Newspaper Article

Once Upon a Time, And for Years After

Eden Ross Lipson

1997

Overview

At noon on a dress-down Friday a few weeks ago, the bright white offices of Simon & Schuster Children's Books were empty. The corridors, lined with colorful books and posters, were deserted. The large conference room, however, was jammed, warm and smelled of sandwiches. The entire staff, about 75 people, from editors and assistants to receptionist, casually attired, had gathered for a brown-bag lunch, to hear Margaret K. McElderry answer questions about a publishing career that spans more than half a century. She began her career by following the adviser's suggestion. After a year at the Carnegie Library School in her hometown, Pittsburgh, Ms. McElderry came directly to the New York Public Library. In retrospect, the library was perfect training for editing children's books, the ones that endure and are read by succeeding generations: ''The Borrowers'' or ''Ginger Pye'' or ''The Dark Is Rising'' or ''The Changeover,'' all of which Ms. McElderry published. During World War II, Ms. McElderry left the library to work in the office of war intelligence in London. On her return to New York, she took over the children's department at Harcourt Brace. The children's book editors of the day -- Ms. McElderry, Ursula Nordstrom at Harper & Row, Elizabeth Reilly at Thomas Y. Crowell, Mae Massie at Viking and others -- worked with great independence. They nurtured artists and writers, building up the backlists of titles that demonstrate the development of talent over decades and continue to bring in revenues.

• Publisher: New York Times Company
• Subject: Anniversaries / Books and Magazines / Childrens literature / Editors / Margaret K. McElderry / McElderry, Margaret K / Personal profiles / Publishing industry