Eleanor Coerr

Who was Eleanor Coerr?

Eleanor Coerr was a Canadian-born American writer of children's books, including Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes and many picture books.

She was born in Kamsack, Saskatchewan, Canada, and raised in Saskatoon. As a child, she liked to think up and read new stories. Through her best friend in high school, who was born to Japanese immigrants, Coerr developed an interest in calligraphy, Japanese food, and origami. She was exposed to Japanese scenery and told her that she wished to visit Japan one day, a request which Coerr fulfilled during the writing of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.

She attended the University of Saskatchewan, later transferring to the Kadel Airbrush School. She earned a bachelor's degree in English from American University, and a master's degree in library science from the University of Maryland. After graduation, Coerr worked as a newspaper reporter and editor of a children's column. She taught children's literature at Monterey Peninsula College and creative writing at Chapman College in California.

She was married to Wymberly De Renne Coerr from 1965 until his death from Parkinson's Disease in 1996. He was a career diplomat, and she traveled with him to a number of countries, including foreign posts in Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, and Brazil. Coerr both wrote and illustrated her first book in 1945, although she did not begin to publish her work until the 1970s. Her later work included children's books, philanthropy, and giving lectures at American universities and overseas. After Wymberly's death, she became more reclusive and stayed at private residences in Pebble Beach, California and Henderson, Nevada.