Bette Greene Papers
Scope and Contents
The collection includes production material for five titles published between 1973-1983, and includes drafts, proofs, notes, and other related material.
Dates
- circa 1973-1983
Creator
- Greene, Bette, 1934- (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use in the Elmer L. Andersen Library reading room.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
Biographical / Historical
Bette Greene, nee Evansky, was born June 28, 1834, in West Memphis, Tennessee. She grew up in a small Arkansas town, in one of the few Jewish families in the area. She later drew on the experiences of small town Southern life and her feelings of being an outsider because of her Jewish heritage in several of her books. She attended the universities of Alabama, Memphis State, and Columbia during the 1950s, and later worked as a reporter and information officer. In 1973 she published her first young adult novel, Summer of My German Soldier. Set in Arkansas during World War II, It tells the story of a young Jewish girl who hides a German POW, and the consequences of this act of family and social defiance. She has also written several books for younger readers, including Philip Hall Likes Me, I Reckon Maybe, which won a Newbery Honor in 1975. Greene died on October 2, 2020.
Biographical Sources: Something About the Author, vols. 8, 102; Something About the Author Autobiography Series, vol. 16; Twentieth Century Children's Writers, 3rd ed. pp. 402-403; Children's Literature Review, vol. 2.
Extent
2.9 Cubic Feet (3 boxes [2 record cartons and 1 hollinger box])
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Bette Greene's papers focus on her work as an author of children's and young adult fiction, and contain production materials for five published titles.
Arrangement
Collection guide arranged alphabetically by published title, with some miscellaneous correspondence at the end.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Bette Greene in honor of Dr. Norine Odland. One item in the collection, a pencil sketch by Greene, was donated by Greene's cousin, Harold Steinberg.
- African Americans -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Authors, American -- 20th century Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Children's literature, American Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Children's stories, American Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Country life -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Friendship -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Jews -- United States -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Love -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Manuscripts for publication Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Parent and child -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Paris (France) -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Prejudices -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Prisoners of war -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Romance fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Romanies -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Young adult fiction, American Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Young adult literature, American Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Source
- Steinberg, Harold (Donor, Person)
- Title
- Bette Greene Papers, circa 1973-1983
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Jim Eyer
- Date
- 2004
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- April 2019: Collection reprocessed and collection guide updated by Caitlin Marineau
- 2021: Pencil sketch donated by Harold Steinberg added to the collection.
Collecting Area Details
Contact The Children's Literature Research Collections Collecting Area
