May Massee

May Massee

May Massee (May 1, 1881 - Dec 24, 1966)[1] was a children's book editor. Massee became the head of Doubleday's first juvenile department in 1922. Upon leaving Doubleday, she started Viking Press's first juvenile department in 1932[2]. Prior to working at Doubleday, Massee had editor of the American Library Association's Booklist[3].

Contents

Biography

May Massee was born the third of five children to Charlotte and Francis Massee in Chicago, IL.[1] When she was five, her family moved to Milwaukee where she attended the public schools.[1] She graduated from high school at the age of sixteen and attended the state normal school there for two years before teaching elementary school for a year.[1]

She worked with a librarian for some time in Wisconsin before attending the Wisconsin Library School in Madison.[1] She worked in several libraries until she was encouraged to work in the children’s room while working for a public library in Buffalo.[1] While she enjoyed this work, she accepted the tempting offer to become editor of The Booklist forcing her to move back to Chicago in 1913.[1] As the magazine’s reputation grew, so did Massee’s. [1]

In 1922, Doubleday invited her to help them open and run their children’s department, the second in the nation.[1] Accepting the offer, she moved to New York.[1] She remained with the publisher until 1933 when she helped found the children’s book department for Viking Press.[1] She worked with Viking Press as editor and director until her retirement in 1960, twenty-seven years later.[1] However, she continued working with Viking Press as an advisory editor until her death from a stroke at her home in New York.[1]

Notable Authors

Some of the most prominent authors Massee worked with are:

Massee also worked with notable illustrators, such as Elizabeth MacKinstry, Robert Lawson, and Kurt Wiese.[1] Bemelmans, Daughtery, Artzybasheff, among others, were authors as well as illustrators.[1] Other Massee authors and illustrators referenced by the May Massee Collection at Emporia State University are Kate Seredy, Don Freeman, Eyvind Earle, Marguertie de Angeli, Manning de Villeneuve Lee, Hilda van Stockum, and Leo Politi. [6]

Influence

Many of the books she edited won prestigious awards in children’s literature. Over twenty received honorable citations for the Randolph Caldecott medal with four winning the medal for “the most distinguished American picture book for children.”[1] Her motto was “Nothing too much, not even moderation.”[1] She often encouraged her authors to try new things and experiment with their stories and illustrations.[1] Willing to take risks, she helped to establish high critical standards for children’s literature.[1] She published books that were not considered popular: books with minority protagonists, stories set in Russia, Hungary, etc.[1]

Critics acknowledged Massee’s ability regarding text, design, and illustration as well as her endorsement of new methods of production such as offset lithography.[1] A good number of books published by Massee have since become classics, such as The Story About Ping (1933) and The Story of Ferdinand (1936).[1]

In 1959, Massee was awarded the AIGA's medal for "recognition of [her] exceptional achievements, services or other contributions to the field of graphic design and visual communication"[7] She was the first woman to not only receive the award, but join the organization as well.

It was to Massee that Madeline book creator Ludwig Bemelmans once wrote a note explaining his attitude towards writing a children's book: "We are writing for Children but not for Idiots"[8].

The May Massee Collection, was formed by colleagues and friends of children's literature editor May Massee and donated to what is now Emporia State University, in 1972[9].

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y Notable American women : the modern period ; a biographical dictionary (6th pring. ed.). Cambridge, Mass [u.a.]: Belknap Press of Harvard Univ. Press. 1993. pp. 462–4. ISBN 0674627334. 
  2. ^ a b May Massee and Marjorie Flack: A Classic Collaboration
  3. ^ New England Book Women
  4. ^ ALA Conference in New Orleans (June 22-28, 2006) Report
  5. ^ Bookwomen:Creating an Empire in Children’s Book Publishing, 1919-1939
  6. ^ [1]
  7. ^ AIGA Medalists
  8. ^ Notes to May Massee
  9. ^ May Massee Collection

External links


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