Norah Montgomerie

Norah Montgomerie (6 April 1909 – 19 February 1998), born Norah Mary Shargool, was a British folklorist, illustrator and writer.

Norah Montgomerie
Born
Norah Mary Shargool

6 April 1909
West Dulwich, London
Died19 February 1998
Edinburgh
NationalityBritish
OccupationFolklorist, illustrator, writer

Early life

Norah Shargool was born in West Dulwich, London,[1] the daughter of Letitia Collins, a seamstress, and John Shargool, an accountant.[2] She was educated at a boarding school in Folkstone and then at art school in London. Montgomerie told a newspaper that she learned songs, stories and rhymes from her great-grandmother, and carried her foremother's advice, "Don't give children paps, give them something they can chew!" into her own work.[3]

Career

Norah Montgomerie moved to Dundee where she worked for the Scottish publishing company DC Thomson. She also worked in London as a magazine illustrator. In her work she promoted Scots language, traditional tales and poetry in general. With her husband, Montgomerie collected Scottish folk songs and nursery rhymes, and edited and illustrated collections of Scottish folk songs and rhymes for children,[4] including these titles:

  • Sandy Candy and other Scottish Nursery Rhymes (1948)[5]
  • The Well at the World's End (1956)[6]
  • The Hogarth book of Scottish nursery rhymes (1964)[7]
  • From Time to Time: Selected Poems (1985)

In addition, she wrote and illustrated her own books, including The Merry Little Fox and Other Animal Tales (1959),[8] Twenty-five Fables (1962), To Read and to Tell (1964), [2] This Little Pig Went to Market: Play rhymes for infants and young children (1966, with illustrator Margery Gill),[9] and One, Two, Three: A Little Book of Counting Rhymes (1967).[10] In 2009, a collection of her manuscripts titled The Fantastical Feats of Finn MacCoul[11] was published by her grandson Julian Brooks.[12]

Personal life

In 1934, Norah Shargool married William Montgomerie, a Scottish poet and folklorist.[13] They had two children, Dian and Ian. Norah Montgomerie was widowed in 1994, and died in 1998, aged 78 years, in Edinburgh.[2]

Reference
  1. "Norah Montgomerie". Modernist Archives Publishing Project. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  2. Ewan, Elizabeth L.; Innes, Sue; Reynolds, Sian; Pipes, Rose (2007-06-27). Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women. Edinburgh University Press. p. 270. ISBN 978-0-7486-2660-1.
  3. "For Young Readers "Give Them Something They Can Chew"". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1963-04-06. p. 20. Retrieved 2020-05-14 – via Trove.
  4. Royle, Trevor (1984), "I", The Macmillan Companion to Scottish Literature, Macmillan Education UK, pp. 150–151, doi:10.1007/978-1-349-07587-4_9, ISBN 9780333378717
  5. Montgomerie, Norah; Montgomerie, William (1948). Sandy Candy: And Other Scottish Nursery Rhymes. Hogarth Press.
  6. Montgomerie, Norah; Montgomerie, William (1993). The Well at the World's End: Folk Tales of Scotland. Canongate Silkies. ISBN 978-0-86241-462-7.
  7. Montgomerie, Norah (1964). The Hogarth Book of Scottish Nursery Rhymes. Hogarth Press. ISBN 978-0-7012-0003-9.
  8. Montgomerie, Norah (1964). The merry little fox, and other animal stories. London ; New York : Abelard-Schuman.
  9. Montgomerie, Norah; Gill, Margery (1966). This little pig went to market : play rhymes for infants and young children. London : Bodley Head. ISBN 978-0-370-01079-3.
  10. Montgomerie, Norah; Montgomerie, illus.), Nora (1967). One, two, three : a little book of counting rhymes. Abelard-Schuman. ISBN 978-0-200-71488-4.
  11. Montgomerie, Norah (2009). The Fantastical Feats of Finn MacCoul. Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-84158-817-9.
  12. Dunnigan, Sarah M. (2013). The Edinburgh companion to Scottish traditional literatures. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0748645398. OCLC 994773729.
  13. "William Montgomerie | Poet". Scottish Poetry Library. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
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