In 1937 Ted Poston had the distinction of being the third black man hired to work as a general reporter for a major New York City daily newspaper. During his forty-six years as a journalist, Poston covered subjects ranging from social problems to literature, from lynching in Florida to Langston Hughes's poetry. In addition to his journalistic work, Poston wrote several short stories, some depicting childhood and youth and others focusing on problem issues such as color discrimination, labor organizing, and segregation in public facilities. His stories on children--including "The Revolt of the Evil Fairies," which has appeared in a number of textbooks--are being given more attention today when many scholars and teachers are actively pursuing the study of literature about children and adolescents.

Theodore Roosevelt Augustus Major Poston was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, on 4 July 1906 to Mollie Cox and Ephraim Poston. He attended the Booker T. Washington Grammar...