Her Honors

The Door in the Wall (1949): The winner of the 1950 Newbery Award; given the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1961.

A crippled friend of the deAngeli family who participated with their musical evenings suggested to Marguerite the need for a book about a child dealing with a handicap. Robin, the hero of The Door in the Wall, struggles with his lameness in thirteenth century England. He is assisted in his search for self-worth by Brother Luke, a monk who tells him, "It is better to have crooked legs than a crooked spirit." Robin, through his [personal bravery, is able to save a besieged castle, proving Brother Luke's advise to be true: "Thou hast only to follow the wall far enough and there will be a door in it." deAngeli remarks that she sought to show children in this story that, "It's not who you are that counts, it's what you do with what you have that matters."

(Copyright retained by Doubleday - in continuous printing since 1949)

Read excerpts from the Newbery Acceptance Speech

The Black Fox of Lorne (1956): A Newbery Honor Book 1957.

This book, which follows the Mother Goose volume, attests to deAngeli's versatility. BLACK FOX OF LORNE is historical fiction for older readers and is comparable to DOOR IN THE WALL in richness of historical setting. The story occurred in the tenth century, with two Viking twins shipwrecked on the Scottish coast. They seek to avenge the death of their father and encounter loyal clansmen at war, kindly shepherds, power-hungry lairds and staunch crofters. (Out of print; Copyright retained by Estate of Marguerite deAngeli)

Yonie Wondernose (1944): A Caldecott Honor winner in 1945

A classic picture storybook featuring everyone's favorite "Amish Curious George"! Seven-year-old Yonie is a wondernose because he can't keep his nose out of anything. It seems that his nose is always getting him into trouble. When his parents go away overnight, he's left as the man of the house and promised a special reward if he can keep himself and the farm out of trouble. But that night a bad storm brings trouble--the kind that not even a full-grown man could handle easily. This is the second of deAngeli's books with the Pennsylvania Dutch county as a setting.

(Copyright retained by Estate of Marguerite deAngeli; Reprint by Bethlehem Press)

Book of Nursery and Mother Goose Rhymes (1954): A Caldecott Honor book in 1955.

This is a lavish, oversized book, perennially successful and best-selling of the deAngeli books. Doubleday assigned its premiere author the task of illustrating and selecting this collection, which included 376 rhymes. The project took three years to complete. Haviland, in Children and Literature; Views and Reviews, considers this book "the best" and compliment's deAngeli's "quick recognition of Mother Goose's go power. The pictures move and thanks to generously designed space, have ample room to bounce about..." full-page color illustrations are done in clean, soft pastels and reflect both the artist's familiarity with Philadelphia and London scenes. In illustrating a family around a holiday table, she combined Dickensan influence with her own Lofft family memories. Her granddaughter, Kate (Arthur's daughter) served a a frequent model while the drawings were being made. Kate's personal copy of the book attests to her model status. Her grandmother wrote: "To Kate, who hops and skips through this book." (Out of print; Copyright retained by Doubleday)

Learn more about the illustrations

Copper-Toed Boots (1938): Chosen as one of Michigan's most notable books.

The book which Marguerite based on her own family and life in Lapeer, Michigan, during the 1870's.

Bright April (1946): An honor book of the New York Herald-Tribune's Spring Book Festival.

This is considered the first modern children's book about a black child. Bright April is set in the Germantown section of Philadelphia was six years in the making before Doubleday would publish the story. In the story, deAngeli addresses the problem of racial prejudice and how children are able to gain understanding and tolerance through their own natural devices. Bright April was a milestone in children's publishing and stands out as a historical accomplishment in the field of children's literature. (Out of print: Copyright retained by Estate of Marguerite deAngeli)

Other Awards and Honors:

1956: Honorary life member of Philadelphia Bookseller's Association.

1958: Named a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania.

1963: Won the Lit Brothers Good Neighbor Award and Honored by Graduate Library School of Drexel Institute.

1966: One of ten authors honored by the Governor of Pennsylvania and his wife.

1968: Won the Regina Medal of the Catholic Library Association.

1969: Marguerite deAngeli Day, Collingswood NJ. The Children's room was named for her.

1979: Marguerite deAngeli Day was declared by Governor William Milliken of Michigan on March 14th.

1981: The Lapeer City Library, Lapeer, MI, became the Marguerite deAngeli Library.

1984: One of the first inductees into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame.