Throughout her long career as an author of children's books, Ruth Sawyer also gained wide recognition as a collector of folktales, a professional storyteller, and a lecturer and writer about the art of storytelling. In 1937 she received the prestigious John Newbery Medal for her juvenile book, Roller Skates. Two of her books were Caldecott Honor selections: The Christmas Anna Angel (in 1945), illustrated by Kate Seredy, and Journey Cake, Ho! (in 1954) illustrated by Robert McCloskey. She was honored in 1965 with two other major awards for her outstanding contribution to children's literature: the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award from the American Library Association and the Regina Award from the Catholic Library Association.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1880, Ruth Sawyer was the only daughter and youngest of the five children of Francis Milton and Ethalinda J. Smith Sawyer. The family moved to New York City in 1881 and there Sawyer received her early...