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Images saved at: Philip and the faun pg 62 ch 7, Solario pg 75 Commons as: File:Wm Bowen v1.png, File:Wm Bowen v2.png, File:Wm A Bowen sig full.png, File:Wm A Bowen sig only.png, File:The Enchanted Forest Bowen Frontpiece.png, File:The Enchanted Forest Bowen Frontpiece.jpg, File:The Enchanted Forest Bowen Frontpiece c.jpg, File:The Enchanted Forest Bowen Frontpiece c.png


William Bowen (writer)

Born(1877-05-15)May 15, 1877
Baltimore, Maryland
DiedSeptember 18, 1937(1937-09-18) (aged 60)
Los Angeles, California
OccupationChildren's Author, Attorney
EducationLL.B.
Alma materUniversity of Maryland
Subjectfantasy, fairy tales
Notable worksThe Old Tobacco Shop


William Alvin Bowen (1877-1937) was an American children's author and attorney. His fantasy novel titled The Old Tobacco Shop: A True Account Of What Befell A Little Boy In Search Of Adventure won an inaugural Newbery Honor award in 1922. Five of Bowen's fantasy and fairy tale books were published publicly, illustrated by major artists of his time; his other works were printed on private presses. A native of Baltimore, Bowen obtained a law degree from the University of Maryland. He spent most of his adult life in Los Angeles where he had a successful law practice. Among his clients was the 1932 Summer Olympic Organizing Committee.

Life edit

Bowen was born in Baltimore, Maryland May 15, 1877, to attorney Jesse N. and Mary Amanda (Hall) Bowen. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a law degree in 1898, then began practicing law in Baltimore. He married Grace Lee Dunan on July 31, 1902. They moved to Los Angeles in 1904 where he continued his law practice. In 1905 he formed the partnership of (Donald) Barker and Bowen. He joined Gray, Barker and Bowen in 1907. A few years later Bowen began working at Flint-McKay. While with them he represented the Olympic Organizing Committee of the 1932 Los Angeles Summer Olympics in a suit against the American Olympic Association and the State of California over the use of profits from the games.[1] In another major case Bowen served as special master for Richfield Oil Corporation's reorganization suit.[2]

The Bowens had six children. Two, Lee and Sally, died within a few months of their births. Dorothy, Billy, John, and Marjorie Ann survived to adulthood. Bowen belonged to the Zamorano Club, named for Agustin Zamora, California's first printer. The club was formed by a group of Los Angeles bibliophiles interested in fine printing and book collecting.[3] The Zamorano Club published one of Bowen's books. He was also active in the California Historical Society,[4] and the Jonathan Club.[5] William Bowen died September 18, 1937 in California. His obituary, "Los Angeles Lawyer, a Writer of Fairy Tales", appeared in the New York Times.[2]

Writing career edit

During his career Bowen was considered one of America's best children's writers.[6] He wrote six children's novels, including one that was privately printed, and two booklets for adults also printed on private presses.

The Outcast Gnome: A Christmas Tale is a twenty-four page story in verse written for Dorothy Bowen by her father Christmas 1919. The book was printed on a hand operated printing press that belonged to Bowen's sons, referred to as The Indian Press.[7]

Bowen's first professionally published book was The Enchanted Forest: Volume 1, released by Macmillan in 1920. A collection of fairy tales, it was the first book illustrated by Maud and Miska Petersham, who went on to illustrate, and write, many books, including a Caldecott Medal winner and a Caldecott Honor book.[8] The Enchanted Forest contains six fairy tales: "The Enchanted Forest", "The King's Cure", "The Sea Child", "The Pool in the Forest", "The Knight's Move" and "The Moonlight Pearl". Bowen dedicated it to his children. The Table of Contents has a quotation for each chapter from Chaucer, Epictetus, Shakespeare and Cervantes, among others.

Bowen's next book appeared in 1921. The Old Tobacco Shop: A True Account Of What Befell A Little Boy In Search Of Adventure, received a special runner-up citation from the Newbery committee in 1922, the first year the Newbery was awarded. As Barbara Elleman explained in The Newbery and Caldecott Awards, the original Newbery was based on votes by a selected jury of Children's Librarian Section officers. Hendrik van Loon's book The Story of Mankind won with 163 votes out of 212. The Old Tobacco Shop came in fourth with five votes.[9] In 1971 all previous runner-up citations were converted to Honor Awards.[10] The Old Tobacco Shop is a fantasy novel about five-year-old Freddie and his adventures on The Sieve, a leaky ship on the Spanish Main. At the end of the story Freddie discovers everything that happened has been a tobacco-induced dream. Edmund Pearson in The Independent and the Weekly Review reported that the word "tobacco" in the title caused at least one bookseller to consider the book unsuitable for children and refuse to carry it. He went on to praise the quality and imagination of the book, saying it had "passed the purifying test of examination by three children's librarians while it was still in manuscript, and no parent need fear that there is anything in it which will teach children to chew, smoke, or swear".[11] The book received good reviews from the major press.[12] It was illustrated by Reginald Birch, a highly regarded artist known for his illustrations of Little Lord Fauntleroy and The Night Before Christmas. Bowen composed an amusing poem about Birch that appeared in The Century.[13]

Solario the Tailor: His Tales of the Magic Doublet: The Enchanted Forest: Volume 2, illustrated by J. Ormsbee, was published in 1922. It contains six more fairy tales: "The First Night - Story of the Old Man in the Spangled Coat", "The Second Night - Ale the Unicorn", "The Third Night - The Son of the Tailor of Ooch", "The Fourth Night - The Ragpicker and the Princess", "The Fifth Night - The City of Dead Leaves" and "The Sixth Night - The Enchanted Highwayman". The Literary Digest International Book Review said this Arabian Nights-type book was "delightful",[14] praising its humor and charm.

The next year Macmillan published Merrimeg, another fantasy. It is one of the first books illustrated by Emma Brock, who went on to write and illustrate over thirty of her own children's books.[15] It tells seven adventures of a young girl, one for each day of the week. Mischievous Merrimeg starts out on ordinary errands and finds herself in fairy land with chimney imps, appleseed elves and starlight fairies. Again Bowen's humor was praised by reviewers, who considered it a quality fairy-tale.[16] Oralism and Aurilism included Merrimeg in its list of "Juvenile Fiction Recommended for the Deaf Child".[17]

Philip and the Faun, illustrated by N. Choate, was published by Boston, Little, Brown in 1926. This book tells the story of young Philip and his quest, with Festinus the faun and Arethusa the nymph, to restore life to the god Pan. According to Saturday Review "The symbolism is transparent enough and the mingling of phantasy and reality unusually successful".[18]

On the Extermination of Bookworms is a twelve page satire printed for members of Bowen's Zamorano Club in 1935. Bowen planned to write a series of books containing imaginary conversations with important historic figures, but he died before the first volume could be printed. After his death one hundred twenty-five copies of Gossip from the Sixteenth Century: Part I, was published by the Los Angeles Zamorano Club. It includes a biography of Bowen.[19]

Works edit

  • The Outcast Gnome: A Christmas Tale, Los Angeles, California, The Indian Press, 1919, OCLC Number: 11263682;
  • The Enchanted Forest: Volume 1, illus. Maud and Miska Petersham, New York, Macmillan, 1920, OCLC: 4587071;
  • The Old Tobacco Shop: A True Account Of What Befell A Little Boy In Search Of Adventure, illus, Reginald Birch, New York, MacMillan, 1921, ISBN: 9789997488671, OCLC: 573218;
  • Solario the Tailor: His Tales of the Magic Doublet: Volume 2, illus. J. Ormsbee, New York, Macmillan, 1922, OCLC: 2729580;
  • Merrimeg, illus. Emma Brock, New York, Macmillan, 1923, OCLC: 11403383;
  • Philip and the Faun, illus. N. Choate, Boston, Little, Brown, 1926, OCLC 613173833;
  • On the Extermination of Bookworms, Los Angeles, California, Bowen Press, 1935, OCLC Number: 2109620;
  • Gossip from the Sixteenth Century: Part I, Los Angeles, California, The Zamorano Club, 1938, OCLC Number: 2023739.

References edit

  1. ^ "Xth Olympiad Com. v. American Olympic Assn". Supreme Court of California Resources. Stanford University. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  2. ^ a b "William Alvin Bowen; Los Angeles Lawyer, a Writer Fairy Tales, Dies at 60". New York Times: 7. September 19. Retrieved 21 July 2012. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  3. ^ Nunis Jr., Doyce. "History of the Zamorano Club". The Zamorano Club. The Zamorano Club. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  4. ^ "Obit: William Alvin Bowen". California Historical Society Quarterly: 94. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  5. ^ Rodman, Willoughby (1909). History of the Bench and Bar of Southern California. W. J. Porter. p. 134.
  6. ^ Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine. San Francisco: A. Roman. p. 125.
  7. ^ Bowen, William, The Outcast Gnome: A Christmas Tale, Los Angeles, California, The Indian Press, 1919, pg. t. p. verso;
  8. ^ "Maud and Miska Petersham Collection". The Children's Literature Research Collection. University of Minnesota Libraries. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  9. ^ Association for Library Service to Children (2007). The Newbery and Caldecott Awards: A Guide to the Medal and Honor Books. ALA Editions. p. 11.
  10. ^ "How the Newbery Medal Came to Be". The John Newbery Medal. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  11. ^ The Independent and the Weekly Review, Volume 107. National Weekly. 1921. p. 192.
  12. ^ Publishers Weekly, Volume 100. R. R. Bowker. 1922. p. 1858.
  13. ^ The Century , Volume 103. Century Company. 1922. pp. 1040–1041.
  14. ^ Smyth, Clifford, (ed). The Literary Digest International Book Review. Funk & Wagnalls. p. 64. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ "Books Illustrated by Emma Brock". Books Illustrated by Prominent 20th Century Children's Book Illustrators. Page Books. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  16. ^ University of the State of New York (1919). Bibliography Bulletin, Issues 64-80. New York State Library. p. 39.
  17. ^ Oralism and Aurilism: A Journal Devoted Exclusively to Problems of the Deaf and Defective Speech ..., Volumes 1-4. The Laryngoscope Co. 1922. p. 86.
  18. ^ "The New Books". Saturday Review of Literature: 180. October 9. Retrieved 21 July 2012. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  19. ^ Stalker, Laura (ed). "Selected Publications of The Zamorano Club of Los Angeles". The Zamorano Club. The Zamorano Club. Retrieved 21 July 2012. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)

External links edit

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, William A.}} [[Category:1877 births]] [[Category:1937 deaths]] [[Category:People from Maryland]] [[Category:Newbery Honor winners]]

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