Author of the beloved Little Bear series, Else Holmelund Minarik was born in Denmark on the 13th of September, 1920. Four years after her birth, Else's family immigrated to the United States. Very little is known about her childhood, except that she began writing at an early age. Minarik's first story was wrtten in dictation by her mother.
Else attended Queen's College, City University of New York, a school was specifically built to offer a quality education to the numerous immigrants pouring into the country at that time. After graduating, Minarik worked as a journalist for the Rome Daily Centennial. During WWII, she worked as a teacher, helping to fill the sudden hole left as men went overseas to participate in the battles being fought in Europe. As she helped first grade students learn to read, Else was struck by the lack of easy books for beginning readers. When she again encountered this deficiency with her own daughter, Minarik took matters into her own hands and wrote a book for her child to read. Soon it was published, and the Little Bear series came into being.
Over the years, Minarik has continued writing books about the adorable Little Bear and his family and friends. Each book is written in a little bit more advanced style, helping students to improve their reading skills and vocabulary with each successive book they read. Else Minarik has also branched out and written several other children's books, including It's Spring, Cat and Dog, and No Fighting, No Biting! Currently, Minarik lives in Nottingham, New Hampshire.
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