Product Description

The New Yorker called Beverly Cleary's first volume of memoirs, A Girl From Yamhill, a warm, honest book, as interesting as any novel. Now the creator of the classic children's stories millions grew up with continues her own fascination story. Here is Beverly Cleary, from college years to the publication of her first book. It is a fascinating look at her life and a writing career that spans three generations, continuing to capture the hearts and imaginations of children of all ages throughout the world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #220285 in Books
• Published on: 1996-10-01
• Released on: 1996-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780380727469
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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From Publishers Weekly
This second installment of the Newbery Medalist's autobiography (after A Girl from Yamhill) begins during the '30s, with the young Cleary leaving her home state of Oregon to attend junior college in California. The volume ends in 1949, with Morrow's acceptance of Cleary's first novel, the now-classic Henry Huggins (initially written as a short story entitled "Spareribs and Henry"). The author's unsentimental recollections of herself as a student in the Depression, a librarian and a newlywed are told humorously and candidly. Friends and adversaries-her ever-critical mother, formidable professors, congenial classmates, gentlemen acquaintances (including future husband Clarence)-are as colorfully sketched as the characters appearing in Cleary's beloved novels. Able to laugh at her own mistakes and to recognize universal truths in everyday life, Cleary will endear herself even more to her fans with this account of her struggle for independence. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up?This sequel to A Girl from Yamhill (Morrow, 1988) begins with Cleary starting college. The only child of Depression-era parents, she leaves her Oregon home to live with relatives and go to school tuition-free in California. Her vivid recollections of the various stops on the bus; her room in her aunt's home; and her many friends, including a few romances, are continued evidence of this author's ability to convince readers. It's all in the details. Cleary handles her own life well, giving it the shape that real life most often does not have, offering readers a sense of what it was like growing up in the 1930s, going to college when it was not common for women to do so, marrying and working during World War II. She also has those incidents that are common in coming-of-age books, fiction or otherwise: young love, wardrobes, defying parents, a first apartment, a first job (as a children's librarian). The book ends with her first book, inspired by her inner drive to write books for children who are not committed readers. So the book ends with a beginning. YAs who grew up on Cleary's books will find this one readable and inviting as they mature into young adulthood.?Ruth K. MacDonald, Bay Path College, Longmeadow, MA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 7 and up. Cleary begins the second part of her autobiography where A Girl from Yamhill (1988) ends, as she is about to depart for college. Much of Cleary's success as a writer comes from her ability to write so honestly. She almost never makes a misstep, and that's as true here as it is in her fiction. The language is plain, but the images evoked are vivid, and Cleary ably creates a portrait of an era as well as of herself. As she did in the previous volume, she writes quite candidly of her relationships. She does not sugarcoat her relationship with her mother, and the keen eye for human nature that has served her so well over the years is put to good use here as she describes family members, co-workers, and cohorts. Of course, there is a question of audience. In addition to Cleary's college years, this memoir covers the courting and wedding of Beverly and Clarence Cleary and her work as a librarian during World War II. The book's most appreciative audience will be several generations of adults who have grown up with Cleary's books, but there's certainly a place for this on youth shelves as well. Older kids will find it a welcome change in the biography section. For one thing, it's so much better written than many titles found there; for another, the subject is much better loved. Ilene Cooper

Customer Reviews

A wonderful autobiography!
This was an interesting and thoroughly enjoyable memoir about Beverly Cleary, nee Bunn, as a young woman during the Depression and World War II. The previous reviewers were on target concerning Beverly's easy writing style and vivid recollections of her family and college years: traveling alone by bus from Oregon to California to attend Chaffey Junior College for two years, matriculating to U Cal Berkeley, studying at the U of Washington after graduating from Berkeley to become a librarian, marrying Clarence Cleary (her strained relationship with her mother because of it) and working as a librarian at the US Army's Camp Knight and Oakland Regional Hospital during WWII, writing and publishing her first children's book. Many B&W photos of family and friends are included. I highly recommend MY OWN TWO FEET.

Sad to See It End
After devouring Beverly Cleary's first memoir "A Girl From Yamhill" I couldn't wait to read My Own Two Feet. The only thing to complain about is that there isn't a sequel to this one! Picking up where Yamhill left off, we share in Beverly Cleary's journey through college and into her adult years and the writing of her first book, Henry Huggins. Reading Cleary's Memoirs, I was taken back to my own childhood and my love for Ramona & Beezus. Cleary has a unique gift of simple writing that readers of all ages can enjoy, whether you are 8 or 80. I lover her writing as much today as I did when I was in the 3rd grade.

Volume Two of Beverly Cleary's Wonderful Autobiography
A must-read for all Beverly Cleary fans. Picks up the story where "A Girl from Yamhill" left off and takes us through her college years and her career as a librarian. A book that will inspire you to become a librarian or a children's book author. As well writen and accessible as all of her children's books about the gang on Klikitat Street.