Sorche Nic Leodhas
Sorche Nic Leodhas was the pen name of Leclaire Gowans Alger, an American author known for her children's stories that draw from the rich folklore of the Scottish Highlands. Born on May 20, 1898, in Youngstown, Ohio, she began her writing journey in her youth and had a significant career as a librarian, which spanned several decades while she balanced family responsibilities. After the death of her first husband, she returned to library work and eventually pursued her passion for writing.
Her breakthrough came in the early 1960s with her book *Heather and Broom: Tales of the Scottish Highlands*, where she showcased her ability to retell Scottish legends in a way that resonated with modern audiences. Nic Leodhas received critical acclaim and several prestigious awards for her work, including the Caldecott Medal for *Always Room for One More*. Her writing often blended humor with folklore, and her last notable collection, *Twelve Great Black Cats and Other Eerie Scottish Tales*, showcased a shift towards more dramatic narratives. Sorche Nic Leodhas passed away on November 14, 1969, leaving behind a legacy of engaging children's literature rooted in cultural heritage.
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Sorche Nic Leodhas
- Born: May 20, 1898
- Birthplace: Youngstown, Ohio
- Died: November 14, 1969
Biography
Sorche Nic Leodhas was the pseudonym used by Leclaire Gowans Alger, a writer of stories and novels for children dealing with the legends and lore of the Scottish highlands. She was born on May 20, 1898, in Youngstown, Ohio. She began writing at a young age, and in 1915 became a page with the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. The following year she married Amos Risser Hoffman. In that era it was not considered proper for a married woman to work outside the home, so her library career entered a hiatus. Her first marriage produced a son, Louis, before it ended in the untimely death of her husband in 1918.
Needing a way to support herself and her young son, she went back to work in the New York Public Library, a position she held until 1925. She then returned to Pittsburgh to attend the Carnegie Library School, receiving her degree in 1929. Sometime during this period she also married her second husband. After 1929, she worked in various branches of the Carnegie Library until 1966, at which time she retired in order to devote herself more fully to her burgeoning writing career.
Alger had written a few children’s stories under her own name while still working full time, most notably Jan and the Wonderful Mouth Organ and The Golden Summer. However, in the early 1960’s she found her true métier when she wrote Heather and Broom: Tales of the Scottish Highlands. This volume marked her first use of the pseudonym Sorche Nic Leodhas, and her first attempt at retelling Scottish folklore in modern idiom.
Alger proved quite able in both discovering tales that lent themselves to such adaptation and the capturing of the spirit of the culture in a language easily comprehensible to modern readers. Not only was she widely praised by critics, but she received a number of prestigious awards, most notably the Caldecott Medal for Always Room for One More. In addition, she was a runner-up for both the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award and the Newbery Medal for Thistle and Thyme: Tales and Legends from Scotland.
All in the Morning Early was a runner-up for the Caldecott Medal. Her last work, Twelve Great Black Cats, and Other Eerie Scottish Tales, moved away from her emphasis on humorous tales to a more dramatic and chilling, although even they occasionally dipped into a certain rowdy humor, particularly when an especially rotten villain came to a much-deserved bad end. Alger died on November 14, 1969.