Potter, Beatrix (1866-1943), was an English author and illustrator known for her charming children’s stories about small animals. Her books combine stories of adventure and humor with delicate water colors that capture the action and mood of the text. Potter’s first and most famous story is The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902).
Potter wrote and illustrated about 25 books. In addition to Peter Rabbit, her characters include Squirrel Nutkin, Benjamin Bunny, Tom Kitten, Jemima Puddle-Duck, the Flopsy Bunnies, and Pigling Bland.
Helen Beatrix Potter was born on July 28, 1866, in London to wealthy parents. She began drawing plants and animals as a child. Potter based many of her illustrations on the animals and rural landscapes of the Lake District of northern England. She died on Dec. 22, 1943. Potter had kept a journal in which she recorded her activities, as well as her opinions about society, art, and current events. She wrote the journal in a code she invented herself, which was not deciphered until 1958. The deciphered version was first published in 1966 as The Journal of Beatrix Potter from 1881 to 1897. A revised and expanded version was published in 1990. In 2016, Kitty-in-Boots, a rediscovered tale Potter wrote in 1914, was released.
