REMEMBERING EVE BUNTING: My Friend, My Mentor, My Role Model

Eve Bunting, 2017. Santa Cruz, CA

More than forty years ago I was invited to a party to celebrate the publication of Eve Bunting’s 100^th book. I was in awe. How could anyone write, much less publish, one hundred books! Eve kept writing, surpassing 250 books and winning countless awards. Last week, at age 94, Eve passed away. Her first book, published in 1971, was The Two Giants, an Irish tale. She is a giant among today’s children book writers and will be sorely missed.

I first met Eve Bunting in 1977 when I heard her speak at the summer conference of the Society of Children’s Book Writers—SCBW—at the Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica. (The “I” for illustrators was added some years later.) Eve was already a prolific author and as she spoke in her lilting Irish accent, I said to myself, if she ever teaches a class in the Writer’s Program at UCLA Extension, I will take it. The following spring, her class in writing middle grade fiction was offered, and I signed up, along with twenty other fledgling writers. Week after week we each brought chapters of our novels to class. Eve read them aloud and we learned about voice, point of view, setting, character and all the elements necessary to write a compelling story. But probably the most important advice she passed along was the role of a writing group. She often mentioned her own writing group, Lunch Bunch, which had grown out of the writing class she took as a beginning writer. So, like Eve and her classmates had done, at the end of our ten-week class, we formed our own group. We met once a month thereafter, critiquing one another’s writing, sharing news, and soon celebrating our own publishing successes.

It was in Eve’s class that I met Herma Silverstein. (Herma and I subsequently collaborated on two books and she also published a number of her own.) For many years, Herma, Eve and I celebrated our birthdays together, exchanging small gifts, eating lunch at a nice restaurant and then going shopping. I don’t remember how this tradition started, but Eve always liked to go out to eat and  loved to shop, especially if we could find bargains! Eve’s birthday is December 19^th, and I have many fond memories of arriving at her house in Pasadena all decorated for Christmas, before we went out for our birthday lunch. Eve’s husband Ed, after he retired, was always there with a smiling face to greet us at the door. At our lunches Eve would always share her newest books and publishing news and be eager to hear ours. After Herma moved to Palm Desert, we met less often, but Eve and I did go on an expedition together to see her new house and go out to lunch there. (Herma passed away several years ago.)

The last time I saw Eve in person was in 2017 after she moved to Santa Cruz to be closer to her daughter. It was on a day trip to Santa Cruz from Oakland with my friend and fellow writer Joanne Rocklin. (Joanne had also been a student in one of Eve’s UCLA classes.) Not surprisingly, Eve had some new books to show us. Again, we went out to lunch, but instead of going shopping afterward, we took a walk along the ocean cliffs on the path that began just outside the door of Eve’s house. 

During the Pandemic it was not possible to visit in person, but Eve and I kept in touch by email. In my last email from her, when she was 93, and recently moved to a retirement community, she wrote:

I am well.  I enjoy where I am and know how lucky I am to find such a place.  I’m not writing.  ...  My last little PB has done well. “Hello, Baby, I’m your Mom.”  So who knows…maybe I’ll do another!

Love, Eve

I don’t believe that Eve wrote another picture book since that email. But I wouldn’t be surprised to hear she that she is coming up with new story ideas up in Heaven!

Eve was my friend, my hero, my role model. I will miss her.

Caroline, Herma, Eve, 1995.

Note: Eve's many accomplishments are highlighted in this article from Kirkus Reviews.

A longer obituary appeared in Publisher's Weekly.

Tips for Conquering Writer’s Block, at Author Joanne Rocklin’s Blog

Do you want some great advice on how to conquer writer’s block and get answers to other questions every writer faces? Then go to Joanne Rocklin’s blog on her newly updated website and you will find a long list of useful tips. Joanne and I have been friends and colleagues for many years and I was honored that she asked me to contribute to her blog. I passed on a tip suggested by one of my editors when I was writing my book A Guide Dog Puppy Grows Up--and that was to think about telling the story in the present tense. Here’s what I wrote:

My book A Guide Dog Puppy Grows Up tells how dogs are trained to work with blind people by following one puppy from birth to graduation.  My first manuscript had all the facts but seemed to be missing something. Then my editor suggested changing the tense from the past to the present. I did and suddenly the story came alive, making us feel as if we are participating in the action. So, if you are stuck in your story, take a look at the tense and see if changing it makes us see your story in a new light.

Go to Joanne’s website. You will find lots of other tips and information about Joanne’s wonderful, award winning books. Her most recent title is I SAY SHEHECHIYANU, illustrated by Monika Filipina, a beautiful picture book suitable for all Jewish festivities, celebrations, and the proud “first times” of childhood.

FOCAL Award Luncheon: Joanne Rocklin and One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street

Joanne Rocklin autographing books at the FOCAL luncheon

Last Saturday, January 12th, was the luncheon to honor the winner of the FOCAL Award, presented annually to the author of a “book of merit featuring some aspect of California history and/or geography.”  What could be more central to the history of California than the orange?  This year’s winning book was One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street, an amazing middle-grade novel, beautifully written by Joanne Rocklin, who gave an inspiring talk about the origins of the book and its personal connection to the Valencia orange tree growing in her back yard when she lived in Los Angeles. (She recently moved to Oakland.)

Orange tree centerpiece

As always, the luncheon was a festive event with delicious food (we were at the Border Grill in downtown Los Angeles), a room full of teachers, librarians, friends, family and book lovers young and old, and tables decorated with charming centerpieces made by Ray Moszkowicz’s students at Palms Middle School.  The centerpieces featured the old Valencia orange tree in the book, which truly is the main character and the thread that connects the lives and stories of the other characters.  A child's swing, a dog, a traffic cone, and a birdhouse represent some key elements in the story.

Carol Onofrio and Joanne Rocklin

The luncheon program also included two young students reading their winning essays about the book and why they wanted to meet the author. (They got to sit at the author’s table during lunch.)  And as always, there was the presentation of a puppet made by Carol Onofrio of one of the characters in the book. She chose to depict Ms. Snoops (whose actual name was Ethel Finneymaker), a perfect choice as the character who had the longest history on Orange Street.  (Another copy of the puppet goes to the permanent collection on display at the library of puppets made through the years.)

Joanne with poster

I was pleased to be on the committee that selected this year’s award and couldn’t be happier with our choice.  I loved reading One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street. When you close the book you can practically smell the sweet perfume of orange blossoms and you feel as if you know each of the characters personally.  The book ends with the recipe for Ethel Finneymaker’s Ambrosia: “Slice your sweetest oranges. Layer dried coconut and sugar between them. Let the whole thing sit for a while, so all the tastes come together, infrangibly.  If you feel especially celebratory, add some whipped cream.  Enjoy!”  We were definitely feeling celebratory on Saturday.  It was a very special event honoring a very talented author who is also my friend.

FOCAL (Friends of Children and Libraries) is the support group of the Children’s Literature Department of the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL).  Caroline Gill, President of FOCAL, and the members of the FOCAL Board did a terrific job of organizing the luncheon, as they do every year.  Thank you! 

Writer's Block Tip #34

Are you stuck on your story?  Do you have writer’s block?  My friend Joanne Rocklin’s Anti-Block Blog is the perfect answer to solving the problem of what to do when you are stuck.  Twice a week she posts helpful tips for writers.  Drawing from her own experience and with contributions from other writers, she is up to 36 tips. (Her goal is 180!) Here are a few of the topics covered in her recent posts:  Focusing on your audience; getting support from your friends; using index cards; making lists, and so on.  You can look for my tip, reading your story aloud, in tip #34 posted on August 1st.
Joanne Rocklin is the author of the wonderful middle grade novel One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street, inspired by the orange tree in her own backyard.