Janet Lambert (December 1893 – March 16, 1973) was an American actress and the author of 54 young-adult fiction titles for girls from 1941 to 1969. Lambert's works, best known for the Penny and Tippy Parrish series, focused on the lives and coming-of-age choices of the wives and children, especially the daughters, of

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

officers during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

-era.

Family life

Lambert was born Maude Janet "Dodi" Snyder December 12 or 17, 1893 in or near

Crawfordsville, Indiana Crawfordsville () is a city in Montgomery County, Indiana, Montgomery County in west central Indiana, United States, west by northwest of Indianapolis. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,306. The c ...

, the daughter of Mabel Galey and Francis Leonidas Snyder. She married Kent Craig Lambert (1891–1982) on January 1, 1918. Kent, a brother of longtime Purdue basketball coach, Ward Lambert, was a 1913 graduate of

Wabash College Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832, by a group of Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, the institution was originally named "The Wabash Teachers Seminary an ...

in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Serving in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he continued his Army career as a cavalry officer. In World War II, he saw service in

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

Anzio Anzio (, also ; ) is a town and ''comune'' on region of Italy, about south of Rome. Well known for its seaside resorts, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands of Ponza, Palmarola, and Ve ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. His last posting was as post commander of

Fort Jay Fort Jay is a coastal bastion fort and the name of a former United States Army post on Governors Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. Fort Jay is the oldest existing defensive structure on the island, and was named for John Jay, a m ...

Governors Island Governors Island is a island in New York Harbor, within the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located approximately south of Manhattan Island, and is separated from Brooklyn to the east by the Buttermilk ...

, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

where he retired at the rank of colonel in 1951 after 34 years active duty. A photograph of Janet and Kent's formal military farewell from Fort Jay and the Army illustrated the dust jacket of one of her books. Lambert performed on the Broadway stage in the years before and during World War I. The couple had one daughter, Jeanne Anne Lambert (born 1918) who, much like a character in her mother's books, married a United States Military Academy graduate, Second Lieutenant Dean Titus Vanderhoef (USMA 1940), at

's post chapel on July 27, 1940.

Literary legacy

Between 1941 and 1969, Lambert published 54 books at a rate of about two per year, but is often omitted from discussions of early

young adult romance literature Young adult romance literature is a genre of books written for teenagers. As defined by Romance Writers of America, a romance novel consists of a central love story and an emotionally satisfying ending. Early young adult romances feature a teenage ...

by critics. Lambert integrated real-world events as background in her books, such as the

reconstruction of Germany The reconstruction of Germany was the process of rebuilding Germany after the destruction endured during World War II. Germany suffered heavy losses during the war, both in lives and industrial power. Approximately 6.9 to 7.5 million Germans died, ...

after World War II (''Little Miss Atlas'', 1949) and the

(''Don't Cry, Little Girl'', 1952). Lambert's life experience as an Army wife provided the background and settings for many of her books about the lives of teenage children of military officers. While the

U.S. Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as commissioned officers in the United States Army. The academy was founded ...

figures appear frequently in the lives of her characters, her husband did not attend West Point, gaining his officer training through the National Guard and mid-level Army schools such at the United States Army Cavalry School at

Fort Riley Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Ge ...

, Kansas. In 1930, he was instructor at the

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

. Many of the male characters in Lambert's novels are soldiers or West Point students, and present a patriotic, "almost worshipful" view of the military. As for her female characters, often military wives or children, she drew on her experiences and observations as a military wife who had to balance career aspirations and married life. Lambert died on March 16, 1973, at

Beach Haven, New Jersey Beach Haven is a Borough (New Jersey), borough situated on the Jersey Shore in southern Ocean County, New Jersey, Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The borough is located on Long Beach Island (LBI) and borders the Atlantic Ocean. ...

, and is buried in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

Works

Listed by series and years of original publication:

Penny Parrish novels

*''Star Spangled Summer'' 1941 *''Dreams of Glory'' 1942 *''Glory Be!'' 1943 *''Up Goes the Curtain'' 1946 *''Practically Perfect'' 1947 *''The Reluctant Heart'' 1950

Tippy Parrish novels

*''Miss Tippy'' 1948 *''Little Miss Atlas'' 1949 *''Miss America'' 1951 *''Don't Cry, Little Girl'' 1952 *''Rainbow After Rain'' 1953 *''Welcome Home, Mrs. Jordon'' 1953 *''Song in Their Hearts'' 1956 *''Here's Marny'' 1969

Jordon novels

*''Just Jennifer'' 1945 *''Friday's Child'' 1947 *''Confusion by Cupid'' 1950 *''A Dream for Susan'' 1954 *''Love Taps Gently'' 1955 *''Myself & I'' 1957 *''The Stars Hang High'' 1960 *''Wedding Bells'' 1961 *''A Bright Tomorrow'' 1965

Parri MacDonald novels

*''Introducing Parri'' 1962 *''That's My Girl'' 1964 *''Stagestruck Parri'' 1966 *''My Davy'' 1968

Candy Kane novels

*''Candy Kane'' 1943 *''Whoa, Matilda'' 1944 *''One for the Money'' 1946

Dria Meredith novels

*''Star Dream'' 1951 *''Summer for Seven'' 1952 *''High Hurdles'' 1955

Campbell novels

*''The Precious Days'' 1957 *''For Each Other'' 1959 *''Forever and Ever'' 1961 *''Five's a Crowd'' 1963 *''First of All'' 1966 *''The Odd Ones'' 1969

Sugar Bradley novels

*''Sweet as Sugar'' 1967 *''Hi, Neighbor'' 1968

Christie Drayton novels

*''Where the Heart Is'' 1948 *''Treasure Trouble'' 1949

Patty and Ginger novels

*''We're Going Steady'' 1958 *''Boy Wanted'' 1959 *''Spring Fever'' 1960 *''Summer Madness'' 1962 *''Extra Special'' 1963 *''On Her Own'' 1964

Cinda Hollister novels

*''Cinda'' 1954 *''Fly Away, Cinda'' 1956 *''Big Deal'' 1958 *''Triple Trouble'' 1965 *''Love to Spare'' 1967

References

External links

The Famous Janet Lambert BooksReprinted editions of Lambert books by Image Cascade PublishingShort author's biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lambert, Janet Writers from Indiana 1893 births 1973 deaths People from Crawfordsville, Indiana 20th-century American novelists American women novelists American writers of young adult literature American romantic fiction novelists 20th-century American women writers Writers from Crawfordsville, Indiana American women writers of young adult literature