The PEN America Children’s and Young Adult Books Committee mourns the loss of Robie Harris, a founding member and passionate advocate of free expression and honesty in children’s books.
Krystyna Poray Goddu and Paul Zelinsky, co-chairs of PEN America’s Children’s and Young Adult Books Committee, note: “Robie was a calm and sage source of guidance for our committee. She stood against censorship with tact and firmness, serving as a model to all of us. And while she is known best for her groundbreaking children’s books about human sexuality—and for speaking out against book banning—she also wrote many outstanding books for young people on other subjects. Her grasp of the inner lives of young children was unequaled and she always addressed them with the honesty they deserve. Her death leaves a huge gap. We will miss Robie deeply, her humor and her wisdom.”
In 2009, Robie, Susan Kuklin, Fatima Shaik and Liz Levy had the ambitious idea to publish a book featuring the writing of the students at the MLK Charter School; each worked with a different grade. Robie was one of the hardest working and meticulous of authors, and she took her first graders’ writing as seriously as anything she would publish under her own name. We will miss her championship of children’s self-expression and of ours.
