“Books were the window from which I
looked out of a rather meager and decidedly narrow room onto a rich and
wonderful universe. I loved the look and feel of books, even the smell...
Libraries were treasure houses. I always entered them with a slight thrill of
disbelief that all their endless riches were mine for the borrowing.” –
Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Born
on this date in 1927, Snyder wrote 43 books for children and young adults – one
per year during the height of her writing prowess - winning three Newbery
Awards along the way. Honors went to
her adventure stories The Egypt Game, The Headless Cupid and The
Witches of Worm, all remarkable works but really not that different from
many of her others which many critics and readers in general thought were equally deserving of awards. 
Snyder, who died in 2014, said she always dreamed of writing and couldn’t imagine any
other profession. “It grew from those
dreams I always had as a child,” she said. “I think writing is an extension of
a childhood habit - the habit of entertaining oneself by taking interesting
bits of reality and building upon them.”
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