Mildred Taylor rose to prominence as an author of children's books in the mid 1970s. With the publication of her novel Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1976) and its subsequent winning of the Newbery Medal, Taylor achieved recognition as a writer able to portray an accurate and believable picture of a southern, rural black family in the 1930s by addressing her readers with honesty and integrity and by presenting them fully realized characters. Much of Taylor's inspiration for her writing comes from her father's stories about his family and their experiences in rural Mississippi, and though the settings of her novels may suggest writings of a regional nature, her themes are, in fact, universal and timeless.

The second daughter of Wilbert Lee and Deletha M. Taylor, Mildred Taylor was born in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1943. Taylor's childhood years were spent in Toledo, Ohio, where her father moved his wife...