Louise Spieker Rankin (July 2, 1897 – November 21, 1951) was an American writer of children's literature, editor, and politician. Her debut children's novel, Daughter of the Mountains, was a Newbery Honor recipient in 1949.[1]
Louise Rankin | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1897-07-02)July 2, 1897 Baltimore, Maryland, USA |
| Died | (1951-11-21)November 21, 1951 Washington, D.C., USA |
| Occupation | Author, editor, politician |
| Nationality | American |
| Genre | Children's literature |
Louise Spieker was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1897. Her father, Edward Spieker, was a professor at Johns Hopkins University.[2]
Spieker attended Goucher College and Johns Hopkins University. She married Everett H. Rankin, an executive for the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company; the pair resided in India, Tibet, and Sri Lanka from 1933 to 1942.[2]
Daughter of the Mountains, inspired by an acquaintance Rankin met in the Himalayas, was published in 1948.[2] It received positive press from Kirkus Reviews,[3] won the award for books for children aged 8–12 from the Children's Book Festival sponsored by the New York Herald Tribune, and was named a Newbery Honor book in 1949.[2]
Rankin wrote one other book for children, The Gentling of Jonathan (1950), which was less positively received.[4] She also wrote a cookbook, An American Cook Book for India. Rankin additionally worked for Reader's Digest, and served as the state committeewoman from Tompkins County on the New York State Republican Committee.[2]
Rankin died in Washington, D.C., on November 21, 1951, after a lingering illness.[2]
Rankin's papers are held by the Cornell University library.[5]