The Cat Artist: The Story of Clare Turlay Newberry

Full color biography of Clare Turlay Newberry who created a score of beloved children's books, won four Caldecott Honor awards and was heralded by TIME magazine as "the best cat artist since the Egyptians." But this is more than the biography of a talented artist and author. It is the tale of a fascinating, determined woman, an early feminist with an exotic life and a coterie of famous friends. Felicia N. Trujíllo, Newberry's daughter, has documented this uniquely American story with care and verve. It begins with Newberry's peculiar pioneer family and childhood, then describes her Bohemian life with her first husband and son, her relationships with other creative women and her personal evolution as an artist. Her creative successes and awards are well documented, covers and illustrations from all of her published books and portfolios are presented in full color. Drawing on family history, lively interviews with Newberry's family and friends, copious correspondence, and her mother's own tales, Trujíllo makes the story come alive. From the Northwest, it follows Clare to San Francisco, then to Paris, New York and finally Taos, New Mexico, where Mabel Dodge Lujan introduces Newberry to her second husband, a Hispanic and Yaqui legislator and educator. Personal cameos of the famous-Pulitzer Prize Winners John Steinbeck and H. L. Davis, feminist artist Dorr Bothwell, Taos doyenne Mabel Dodge Lujan, HarperCollins' legendary children's book editor, Ursula Nordstrom, and feminist authors, editors and agents-are featured throughout.