At six years old, little Beverly was put on academic probation after first grade. Her biggest problem was reading. The assigned books were all boring educational stories about polite children. It was thanks to a school librarian's friendly encouragement that the girl finally liked to read.
After college, Beverly began working as a children’s librarian. She still found children's books boring. Dick and Jane weren't at all like lively, curious, funny, angry, unruly real kids.
So Beverly Cleary became an author herself. She wrote Ramona the Pest, Henry Huggins, Ribsy, The Mouse and the Motorcycle --more than 40 books in all. Her books won dozens of awards, sold more than 90 million copies, and are still beloved today.
Not bad for the little girl who didn't like to read.
Cleary as a senior at the University of California, Berkeley, 1938
Find Beverly Cleary on
Wikipedia
Cleary in 1971
She married Clarence Cleary in 1940
Cleary’s husband died in 2004.
She celebrated her 100th birthday on April 12, 2016.
On March 25, 2021, Cleary died at her retirement home in
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, aged 104.
Beverly Cleary Books In Publishing OrderHenry Huggins SeriesHenry Huggins(1950)
Henry and Beezus(1952)
Henry and Ribsy(1953)
Henry and the Paper Route(1957)
Henry and the Clubhouse(1962)
Ribsy(1964)
Ellen & Otis SeriesEllen Tebbits(1951)
Otis Spofford(1953)
Ramona Quimby SeriesBeezus and Ramona(1955)
Ramona the Pest(1968)
Ramona the Brave(1975)
Ramona and Her Father(1977)
Ramona and Her Mother(1979)
Ramona Quimby, Age 8(1981)
Ramona Forever(1984)
Ramona's World(1999)
Ramona Quimby Non-Fiction BooksThe Beezus and Ramona Diary(1986)
Just for Me(2013)
First Love SeriesFifteen(1956)
The Luckiest Girl(1958)
Jean and Johnny(1959)
Sister of the Bride(1963)
Ralph S. Mouse SeriesThe Mouse and the Motorcycle(1965)
Runaway Ralph(1970)
Ralph S. Mouse(1982)
Leigh Botts SeriesDear Mr. Henshaw(1983)
Strider(1991)
Standalone NovelsBeaver and Wally(1961)
Emily's Runaway Imagination(1961)
Here's Beaver!(1961)
Ribsy and the P.T.A.(1963)
Mitch and Amy(1967)
Socks(1973)
Leave It to Beaver(1978)
Young Love(1982)
Lucky Chuck(1984)
Here Come The Twins(1989)
The Twins Again(1989)
Mouse House Trio(1989)
Muggie Maggie(1990)
Publication Order of Short Story CollectionsTwo Times the Fun(2005)
Publication Order of Picture BooksThe Hullabaloo ABC(1960)
The Real Hole(1960)
Two Dog Biscuits(1986)
Janet's Thingamajigs(1987)
The Growing-Up Feet(1987)
Petey's Bedtime Story(1993)
Publication Order of Non-Fiction BooksA Girl from Yamhill(1988)
My Own Two Feet(1995)
Avon Camelot BooksMy Own Two Feet(1995)