Virginia Hamilton

Hello! My name is Virginia Hamilton, and I was a storyteller. I was born on March 12th, 1934, in a small town called Yellow Springs, Ohio. My whole family loved to tell stories, and our home was always filled with them. At family get-togethers, my parents, aunts, and uncles would share funny, exciting, and important tales that painted pictures in my mind. My favorite stories were about my grandfather, Levi Perry. He had been born into slavery, but he bravely escaped to freedom through the Underground Railroad and settled in Ohio. Hearing about his journey was like listening to a real-life superhero story. His story taught me how powerful and important our family histories are, and it made me want to hold onto them forever.

Listening to all those family stories made me want to create my own. I loved to read everything I could get my hands on! Books were like treasure chests full of new worlds and ideas. After I grew up and went to college to learn more, I decided to move to the big, bustling New York City to become a writer. I knew I had stories inside me that needed to come out. In 1967, a very special thing happened: my very first book, called 'Zeely,' was published. I was so excited to see my words in a real book! From the very beginning, I wanted to write books about Black children, families, and their histories because I knew their stories were important and needed to be shared with the world.

I kept writing and writing, filling page after page with my ideas. One of my most famous books is called 'M. C. Higgins, the Great.' It's about a boy who lives on a beautiful mountain with his family and dreams of a better life. In 1975, something amazing happened! That book won two of the biggest awards for children's books: the Newbery Medal and the National Book Award. I was the very first African American author to ever win the Newbery Medal, which felt like a huge honor. It made me so proud to know that my stories were touching people's hearts. A few years later, in 1985, I wrote another special book called 'The People Could Fly,' which was full of the wonderful folktales I had heard and loved my whole life.

Over my life, I wrote more than 40 books for children and young adults. I even won a special award in 1992 called the Hans Christian Andersen Award, which is like a gold medal for children's writers from all over the globe. It showed me that stories can connect people no matter where they live. I lived to be 67 years old, filling my life with as many stories as I could find and create. Today, people remember me for writing books that celebrate Black history, families, and the magic of storytelling. I hope my books inspire you to listen to your family's tales and to share your own special stories with the world.