Virginia Hamilton

Virginia Hamilton, storyteller, lecturer, and biographer, was born and raised in Yellow Springs, OH, which is said to be a station on the Underground Railroad. Her grandfather settled in the village after escaping slavery in Virginia. She was educated at Antioch College and Ohio State University and did further study in literature and the novel at the New School for Social Research. Virginia was the first African American woman to win the Newbery Award, for M.C. Higgins the Great. Since then, she has won three Newbery Honors and three Coretta Scott King Awards. In 1992, Virginia was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, which is presented every two years by the International Board on Books for Young People, in recognition of her entire body of work. Virginia writes first for the pleasure of using words and language to evoke characters and their world, and in historical accounts such as Anthony Burns, the lives of real people. Secondly, Hamilton writes to entertain, to inspire in people the desire to read on and on good books made especially for them.

Leo and Diane Dillon have twice won the Caldecott Medal

Author Bookshelf
		Anthony Burns Written by Virginia Hamilton Paperback Now in Laurel-Leaf, Virginia Hamilton's powerful true account of the sensational trial of a fugitive slave. The year is 1854, and Anthony Burns, a 20-year-old Virginia slave, has escaped to Boston. But according to the Fugitive Slave Act, a runaway can be captured in any free state, and Anthony is soon imprisoned... Read More
		Many Thousand Gone Written by Virginia Hamilton Illustrated by Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon, Ph.D. Trade Paperback Unavailable for several years, Virginia Hamilton’s award-winning companion to The People Could Fly traces the history of slavery in America in the voices and stories of those who lived it. Leo and Diane Dillon’s brilliant black-and-white illustrations echo the stories’ subtlety and power, making this book as stunning to look at... Read More
		The People Could Fly Picture Book and CD Written by Virginia Hamilton Package Read More
		The People Could Fly Written by Virginia Hamilton Illustrated by Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon, Ph.D. Hardcover "The well-known author retells 24 black American folk tales in sure storytelling voice: animal tales, supernatural tales, fanciful and cautionary tales, and slave tales of freedom. All are beautifully readable. With the added attraction of 40 wonderfully expressive paintings by the Dillons, this collection should be snapped up."--(starred) School Library Journal.   From... Read More
		The People Could Fly Written by Virginia Hamilton Illustrated by Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon, Ph.D. Trade Paperback "The well-known author retells 24 black American folk tales in sure storytelling voice: animal tales, supernatural tales, fanciful and cautionary tales, and slave tales of freedom. All are beautifully readable. With the added attraction of 40 wonderfully expressive paintings by the Dillons, this collection should be snapped up."--(starred) School Library Journal.  ... Read More
		The People Could Fly Picture Book and CD Written by Virginia Hamilton Illustrated by Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon, Ph.D. Package LEO AND DIANE DILLON'S award-winning picture book interpretation of Newbery Medalist Virginia Hamilton's beloved tale now includes an unforgettable word-for-word CD narration by James Earl Jones and Virginia Hamilton. This tale of slaves who could fly to freedom offered hope in the darkly brutal times of slavery. "That is what Virginia... Read More
		The People Could Fly: The Picture Book Written by Virginia Hamilton Illustrated by Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon, Ph.D. Hardcover “THE PEOPLE COULD FLY,” the title story in Virginia Hamilton’s prize-winning American Black folktale collection, is a fantasy tale of the slaves who possessed the ancient magic words that enabled them to literally fly away to freedom. And it is a moving tale of those who did not have the opportunity... Read More