About
Jean Webster, born Alice Jane Chandler Webster, was an American novelist and illustrator. She is best known for her epistolary novel Daddy-Long-Legs (1912), a best-seller adapted into a successful play and film. A graduate of Vassar College in 1901, she also wrote Dear Enemy (1914). Webster illustrated her own books and was active in social causes such as women's suffrage and orphanage reform. She died in 1916, one day after giving birth to her daughter.
* 1876-07-24 — † 1916-06-11
Major works
- Daddy-Long-Legs (1912)novel
- Dear Enemy (1914)novel
- Just Patty (1911)novel
- When Patty Went to College (1903)novel
Key milestones
- 1901Graduated from Vassar College with a degree in English and economics.
- 1912Published her most famous novel, Daddy-Long-Legs, which became a best-seller.
- 1915Married attorney Glenn Ford McKinney.
Themes
Women's emancipationSocial reformEducationOrphanageEpistolary correspondence
Sources: britannica.com · vcencyclopedia.vassar.edu · catdir.loc.gov