Rosamond du Jardin (1902–1963) was a writer, best known for 17 books for teen girls published in the 1950s and 1960s. Before then, she wrote short stories and serialized novels for numerous magazines. Her work is of enduring interest in

gender studies Gender studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to analysing gender identity and gendered representation. Gender studies originated in the field of women's studies, concerning women, feminism, gender, and politics. The field n ...

because it provides a useful view of 1950s norms and rites of passage.

Personal life

Rosamond Maud Neal was born July 22, 1902, in Fairland, Illinois, and grew up in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. She graduated from Morgan Park High School and married Victor du Jardin; they had three children and operated a book store in Glen Ellyn, IL. An elementary school in

Bloomingdale, Illinois Bloomingdale is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage County, Illinois, United States, settled in 1833, and 25 miles northwest of downtown Chicago. The population was 22,382 at the 2020 census. History Bloomingdale is one of the earlies ...

, is named for her. Du Jardin died March 27, 1963.

Writing career

Du Jardin's teen series fiction was praised for showing "understanding of the young viewpoint,"''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', quoted on the back cover of ''Double Feature'' (1963). but like many novels for teen girls of the era (notably Betty Cavanna's and Anne Emery's, which are often discussed with du Jardin's), her plots favored romance and conformity. The choice of the right dress and the right boyfriend were often the key to happiness. Perhaps her most popular series was her four-book set about Pam and Penny Howard,

twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...

who need to learn to establish themselves as individuals. The series begins with the twins' senior year of high school and continues through the end of their college years. Other series were about Marcy Rhodes and Tobey and Midge Heydon. She also wrote a historical novel, ''Young and Fair'', and co-wrote a work of nonfiction about her daughter's college junior year abroad. In the 2010s, her books were reissued in facsimile editions by Image Cascade Publishing. Her papers are preserved at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

Archives West Archives West is an online catalog of descriptive information about the archival collections at various institutions in the western United States (Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Alaska, Utah and Washington). It was established in 2005, and is a program off ...

Books

*''Boy Trouble'' *''Class Ring'' *''Double Date'' (Pam & Penny Howard book #1) *''Double Feature'' (Pam & Penny Howard book #2) *''Double Wedding'' (Pam & Penny Howard book #4) *''A Man for Marcy'' (Marcy Rhodes book #3) *''Marcy Catches Up'' (Marcy Rhodes book #2) *''One of the Crowd'' *''Practically Seventeen'' *''Senior Prom'' (Marcy Rhodes book #4) *''Showboat Summer'' (Pam & Penny Howard book #3) *''Someone to Count On'' *''The Real Thing'' *''Wait for Marcy'' (Marcy Rhodes book #1) *''Wedding in the Family'' *''Young and Fair'' *''Junior Year Abroad'' (nonfiction, with Judith du Jardin)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:du Jardin, Rosamond 20th-century American novelists American women novelists American writers of young adult literature American romantic fiction novelists 1902 births 1963 deaths 20th-century American women writers American women writers of young adult literature