Lois Lenski Covey (1893-1974) was a children’s author and illustrator. She grew up in a small town in Ohio, and moved to Connecticut after getting married. She studied education and art in school, intending to be an artist, and found work as a picture book illustrator. At the encouragement of a publisher, she began writing and illustrating her own books. Much of her inspiration came from her personal life, both from her childhood and also her children. Her most well known picture book series, the Mr. Small series, was inspired by watching how her son played with his toys. In all her writing, she was meticulous about facts and depicting things accurately.

In the 1940s, health reasons forced her to spend the winter months in the southeast. While she was there, she was surprised to see the stark regional differences of the areas as compared to the Midwest and New England. Over the next two decades, she worked on her Regional Series – books that depicted everyday children doing common things. She visited and spent time in every area that she wrote about.  She won a Newbery award in 1946 for Strawberry Girl, about a rural girl in central Florida.

Lois Lenski was passionate about bringing attention to the poor and marginalized areas of our country, and helping people understand each other. Her books are delightful snapshots of a time period and/or a cultural region. Be sure to check out her books in our library, including ones she illustrated for other authors!