346:. It was published in 1964 to some controversy, since its characters were flawed and engaged in behavior that many felt weren't suitable for children. Although it received many negative reviews at the time of its publication, It was hugely popular with young girls, and has since become a classic. It is also considered a milestone book for introducing "a new realism to children's fiction. Harriet is the daughter of affluent New Yorkers who leave her in the care of her nanny, Ole Golly, in their Manhattan townhouse. A curious and solitary child, she spends her time spying on other people, often her friends and neighbors, recording her cynical and bluntly rude observations in a notebook.
31:
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and met Louise
Perkins, an aspiring tap dancer, in 1926 on a boat traveling from New York to England. They married, but his family disapproved of the marriage due to her lower social standing and they divorced after a year, shortly following Fitzhugh's birth in 1928. Her father gained custody of her
201:
where she had been popular, but felt out of place as a debutante in upper-class society, and was appalled by her peers' racist attitudes. Fitzhugh had a series of romantic relationships as teenager, beginning with a boy named
Charles McNutt. After dating for two years, she fell in love with a
202:
photojournalist named Amelia Brent, her first love affair with another woman. While still seeing Amelia, she also dated a local boy named Ed
Thompson, and eloped with him in 1947, at the age of nineteen. The marriage went unconsumated and her father had it annulled from Memphis.
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a novel about two teenage girls falling in love, in remembrance of her first love Amelia Brent, who had died apparently by suicide in 1956. The manuscript was rejected by an agent for its lesbian subject matter, and later disappeared.
312:. She had a particularly successful solo exhibition at Banfer Gallery in 1963, but also wrote profically, penning several plays and adult novels that were never published. Around this time, Fitzhugh attempted to publish
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after a publicized legal battle while her mother moved to
Hollywood. She grew up in Memphis with her father and stepmother, Sally Taylor, and was told that her mother was dead. Her father went on to become a
130:, a fiction work about an adolescent girl's predisposition with a journal covering the foibles of her friends, her classmates, and the strangers she is captivated by. The novel was later adapted into
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pad in
Greenwich Village. Fitzhugh worked closely with Scoppettone on the production of the book, which incorporated typewriter font and line drawings in an original way. Although a parody of both
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Fitzhugh was a lesbian. "Although
Harriet's sexuality is never touched on in the book, her boy's clothes and bravado sent a message to some kids who felt different and didn't know why."
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167:, on October 5, 1928 as the only child of Louise and Millsaps Fitzhugh, a lawyer. Her father came from a wealthy family in Memphis, and she is a descendant of
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Fitzhugh continued to be a successful painter in New York, showing her work, primarily realistic portraits, nudes, and city scenes, alongside artists like
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124:(October 5, 1928 – November 19, 1974) was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Fitzhugh is best known for her 1964 novel
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and beatnik conceit, the book sprang to life as a genuine work of literature and was immediately popular with both adults and children.
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Stahl, J. D. (1990). "Satire and the
Evolution of Perspective in Children's Literature: Mark Twain, E. B. White, and Louise Fitzhugh".
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1030:(3). Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: 413–26. Archived from
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Helson, Ravenna (1976). "Change, Tradition, and
Critical Styles in the Contemporary World of Children's Books".
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Estes, Glenn E.; Nodelman, Perry (August 18, 1986). "Louise
Fitzhugh (5 October 1928-19 November 1974)".
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and finding coverage of the divorce proceedings in the archive. She began writing at the age of 11.
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Sometimes You Have to Lie: The Life and Times of Louise
Fitzhugh, Renegade Author of Harriet the Spy
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A guide for Using Harriet the Spy in the Classroom: Based on the Novel by Louise Fitzhugh
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According to a biography published in 2020, Fitzhugh was romantically linked to actress
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A new biography explores the rebellious, bohemian life of the author of Harriet The Spy
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Dictionary of Literary Biography: American Writers for Children Since 1960: Fiction
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Using money inherited after her grandmother's death in 1949, Fitzhugh moved to
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688:. Internet Archive. Huntington Beach: Teacher Created Materials. p. 6.
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858:"The Rich, Literary Life of the Creator of America's Favorite Girl Spy"
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1117:"Watch Dulé Hill Perform 'Fabulous Feet' From The Tap Dance Kid"
1057:"Louise Fitzhugh Is Dead at 46; 'Harriet the Spy' Author-Artist"
1323:(Photograph 5 shows Fitzhugh as a model for a painting c.1949.)
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Biography Today: Pofiles of People of Interest to Young Readers
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The book has been adapted three times, starting in 1996 with a
250:
916:– via Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online.
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at Bard, but left in 1951, six months before her graduation.
214:) after graduating from Miss Hutchison's, and transferred to
736:. Internet Archive. Detroit: Omnigraphics, Inc. p. 56.
502:(Delacorte, 1979) – posthumously published quasi-sequel to
144:, was published posthumously in 1979. Fitzhugh also wrote
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In 1961, Fitzhugh published her first children's book,
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in 1947. In 1948, she transferred again, this time to
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starting in 1952. She also traveled to study art in
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Fitzhugh briefly attended Southwestern College (now
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654:Emmy Award for children's entertainment special (
140:, was published in 1965, and its follow-up book,
1432:American women writers of young adult literature
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1232:"Louise Fitzhugh, Marisol, and the Realm of Art"
378:She wrote two other books in the same universe,
782:. Internet Archive. Boston: Twayne Publishers.
335:, who helped publish her most successful work,
1153:. 1 December 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
893:
818:"The Tragic Misfit Behind "Harriet the Spy""
619:Outstanding Books of the Year citation, 1964
1314:"Unapologetically Harriet, the Misfit Spy."
1303:"Purple Socks: A Louise Fitzhugh Fan Site."
1236:Children's Literature Association Quarterly
1203:Children's Literature Association Quarterly
1017:"Current Trends in Literature for Children"
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407:in 1978. It was also adapted into the 1983
1090:"Unapologetically Harriet, the Misfit Spy"
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952:Horning, Kathleen T. (April 18, 2014),
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476:(Harper & Row, 1965) – sequel to
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429:and casting director Alixe Gordin.
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1367:20th-century American illustrators
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662:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
649:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
642:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
539:, written and illus. by Fitzhugh (
483:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
447:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
395:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
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146:Nobody's Family Is Going to Change
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1447:20th-century American LGBT people
1437:Deaths from intracranial aneurysm
1417:American women children's writers
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1115:Gans, Andrew (January 13, 2021).
1065:. November 21, 1974. p. 50.
856:Schillinger, Liesl (2020-12-01).
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361:. In 2010, it was adapted as the
179:, Mississippi. He graduated from
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640:Children's Book Bulletin, 1976 (
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397:was adapted into the short film
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1382:Writers from Memphis, Tennessee
1372:20th-century American novelists
1281:. New York: Twayne Publishers.
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816:Panovka, Rebecca (2021-12-09).
151:Fitzhugh died at age 46 from a
1397:American young adult novelists
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730:Harris, Laurie Lanzen (1997).
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1:
1088:Grant, Neva (March 3, 2008).
927:Laneri, Raquel (2020-12-05).
668:
285:, Suzuki was the daughter of
1392:Novelists from New York City
281:; while Eloise lived in the
222:, after her uncle, novelist
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163:Louise Fitzhugh was born in
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1362:American women illustrators
1357:American children's writers
237:to study art. She lived in
197:She graduated in 1946 from
134:in 1996. The sequel novel,
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1412:LGBT people from Tennessee
776:Wolf, Virginia L. (1991).
368:Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars
1015:Elleman, Barbara (1987).
955:Spying on Louise Fitzhugh
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468:(Harper & Row, 1964)
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439:New Milford, Connecticut
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216:Florida Southern College
71:New Milford, Connecticut
1407:American LGBT novelists
1273:Wolf, Virginia (1991).
524:Bang, Bang, You're Dead
199:Miss Hutchison's School
122:Louise Perkins Fitzhugh
186:U.S. district attorney
155:on November 19, 1974.
35:Fitzhugh, date unknown
1230:Stahl, J. D. (1999).
982:Children's Literature
904:Gale Research Company
355:Michelle Trachtenberg
327:After the success of
191:The Commercial Appeal
159:Early life and family
1170:(December 1, 2020).
906:. pp. 133–142.
1331:Library of Congress
1316:NPR, March 3, 2008.
682:Rice, Dona (1996).
624:Sequoyah Book Award
581:As illustrator only
411:-nominated musical
243:Art Students League
241:and studied at the
102:young adult fiction
81:Writer, illustrator
1248:10.1353/chq.0.1156
1215:10.1353/chq.0.0723
1062:The New York Times
994:10.1353/chl.0.0757
862:The New York Times
593:Sandra Scoppettone
371:and in 2021 as an
273:Sandra Scoppettone
271:, coauthored with
165:Memphis, Tennessee
132:a live action film
54:Memphis, Tennessee
1185:978-1-58005-769-1
789:978-0-8057-7614-0
743:978-0-7808-0166-0
695:978-1-57690-133-5
657:The Tap Dance Kid
414:The Tap Dance Kid
399:The Tap Dance Kid
239:Greenwich Village
171:, the founder of
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181:Emory University
173:Millsaps College
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1321:"Women Arrive."
1307:Wayback Machine
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393:Her 1974 novel
381:The Long Secret
373:animated series
359:Rosie O'Donnell
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310:Louise Nevelson
291:Bleecker Street
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1032:the original
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988:(1): 22–39.
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111:
66:(1974-11-19)
1352:1974 deaths
1347:1928 births
1257:10919/25448
1131:October 18,
660:, based on
283:Plaza Hotel
1341:Categories
1288:0805776141
1194:1150927952
1176:Seal Press
938:2024-04-03
875:2024-03-09
835:2024-03-09
669:References
635:Posthumous
567:I Am Three
98:Children's
78:Occupation
47:1928-10-05
1266:143638669
1223:144953249
1041:March 17,
1002:144245771
966:April 12,
870:0362-4331
830:0028-792X
622:Oklahoma
599:, 1961),
597:Doubleday
554:I Am Four
543:, 1978),
537:I Am Five
489:, 1974),
353:starring
257:in 1957.
206:Education
89:1959–1974
1125:Archived
1121:Playbill
1100:April 2,
1094:Archived
1067:Archived
960:archived
626:, 1967 (
575:81-15218
562:82-70309
549:78-50404
532:69-14440
512:78-72861
495:74-19152
342:through
1305:at the
1092:. NPR.
900:Detroit
605:61-7513
504:Harriet
365:movie,
314:Amelia,
287:beatnik
255:Bologna
177:Jackson
1285:
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611:Awards
603:
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510:
493:
458:Novels
386:Sport.
363:Disney
308:, and
295:Eloise
278:Eloise
261:Career
251:France
86:Period
73:, U.S.
56:, U.S.
1262:S2CID
1219:S2CID
1137:>,
1035:(PDF)
1020:(PDF)
998:S2CID
500:Sport
453:Works
433:Death
142:Sport
94:Genre
1283:ISBN
1190:OCLC
1180:ISBN
1133:2021
1102:2018
1075:2017
1043:2013
968:2016
908:ISBN
866:ISSN
826:ISSN
784:ISBN
738:ISBN
690:ISBN
601:LCCN
571:LCCN
558:LCCN
545:LCCN
528:LCCN
508:LCCN
491:LCCN
409:Tony
401:for
384:and
357:and
351:film
245:and
100:and
61:Died
41:Born
1329:at
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1244:doi
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