AuthorSid Fleischman died March 17 in his home in Santa Monica, Calif.,at the age of 90. Fleischman won the Newbery Medal in 1987 for his novel The Whipping Boy, and wrote more than 50books for children, as well as screenplays and adult fiction and nonfiction.His first children's book, Mr. Mysterious& Company, was published in 1962, and his most recent was The Dream Stealer (Greenwillow, 2009). Fleischmanwas a National Book Award finalist in 1979 for Humbug Mountain.He also received a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award and was a finalist for the Hans Christian Andersen Award.
Fleischman'sbiographies for children—The TroubleBegins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West and Escape! The Story of the Great Houdini—alsodrew acclaim; a third, Sir Charlie: Chaplin,the Funniest Man in the World, will be published by Greenwillow in June.
Fleischmanis survived by three children (including his son, Paul, also a National BookAward finalist) and four grandchildren. A memorial service will take place at alater date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Library Foundationof Los Angeles or the American Cancer Society.
