Marcus Crouch (12 February 1913 – 24 April 1996) was an English
librarian
A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...
, and an influential commentator on and reviewer of children's books.
[Sheila Ray. "Obituary: Marcus Crouch", ''Children's Literature Abstracts'', Issues 92-95, ]International Federation of Library Associations
The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is an international body representing the interests of people who rely on libraries and information professionals. A non-governmental, not-for-profit organization, IFLA ...
, Sub-section on Library Work with Children, Children's Libraries Section, 1996.[Brian Doyle. "Marcus Crouch", ''The Who's Who of Children's Literature'', Evelyn, 1968, pp. 67-68.]
Life and works
Marcus Crouch was born at
Tottenham
Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...
in Middlessex and educated at the
Grammar School
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...
there and at
London University
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...
, where he trained as a Chartered Librarian at the School of Librarianship, University College.
He worked as a librarian in the
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
and
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
County Libraries. He was chairman, and later Honorary Secretary, of the Youth Libraries Group (established) of the
Library Association
The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP, pronounced ) is a professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge managers in the United Kingdom.
It was established in 2002 as a merger of th ...
, and Chairman of the Kent Branch of the School Library Association. He was Deputy County Librarian for Kent.
He is best known for two surveys of British children's literature: ''Treasure Seekers and Borrowers: Children's Books in Britain 1900-1960'' and ''The Nesbit Tradition: The Children's Novel 1945-1970''. For the Library Association he compiled an account of those books that were awarded the
Carnegie Medal in its first thirty years 1936–1957 in ''Chosen for Children: an account of the books which have been awarded the Library Association Carnegie Medal, 1936-1965''.
He was noted for his
Bodley Head
The Bodley Head is an English book publishing imprint of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1887 by John Lane and Elkin Mathews, The Bodley Head existed as an independent entity or as part of multiple consortia until it was acquired by Random ...
monograph on
Beatrix Potter
Helen Beatrix Heelis (; 28 July 186622 December 1943), usually known as Beatrix Potter ( ), was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' ...
.
He compiled and edited several collections of
folk tales for children.
He created several nonfiction books on southeastern England including some illustrated with his own photographs.
Crouch contributed numerous reviews of children's books to ''Junior Bookshelf'', the ''
Times Literary Supplement
''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp.
History
The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...
'', and ''School Librarian''.
He died at home in
North Wales
North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...
aged 83. He is commemorated by the Kent Arts and Libraries "Marcus Crouch Collection" of approximately 1,500 children's books that were published in the United Kingdom between 1830 and 1930.
[Dolores Blythe Jones. ''Special Collections in Children's Literature: An International Directory'', ]Association for Library Service to Children
The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is a division of the American Library Association.
ALSC has over 4,000 members, including children, experts in children's literature, publishers, faculty members, and other adults. The Associa ...
(U.S.), Committee on National Planning for Special Collections, 1995.
See also
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crouch, Marcus
English children's writers
English literary critics
English librarians
People from Tottenham
1913 births
1996 deaths
Alumni of the University of London