Gertrude Chandler Warner

Gertrude Chandler Warner
Joan Wallner
Abdo & Daughters, 1996
Pages: 31
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Non-Fiction/Biography

Gertrude Chandler Weber grew up in Putnam, Connecticut. She loved to play with her dollhouse and reading when she was growing up. Both Gertrude and her sister wanted to write books when they grew up. Her house was across the street from the railroad, and Gertrude always wondered what it would be like to live in a train. Her whole life, Gertrude Warner suffered from very bad hay fever, and back then there wasn't any medicine for it. One day her house caught on fire and after the excitement was over she realized that her sneezing had stopped. She realized that excitement helped her allergy, so she was always looking for excitement and laughter. She traveled a bit, to find somewhere where her allergies wouldn't be as bad, but everywhere she went her allergies followed, so she moved back home. She got a job as a writer, but soon realized she needed more of an education so she took classes at Yale University. While in her classes, she became interested in teaching young children, and decided to write childrens books as well as teach children. She wrote a few books, but nothing too big. That is, until she got bronchitis. She was so sick that she couldn't work. So she spent her time writing, and wrote the first book in the boxcar children series. It was such a huge success that she got many letters from readers who wanted to hear more about the four children's adventures, so she started writing the series. She kept writing till he died at the age of 89, but her books continued to be very popular, and still are today.

I would recommend this book to any children who really like the boxcar children series.

I can't foresee any problems caused by this book

My reaction: The Boxcar Children series was my most favorite series as a child, and I thought it was interesting to learn about the woman who wrote them.

My rating: ***