Kelly, Eric Philbrook (1884-1960), was an American children’s author known for his vividly descriptive stories about Poland. Kelly won the 1929 Newbery Medal for The Trumpeter of Krakow: A Tale of the Fifteenth Century (1928), his first book. The medal is awarded annually to the best children’s book written by an American. The Trumpeter of Krakow is set in Poland during the 1400’s. It tells the exciting story of a courageous young man and a valuable, mysterious jewel. Critics praised the novel for its colorful description of the unsettled political, religious, and social conditions in Poland during the late Middle Ages.
Kelly wrote two other children’s books about Polish cities, The Blacksmith of Vilno: A Tale of Poland in the Year 1832 (1930) and The Golden Star of Halich: A Tale of the Red Land in 1362 (1931). His other books include The Christmas Nightingale: Three Christmas Stories from Poland (1932) and In Clean Hay (1953). Kelly also wrote adult nonfiction books about the country.
Kelly distributed relief supplies to Poland after World War I (1914-1918). In 1925, he was one of the first Americans to participate in a special program of exchanging scholars between the United States and Poland. During World War II (1939-1945), he supervised a U.S. government program to settle Polish refugees in Mexico. These experiences gave Kelly considerable respect and sympathy for Poland.
Kelly was born on March 16, 1884, in Amesbury, Massachusetts. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College in 1906, he worked as a reporter for several newspapers. He received a master’s degree from Dartmouth in 1929 and joined the faculty as a professor of journalism, teaching from 1929 to 1954. He died on Jan. 3, 1960.
