Zena Sutherland (1915 – June 12, 2002) was an American

review A review is an evaluation of a publication, product, service, or company or a critical take on current affairs in literature, politics or culture. In addition to a critical evaluation, the review's author may assign the work a content rating, ...

er of

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. In addition to conventional literary genres, modern children's literature is classified by the intended age of the reade ...

. She is best known for her contributions to the ''

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books ''The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books'' is an academic journal established in 1945 by Frances E. Henne ( University of Chicago Graduate Library School).Wedgeworth, Robert. ''World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services''. C ...

'' and as the author of the

library science Library and information science (LIS)Library and Information Sciences is the name used in the Dewey Decimal Classification for class 20 from the 18th edition (1971) to the 22nd edition (2003). are two interconnected disciplines that deal with info ...

textbook A textbook is a book containing a comprehensive compilation of content in a branch of study with the intention of explaining it. Textbooks are produced to meet the needs of educators, usually at educational institutions, but also of learners ( ...

''Children and Books''.

Early life and education

Sutherland was born in

Winthrop, Massachusetts Winthrop is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,316 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Winthrop is an ocean-side suburban town in Greater Boston situated at the ...

in 1915 but was raised 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 ...

by her mother after her parents’ divorce. She graduated from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

in 1937. In 1966, she received her master's, also from the University of Chicago, in library science.

Career

She edited the ''Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books'' for almost 30 years. From 1966 until 1972, Sutherland also wrote a monthly

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

for the '' Saturday Review'' called ''Books for Young People'' before becoming the children's books

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' between 1972 and 1984. As well as reviewing children's books, she was on the faculty of the

University of Chicago Graduate Library School The University of Chicago Graduate Library School (GLS) was established in 1928 to develop a program for the graduate education of librarians with a focus on research. Housed for a time in the Joseph Regenstein Library, the GLS closed in 1989 whe ...

between 1972 and 1986 where she taught two classes, "Children's Literature" and "Literature for Young Adults". She was the graduate school advisor for Dr. Carla Hayden who was appointed as Librarian of Congress in 2016. During her 40-year career of reviewing children's literature, Sutherland wrote 19 books and reviewed over 30,000 children's books. Sutherland also authored the textbook ''Children and Books''. Several editions were co-authored by Sutherland and

May Hill Arbuthnot May Hill Arbuthnot (August 27, 1884 – October 2, 1969) was an American educator, editor, writer, and critic who devoted her career to the awareness and importance of children's literature. Her efforts expanded and enriched the selection of bo ...

. Sutherland wrote five additional editions, the last of which was published in 1996, after Arbuthnot's death in 1969. Two of her former students established the ''Zena Sutherland Lecture Series'' in 1983 in her honor. In 1995, the ''Zena Sutherland Awards for Excellence in Children's Literature'' was established by Philip Matsikas, Donna Schatt and Karen Putman. She was awarded the Norman Maclean Faculty Award 1998 in recognition of her teaching career.

Personal life

Sutherland married Roland Bailey in 1937 and they had three children, Stephen, Thomas and Katherine. They later divorced. She was married to her second husband, Alec Sutherland, from 1964 until his death in 1996. On June 12, 2002, Sutherland died of cancer while in hospital in Chicago.

References

External links

Sutherland, Zena Bailey. Papers
at th
University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutherland, Zena 1915 births 2002 deaths University of Chicago alumni American literary critics American women literary critics People from Winthrop, Massachusetts 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American journalists American women non-fiction writers