Eleanor Doorly

Who was Eleanor Doorly?

Victoria Eleanor Louise Doorly was a British writer of children's books. For her biography of Marie Curie, The Radium Woman she won the 1939 Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, recognising the year's best children's book by a British subject.

She was born in Kingston, Jamaica, the daughter of William Anton Doorly and Louise Brown, but moved to England upon the premature death of her father in 1887. She was raised by a great-aunt in Leamington Spa, and studied in a French lycée for a while.

Doorly had an enduring love for France, which was reflected in her literary output. She wrote three popular biographies of French scientists - Fabre, Pasteur, and Curie. She also wrote a couple of history books.

She was headmistress of the King's High School For Girls in Warwick from 1922 to 1944.