
Virginia Meachum
Born: 1918 in Chicago, Illinois
Died: Feb. 23, 2010 in Urbana Illinois Pen Name: None Connection to Illinois: Meachum lived the majority of her life in Illinois. Biography: Virginia Meachum graduated from Austin High School in Chicago and from Illinois State University in 1943 with a bachelor of education degree. She taught in the grade schools of New London, Conn., before moving to Champaign, where she worked as an administrative secretary at the University of Illinois. In 1948, her family settled in Danville, Illinois. There, she combined homemaking with free-lance feature writing for various publications. Later, she specialized in writing biographies for young adult readers, including books on Janet Reno, Steven Spielberg, Jane Goodall, and other “People to Know.”She was a 30-year volunteer in the former Lakeview Hospital Gift Shop, past president of Chapter KE of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, a volunteer tutor in the READS program of Danville Elementary Schools and a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Awards:
Selected Titles
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Charles Lindbergh : ISBN: 0766015351 OCLC: 46538352 Enslow, Berkeley Heights, NJ : ©2002. Reveals the man behind the legend, from the glory of his historic flight to the tragic kidnapping of his baby son, from his brilliant medical research to his controversial political views. |
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Jane Goodall, protector of chimpanzees / ISBN: 0894908278 OCLC: 36301451 Enslow Publishers, Springfield, NJ, USA : ©1997. Explores the life and research of the English animal behaviorist who undertook the first long-term study of chimpanzees in the wild. |
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Janet Reno : ISBN: 089490549X OCLC: 30979313 Enslow Publishers, Springfield, NJ, U.S.A. : c1995. Follow the life United States Attorney General Janet Reno, from her childhood near the Florida Evergaldes through her years at Harvard Law School, to the present. |
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Martha Stewart : ISBN: 0894909843 OCLC: 38030149 Enslow Publishers, Springfield, NJ : ©1998. Details the life and career of the woman whose books and television shows focus on ways to make the home more interesting. |
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Rosie O'Donnell : ISBN: 0766011488 OCLC: 41137633 Enslow Publishers, Berkeley Heights, NJ : ©2000. A biography of a popular talk show host, describing her childhood, education, and career in comedy, the movies, on Broadway, and on television. |
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Steven Spielberg : ISBN: 0894906976 OCLC: 33207000 Enslow Publishers, Springfield, N.J., U.S.A. : ©1996. Explores the life and career of the successful filmmaker beginning with his childhood and including discussion of his projects as a director, writer, and producer. |