The French-American author of children’s literature Susie Morgenstern79, was crowned, Thursday, November 7, with the Grande Ourse 2024 prize, awarded by the Montreuil Book and Youth Press Fair (SLPJ) for all of her work. The winner will be present during the event, on Sunday December 1st and Monday December 2nd.
“Her books, which celebrate everyday life, school, family, sisterhood and intergenerational relationships, are imbued with her capacity for wonder and her quest for happiness”said a press release from the SLPJ.
More than 150 titles published
Born in 1945 in Newark, New Jersey (United States), Susie Morgenstern arrived in France at the age of 22 to continue her studies, after a detour through the University of Jerusalem. It was in Nice that she met her husband, the mathematician Jacques Morgensternwith whom she has three children. His family became his first source of inspiration, the one who awakened his humor and lent the intrinsic substance to all these books which won a slew of distinctions. Among the 150 titles to his credit, most of which have risen to the rank of children’s classics, we will happily cite It’s not fair ! (Éditions de l’Amitié, 1982), awarded the Grand Prix for youth, The first time I turned sixteen (The School of Leisure, 1988), Love letters from 0 to 10 (L’École des Loisirs, 1996) which won around twenty prizes, or even Confession of a Big Potato (La Martinière, 2003).
Writing is also a family affair for the Morgensterns. In 1984, the author offered The Sixth (The School of Leisure), a star library book written jointly with his second daughter, Maya. A year later, the exercise is renewed, this time alongside its eldest Aliyahwith Terminale! Everyone gets off (The School of Leisure).
An icon prized by all children’s publishers
Although she published extensively at the École des Loisirs, Susie Morgenstern also frequented more than thirty publishing houses including Nathan Jeunesse with the series The family has too many girls (2008), Gallimard Jeunesse with The pink suitcase (2015), Bayard with Jacques said (2015), Rageot with It’s raining umbrellas (2017), and more recently Thierry Magnier for Galley ! (2023), Saltimbanque with The world is yours (2023) or Michel Lafon Jeunesse for The apprentice king (2024).
Appointed knight of the Legion of Honor in 2016, she obtained the title of officer in the National Order of Merit seven years later.
With this new crowning, Susie Morgenstern succeeds the author and illustrator Beatrice Alemagna.
