Natalie Savage Carlson was born October 3, 1906 in Kernstown, Virginia. Her mother was French-Canadian and she would later use some of The family stories and French-Canadian folktales she heard as a child in some of her books, in particular The Talking Cat and Other Stories of French Canada (1952). Natalie Savage Carlson would also draw on her experiences as a boarder in a Catholic convent school in writing Luvvy and The Girls (1971). During The 1920s, she worked as a reporter for The Long Beach Morning Star in Long Beach, California, and as The wife of a navy officer, spent much time moving around The United States and later lived in Paris. She published her first book, The Talking Cat and Other Stories of French Canada in 1952 and throughout her long and prolific career, has been lauded by critics for her ability to capture The unique settings, lifestyles, and traditions of The various people of which she wrote. Carlson set some of her best-known works in France, including The Family Under The Bridge (1958), The story of a tramp in Paris and The children who take him in. The book was a Newbery Honor book in 1959 and like many of her stories was praised for its warmth and humor as well as ambience. Paris was also The setting of her Orpheline series that told of a group of French orphans and their happy existence. Carlson also tackled social problems in some of her later works such as The Empty Schoolhouse (1965), a story that dealt with segregation in The deep South. In The 1980s, she wrote several picture books about Spooky, a black cat that critics hailed for their suspenseful but non-frightening quality.

Biographical Sources:

Something About The Author, vol. 68, pp. 41-46.

Twentieth Century Children's Writers, 3rd ed., pp. 172-173.