Berg, Leila (1917–)
Berg, Leila (1917–)
English children's writer and editor. Born 1917 in Salford, Lancashire, England; children: son and daughter.
Writer and editor of books for and about children which highlight urban and working-class environments, was raised in a Jewish immigrant neighborhood; started career as a journalist for The Daily Worker; began writing for children after birth of 2nd child; influenced by psychologist Susan Isaacs and by her own children, became interested in children's rights, alternative education and informal teaching methods; wrote many well-loved children's books, such as A Box for Benny (1958) and the "Nippers" series for primary-school readers; wrote the influential Look at Kids (1972), illustrated with black-and-white photographs of urban life, and Rising Hill: Death of a Comprehensive School (1968); worked as children's book editor at Metheun, then Macmillan. Received Eleanor Farjeon Medal (1973) for services to children's literature.
See also autobiographical Flickerbook (Granta, 1997).