hole Is to Dig as a pillow.

Books by Ruth Krauss

Children's Books

• A Good Man and His Good Wife, illustrated by Ad Reinhardt (1944); later by Marc Simont (1962)
• The Carrot Seed, illustrated by Crockett Johnson (1945)
• The Great Duffy, illustrated by Mischa Richter (1946)
• The Growing Story, illustrated by Phyllis Rowand (1947)
• Bears, illustrated by Phyllis Rowand (1948); later by Maurice Sendak (2005)
• The Happy Day, illustrated by Marc Simont (1949)
• The Big World and the Little House, illustrated by Marc Simont (1949)
• The Backward Day, illustrated by Marc Simont (1950)
• I Can Fly, illustrated by Mary Blair (1950)
• The Bundle Book, illustrated by Helen Stone (1951)
• A Hole is to Dig: A First Book of First Definitions, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1952)
• A Very Special House, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1953)
• I'll Be You and You Be Me, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1954)
• How To Make An Earthquake, illustrated by Crockett Johnson (1954)
• Charlotte and the White Horse, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1955)
• Is This You?, by Krauss and Crockett Johnson (1955)
• I Want to Paint My Bathroom Blue, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1956)
• Monkey Day, illustrated by Phyllis Rowand (1957)
• The Birthday Party, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1957)
• Somebody Else's Nut Tree, and Other Tales from Children, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1958)
• A Moon or a Button: A Collection of First Picture Ideas, illustrated by Remy Charlip (1959)
• Open House for Butterflies, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1960)
• Mama, I Wish I Was Snow; Child You'd Be Very Cold, illustrated by Ellen Raskin (1962)
• A Bouquet of Littles, illustrated by Jane Flora (1963)
• Eyes, Nose, Fingers, Toes, illustrated by Elizabeth Schneider (1964)
• What a Fine Day for ..., illustrated by Remy Charlip, music by Al Carmines (1967)
• The Happy Egg, illustrated by Crockett Johnson (1967)
• This Thumbprint: Words and Thumbprints (1967)
• The Little King, the Little Queen, the Little Monster and Other Stories You Can Make Up Yourself (1968)
• If Only (1969)
• I Write It, illustrated by Mary Chalmers (1970)
• Under Twenty (1970)
• Everything Under a Mushroom, illustrated by Margot Tomes (1973)
• Love and the Invention of Punctuation (1973)
• Little Boat Lighter Than a Cork, illustrated by Esther Gilman (1976)
• Under Thirteen (1976)
• When I Walk I Change the Earth (1978)
• Somebody Spilled the Sky, illustrated by Eleanor Hazard (1979)
• Minnestrone (1981)
• Re-examination of Freedom (1981)
• Love Poems for Children (1986)
• Big and Little, illustrated by Mary Szilagyi (1987)
• And I Love You, illustrated by Steven Kellogg (1987)

Poetry and Verse Plays

• There's A Little Ambiguity Among the Bluebells and Other Theater Poems (1968)
• The Cantilever Rainbow, illustrated by Antonio Frasconi (1965)
• This Breast Gothic (1973)

See also

• In Spanish: Ruth Krauss para niños