Inspiration

I discovered author Maud Hart Lovelace a few Christmases ago through one of her more obscure children’s books, "The Trees Kneel at Christmas." The book was a gift from the pastor at St. Maron’s; I suppose he thought I would be interested in a tale that features the children of Lebanese immigrants. I found the story to be precious, even though I no longer have young children at home.

Maud Hart Lovelace is better known for her series of children’s books that feature the characters of Betsy and Tacy, two girls who live in the fictional community of Deep Valley. Those familiar with either the Betsy-Tacy series or with southern Minnesota know that Hart Lovelace set the Betsy-Tacy stories in her hometown of Mankato. Fans of the series have created a downloadable map of Betsy-Tacy sites to visit, including Betsy’s house and Tacy’s house. There is even a Betsy-Tacy Society.

I suspect the author’s encounter with Lebanese immigrants and their traditions occurred in New York, not in Mankato. The author and her husband had homes in New York and in Minneapolis, where Hart Lovelace moved after she enrolled in college. Hart Lovelace attended the University of Minnesota but took a leave of absence to travel to California. After she returned to the university, she worked on the Minnesota Daily but she again left college to travel, this time to Europe. She never did finish college. On Thanksgiving Day in 1917, she married Delos Lovelace; they’d met only six months earlier. There is something about the writer’s impetuousness and wanderlust that attracts me to her story.

Hart Lovelace’s first published book was a historical novel set in Minnesota titled "The Black Angels." She wrote several more historical novels but is best remembered for the Betsy-Tacy series, of which there are a dozen books.

When I had a young girl to whom I could read storybooks, I hadn’t yet heard of Maud Hart Lovelace. Now that I have, I have no one to whom I can introduce Betsy, Tacy or their friends from Deep Valley. Someday, that just might change. I guess that means I should download that map, just in case.