BOOKS GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU:

The Storied Life of Ursula Nordstrom, Editor of Extraordinary Children’s Books

To be published by Abrams Books for Young Readers in Spring 2026.

As the director of the children’s book department at Harper & Brothers (now HarperCollins) from 1940 to 1973, Ursula acquired, edited and published hundreds of books. While you may not have heard of her, I’ll bet you’ve heard of some of the books she edited, including:

• Goodnight Moon
• Charlotte’s Web
• Harold and the Purple Crayon
• Harriet the Spy
• Where the Wild Things Are
• Stevie

My 200+ page biography of Ursula takes you behind the scenes, revealing how she worked with writers and artists, encouraging them to make these (and 10 more groundbreaking books I selected) the best they could be.

Some people feel compelled to bracket the reading ages for a book, and this one is pegged for middle grades, but I think of it as an “all ages” book. Anyone who grew up reading the books Ursula edited will find nuggets about the making of those books. And Ursula’s approach to stories and editing might capture the imaginations of teachers, librarians and lovers of children’s literature.

I hope you’ll circle back here to see the book cover when I can reveal it later this year. In the meantime, you can join my mailing list to receive monthly recommendations for children’s books and news of my writing journey.