John Beatty
John Beatty was an American author and historian, born in Portland, Oregon, in 1922. He completed his education at Reed College, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in 1943 before serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, receiving both the Silver Star and Purple Heart for his service. After the war, he furthered his education, obtaining a Master’s degree from Stanford and a Ph.D. in British history from the University of Washington. Beatty began his professional career as a history professor at the University of California, Riverside, where he taught until his death in 1975.
In addition to his academic pursuits, Beatty collaborated with his wife, Patricia Beatty, to write historical novels for children and young adults. Their writing partnership produced eleven historical novels set in the British Isles, starting with *At the Seven Stars* in 1963 and concluding with *Who Comes to King's Mountain?* in 1975. Their works were known for their historical accuracy and received notable recognition, including several Outstanding Book distinctions. Following John Beatty's passing, Patricia continued to write, shifting her focus to American historical settings.
On this Page
Subject Terms
John Beatty
Fiction & Children's Literature Writer
- Born: January 24, 1922
- Birthplace: Portland, Oregon
- Died: March 23, 1975
Biography
John Beatty was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1922, in the same year and the same place as his wife Patricia (Robbins) Beatty, whom he married in 1950. John Beatty’s father, George Shelley, was a civil engineer; his mother was Pauline (Kirchhoff) Beatty. Coincidentally, both Patricia’s and John’s mothers knew each other slightly when the Beattys were children, but the two young people became acquainted when they both attended Reed College in Portland. John Beatty completed his B.A. at Reed in 1943 and then served in the United States Army in Europe during World War II, from 1943 to 1945. He received both the Silver Star and the Purple Heart. After the war, he went back to school and completed his M.A. at Stanford in 1947 and his Ph.D. in British history from the University of Washington, Seattle, in 1953. John and Patricia Beatty had one child, a daughter named Ann Alexandra, who was born in 1957.
Beatty began his career not as a writer of novels for young adults but as a history professor at the University of California, Riverside, where he taught from 1953 until his death in 1975. His wife was the first writer in the family, and it was she who introduced him to the craft. Patricia Beatty began writing books for children in 1956. After the couple went to live in England in 1959, Patricia asked John for help on a novel she had set in the year 1752 in London. Her request was a logical one, given that John Beatty was an expert in British history of that period. The couple went on to write eleven historical novels for children and young adults, all set in the British Isles. Their successful collaboration began with the 1963 novel At the Seven Stars and concluded with the 1975 work, Who Comes to King’s Mountain? Other works include The Royal Dirk, a novel using the background of the Scottish highland clearances, and Master Rosalind, the story of a girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to take part in the theatre world of Shakespeare during Elizabethan times.
John Beatty and his wife were both history teachers, and they took pride in the historical accuracy of their work. In such journals as Horn Book they have commented on the challenges of creating historical fiction. At the Seven Stars was named an Outstanding Book for young people in 1963 by the New York Times, The Royal Dirk was named an Outstanding Book in 1966 and received the medal from the Southern California Council on Literature for Children in 1967, and Campion Towers was named a silver medalist by the Commonwealth Club of California in 1965. After John Beatty’s death in 1975, Patricia Beatty continued to write historical fiction for children, but she tended to use American rather than British settings.