Mary Nash (author)

For the Irish-Spanish academic, see Mary Nash (historian).

Mary Nash (July 7, 1924 – September 16, 2020) was a 20th-century American writer.^[1] She wrote the Mrs. Coverlet trilogy of children’s books, as well as a book about actress Susannah Maria Cibber.

Family life and education

Nash grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, attended Radcliffe College and earned a master's degree in creative writing from the University of Washington. She married a physician, Harry Nash, and they reared three children in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The children were named Norman, Holly and Tom; Tom, who was called "Toad" as a child, inspired the character in the Coverlet books.

Career

Nash began writing children's books after reading a number of disappointing ones to her own children.^[2]

Nash taught creative writing at the Radcliffe Institute.^[2]

Nash was "celebrated" for her children's trilogy While Mrs Coverlet Was Away (1958), Mrs. Coverlet's Magicians (1960), and Mrs Coverlet's Detectives.^[3]

Nash's book The Provoked Wife: the life and times of Susannah Cibber (1977) was an account of the life of the 18th-century actress Susannah Maria Cibber.^[3]