John
Donovan

Who was John Donovan?

Who was John Donovan?

John Donovan, a pioneering author and advocate of Children’s and Young Adult literature, was born in 1928 in Lynn, Massachusetts, He began his career as a copyright lawyer for the Library of Congress before turning to publishing in the early 1960s. The Little Orange Book, a picture book published in 1961, was Donovan’s first. It focused on themes of bullying and self-esteem—prescient at the time given our attention to these issues today—which propelled him forward in both the children’s and young adult literature genres.

In 1969, Donovan published his groundbreaking novel, I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth the Trip. The critically acclaimed book dealt with homosexuality among teens, a topic considered taboo at the time. Ursula Nordstrom, Harper & Row’s legendary publisher, grew eager to publish the story after reading Donovan’s pitch: “Would you be in the mood to read a manuscript of mine about a kid with love problems, including buddy-love problems?” The two formed a close working relationship throughout its publication, and Harper & Row continued to publish Donovan’s next four books.

Donovan also served as Executive Director of the Children’s Book Council (CBC), a non-profit trade association for children’s book publishers, where he studied trends in children’s literature and advocated on behalf of publishers, authors, and young readers. He traveled the world championing literacy and quality children’s and young adult literature.

Donovan wrote several other young adult novels following the success of I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth the Trip., continuing to explore themes relevant to adolescents, particularly isolation, loneliness, and depression. His love of animals is also evident in his books; various creatures figured prominently as either protagonists or pivotal secondary characters.

In addition to his novels, Donovan was also a playwright. Riverside Drive was produced Off-Broadway in New York City and subsequently translated into several languages. He penned many articles for respected journals and periodicals including The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Horn Book, School Library Journal, and Wilson Library Bulletin. His academic writings were geared toward his advocacy of children’s literature.

At age 63, John Donovan died of cancer, in his Manhattan home. His legacy is his contribution to children’s and young adult literature, and his ongoing pursuit to understand the nature of love and man’s isolation in his own writing.