Esther Forbes author page

Esther Forbes biography

Esther Forbes was an American author known for her contributions to children’s and young adult literature, as well as historical works. She was born in Westborough, Massachusetts. Forbes attended Bradford Academy and later studied at the University of Wisconsin and Radcliffe College. Her writing often focused on American history, particularly the colonial and Revolutionary War periods.

Forbes is the author of Johnny Tremain, a historical novel for young readers set in Boston during the American Revolution. The book was first published by Houghton Mifflin in 1943. Johnny Tremain received the Newbery Medal in 1944, awarded by the American Library Association for the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. In addition to her work for young readers, Forbes wrote several historical novels and biographies for adults, including Paul Revere and the World He Lived In, which won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 1943.

Esther Forbes’s Johnny Tremain remains a widely read work in American classrooms and was recognized with the Newbery Medal in 1944.