Barbara Robinson is an American author best known for her books targeted at children, particularly The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (1972) and The Best Worst School Year Ever (1994). Robinson grew up in the small town of Portsmouth, Ohio on the Ohio River. Her father died when she was three. Robinson's mother, a schoolteacher in Portsmouth for forty-nine years, fostered her interest in books, and she began writing very early. Robinson attended Harvard College. She received an honorary doctorate of letters from Harvard. In addition to her children's books, Robinson has published dozens of short stories in magazines such as McCall’s and Ladies Home Journal, and has also written plays and poetry. She currently lives in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. She has two daughters, Carolyn, a nurse, and Marjorie, a sixth-grade teacher, and three grandchildren, Tomas, Marcos, and Lucas.
