Judith Viorst
Encyclopedia
Judith Viorst is an American
author
, newspaper
journalist
, and psychoanalysis
researcher
. She is perhaps best known for her children's literature
, such as The Tenth Good Thing About Barney (about the death of a pet) and the Alexander series of short picture books.
In 1968, Viorst signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War. In the latter part of the 1970s, after two decades of writing for children and adults, she turned to the study of Freudian psychology. In 1981, and after six years of study at Washington Psychoanalytic Institute, she became a research graduate there.
. They have three grown sons: Anthony Jacob Viorst, an attorney practicing in the Denver, Colorado
area; Nicholas Nathan "Nick" Viorst, an Assistant District Attorney for New York County, and Alexander Noah Viorst.
She received the Foremother Award for lifetime achievements from the National Research Center for Women & Families in 2011.
), whose narrator is a 5-year-old boy who lives with his parents and two brothers, Anthony and Nick named for Viorst's own three sons.
Viorst's book 'Sad Underwear' is a collection of poems that examines a wide variety of feelings and experiences from a child's point of view.
and The Washington Post
, and has been a contributing editor to Redbook
magazine.
She also penned the musical Love & Shrimp with Shelly Markam. The Ensemble Theater of Cincinnati hosted a performance of Love & Shrimp, starring Deb Girdler, Pamela Myers and Shelley Bamberger, in the spring of 1999.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, and psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
researcher
Researcher
A researcher is somebody who performs research, the search for knowledge or in general any systematic investigation to establish facts. Researchers can work in academic, industrial, government, or private institutions.-Examples of research institutions:...
. She is perhaps best known for her children's literature
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
, such as The Tenth Good Thing About Barney (about the death of a pet) and the Alexander series of short picture books.
In 1968, Viorst signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War. In the latter part of the 1970s, after two decades of writing for children and adults, she turned to the study of Freudian psychology. In 1981, and after six years of study at Washington Psychoanalytic Institute, she became a research graduate there.
Personal life
Viorst lives in Washington, DC, with her husband, political writer Milton ViorstMilton Viorst
Milton Viorst is an American journalist.He studied history at Rutgers University. In 1951, he was a Fulbright scholar in France. He returned and attended Harvard University and Columbia University, where he graduated in 1956 in journalism....
. They have three grown sons: Anthony Jacob Viorst, an attorney practicing in the Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
area; Nicholas Nathan "Nick" Viorst, an Assistant District Attorney for New York County, and Alexander Noah Viorst.
She received the Foremother Award for lifetime achievements from the National Research Center for Women & Families in 2011.
Writing for children
Among Viorst's books for children is the "Alexander" series (including Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad DayAlexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, published in 1972, is an ALA Notable Children's Book written by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Ray Cruz. It has also won a George G. Stone Center Recognition of Merit, a Georgia Children's Book Award, and is a Reading Rainbow book...
), whose narrator is a 5-year-old boy who lives with his parents and two brothers, Anthony and Nick named for Viorst's own three sons.
Viorst's book 'Sad Underwear' is a collection of poems that examines a wide variety of feelings and experiences from a child's point of view.
Writing for adults
Viorst's books for adults include nonfiction psychology books such as "Grown-up Marriage", Imperfect Control, Necessary Losses, and People and other Aggravations. Viorst is also a newspaper columnist and has written frequently for The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, and has been a contributing editor to Redbook
Redbook
Redbook is an American women's magazine published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the "Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines.-History:...
magazine.
She also penned the musical Love & Shrimp with Shelly Markam. The Ensemble Theater of Cincinnati hosted a performance of Love & Shrimp, starring Deb Girdler, Pamela Myers and Shelley Bamberger, in the spring of 1999.
Children's literature and poetry
- I'll Fix Anthony, illustrated by Arnold LobelArnold LobelArnold Stark Lobel was a popular American author of children's books. Among his most popular books are those of the Frog and Toad series, and Mouse Soup, which won the Garden State Children's Book Award from the New Jersey Library Association.Lobel won the 1981 Caldecott Medal for his book...
(1969) New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0060263067 - Try It Again, Sam: Safety When You Walk, illustrated by Paul GaldonePaul GaldonePaul Galdone was a children's literature author and illustrator. He was born in Budapest and he emigrated to the United States in 1921. He studied art at the Art Student's League and New York School for Industrial Design...
(1970) - My Mama Says there Aren't any Zombies, Ghosts, Vampires, Creatures, Demons, Monsters, Fiends, Goblins, or Things, illustrated by Kay ChoraoKay ChoraoKay Chorao, born as Ann McKay Sproat on January 7, 1936, in Elkhart, Indiana, is an American artist, illustrator and writer of children's books.-Biography:...
(1973) - The Tenth Good Thing About Barney, illustrated by Erik Blegvad (1987)
- The Good-bye Book, illustrated by Kay ChoraoKay ChoraoKay Chorao, born as Ann McKay Sproat on January 7, 1936, in Elkhart, Indiana, is an American artist, illustrator and writer of children's books.-Biography:...
(1988) - Super-Completely and Totally the Messiest, illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser (2001)
- Lulu and the Brontosaurus, illustrated by Lane SmithLane SmithWalter Lane Smith III was an American actor. Some of his well known roles included portraying collaborator entrepreneur Nathan Bates in the NBC television series V, Mayor Bates in the film Red Dawn, newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,...
(2010) New York: Atheneum. ISBN 978-1-4169-9961-4
Poems for Children and Their Parents series
- If I Were in Charge of the World and Other Worries: Poems for Children and their Parents, illustrated by Lynne CherryLynne CherryLynne Cherry is an American writer and illustrator of nature-themed children's books and a film producer. In 2009 she was designated a Women's History Month Honoree by the National Women's History Project....
(1984) - Sad Underwear and Other Complications: More Poems for Children and Their Parents, illustrated by Richard Hull (1995)
Alexander series
- Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad DayAlexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad DayAlexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, published in 1972, is an ALA Notable Children's Book written by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Ray Cruz. It has also won a George G. Stone Center Recognition of Merit, a Georgia Children's Book Award, and is a Reading Rainbow book...
illustrated by Ray Cruz (1972). New York: Atheneum. ISBN 0-689-70428-3 - Alexander, Who Used to be Rich Last Sunday illustrated by Ray Cruz (1977). New York: Atheneum. ISBN 978-0-689-30602-0
- Alexander, Who Is Not (Do You Hear Me? I Mean It!) Going to Move illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser "in the style of Ray Cruz" (1995) New York: Atheneum. ISBN 0-689-31958-4
Alexander related titles
- Absolutely, Positively Alexander: The Complete Stories, collects the three books in the series in one volume
- Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day: A Musical
- Alexander and the Wonderful, Marvelous, Excellent, Terrific Ninety Days: An Almost Completely Honest Account of What Happened to Our Family When Our Youngest came to Live with Us for Three Months, (an adult memoir of Judith Viorst and her real son, Alexander) (2007)
Adult literature, memoirs, advice books, and poetry
- People and Other Aggravations (1971)
- Yes, Married: A Saga of Love and Complaint (1972)
- A Visit from St. Nicholas to a Liberated Household illustrated by Norman Green (1977)
- Love and Guilt and the Meaning of Life, Etc. illustrated by John AlcornJohn Alcorn (artist)John Alcorn was an American commercial artist and designer, and an illustrator of children's books. In addition to his accomplishments in the areas of packaging, corporate and dimensional design, Alcorn designed the opening titles for several Federico Fellini films...
(1979) - Necessary Losses: The Loves, Illusions, Dependencies, and Impossible Expectations That All of Us Have to Give Up in Order to Grow (1987)
- Murdering Mr. Monti: A Merry Little Tale of Sex and Violence (1994)
- Imperfect Control: Our Lifelong Struggles With Power and Surrender (1998)
- You're Officially a Grown-up: The Graduate's Guide to Freedom, Responsibility, Happiness, and Personal Hygiene (1999)
- Grown-Up Marriage: What We Know, Wish We Had Known, and Still Need to Know About Being Married (2003)
The age-related poetry series
- It's Hard to Be Hip Over 30 & Other Tragedies of Married Life (1968) (Reprinted in 1999 by Persephone BooksPersephone BooksPersephone Books is an independent publisher based in Bloomsbury, London. Founded in 1999 by Nicola Beauman, Persephone has a catalogue of 93 "neglected novels, diaries, poetry, short stories, non-fiction, biography and cookery books, mostly by women and mostly dating from the early to...
) - How Did I Get to Be 40 & Other Atrocities illustrated by John AlcornJohn Alcorn (artist)John Alcorn was an American commercial artist and designer, and an illustrator of children's books. In addition to his accomplishments in the areas of packaging, corporate and dimensional design, Alcorn designed the opening titles for several Federico Fellini films...
(1976) - When Did I Stop Being 20 & Other Injustices: Selected Poems from Single to Mid-Life, illustrated by John AlcornJohn Alcorn (artist)John Alcorn was an American commercial artist and designer, and an illustrator of children's books. In addition to his accomplishments in the areas of packaging, corporate and dimensional design, Alcorn designed the opening titles for several Federico Fellini films...
(1987) - Forever 50 & Other Negotiations, illustrated by John AlcornJohn Alcorn (artist)John Alcorn was an American commercial artist and designer, and an illustrator of children's books. In addition to his accomplishments in the areas of packaging, corporate and dimensional design, Alcorn designed the opening titles for several Federico Fellini films...
(1989) - Suddenly 60 & Other Shocks of Later Life, illustrated by Laurie Rosewald (2000)
- I'm Too Young to Be 70 & Other Delusions, illustrated by Laura GibsonLaura GibsonLaura Gibson is a Portland-area folk singer and songwriter. She was raised in Coquille, Oregon.She currently records for the independent U.S. label Hush Records. In 2008, she toured the United States as the opening act for Colin Meloy. She also added vocal harmonies to his Colin Meloy Sings Sam...
(2005)