383 The Radical Woman Who Wrote 'Goodnight Moon' - The Story of Margaret Wise Brown (with the New Yorker's Anna Holmes)

The History of Literature

Jacke Wilson

Arts, History, Books

4.6 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 17 February 2022

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

"Goodnight comb and goodnight brush...And goodnight to the old lady whispering hush...Goodnight moon.." Telling the "story" of a darkening room at bedtime, Goodnight Moon (1947) has gone from near obscurity to selling close to a million copies a year. But if you thought - as Jacke did - that the author of this odd, quiet book was probably something of a quiet old lady whispering hush herself, you couldn't be more wrong. Margaret Wise Brown was radical young woman who blew her money on furs and trips to Europe, had long-term relationships with both men and women, and spent her weekends hunting rabbits. In this episode, Anna Holmes, who wrote about Margaret Wise Brown for the New Yorker, joins Jacke to discuss the surprising story behind a beloved children's classic. Be sure to read Anna Holmes's essay about Margaret Wise Brown's life and works in the New Yorker. Additional listening ideas: Like children's literature? You might enjoy our episodes on Beatrix Potter and Roald Dahl. Learn more about Margaret Wise Brown's literary influences in our episodes on Gertrude Stein and Virginia Woolf and Her Enemies. In the mood for something different? We explored Gabriel García Márquez with author Patricia Engel. Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at www.thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey folks, it's Jack. Do you ever find yourself wondering about the little mysteries in life?
0:06.0	Like how refrigeration happened? Or just how many times did the CIA try to assassinate
0:12.0	Fidel Castro anyway? If you find yourself going down rabbit holes like these, then I recommend
0:18.1	a trip to the podcast, History of Everything. Hosted by History lover Steven Bell and
0:24.4	scientist Gabby Bell, the show dives into all the cool but weird little details that make
0:30.3	our world what it is today. You can count on them to cover literally the history of everything,
0:36.9	from potatoes to the crusades. So don't miss out. Listen to History of Everything wherever
0:42.4	you get your podcasts. And tell them I sent you.
0:45.7	Hey folks, it's Jack here to talk about the History of Literature podcast. No, not to
0:51.7	ask you to listen, but to ask you to consider becoming a patron through our patron account.
0:58.2	Producer Emma and I are extremely grateful to all our patrons. And this month we'd like
1:02.6	to invite you to become a patron too. The money you share helps us to cover the costs
1:07.9	of hosting, editing, and generally putting out the best version of this humble little
1:12.6	podcast that we can. If you're finding some value in the history of literature and you're
1:17.5	willing to send us a little something each month, we would appreciate it. Think of it
1:21.7	as buying us a coffee each month. Only if you can afford it. Of course, that's patreon.com
1:27.2	slash literature. Or if you'd like to make a one-time donation, a lump sum with no questions
1:33.2	asked, you can do that at historyofliterature.com slash donate. That's patreon.com slash literature
1:41.8	or historyofliterature.com slash donate. Thank you.
1:48.8	Well, I can answer the question and I also can't answer it because who was she? Is part
1:59.8	of the question that I was really trying to answer when I was researching her and I don't
2:04.3	know that I succeeded. She's very mysterious. And even though I spent many hours in her
	...

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