Patrick Skene Catling

Patrick Skene Catling is a British children's book author and book reviewer best known for writing The Chocolate Touch in 1952.[1]

Contents

Background

Catling was born and schooled in London and was educated there and at Oberlin College in the United States. Catling served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a navigator and as a journalist at The Baltimore Sun[2] and The Manchester Guardian.

He has traveled extensively. His present home is in the Republic of Ireland.[1] He continues writing books, and writes reviews for The Spectator, The Telegraph, and other publications.[3][4]

Reception

His first publication of The Chocolate Touch in 1952 received enthusiastic responses from several reviewers. The New York Herald Tribune remarked, "it has already proved a hilarious success with children," and The Saturday Review said, "it is told with an engaging humor that boys and girls will instantly discover and approve." Catling has since written dozens of books, and has developed the popular The Chocolate Touch character John Midas into the children's book series: John Midas in the Dreamtime (1986), John Midas and the Vampires (1994), John Midas and the Radio Touch (1994), and John Midas and the Rock Star (1995). Of John Midas in the Dreamtime, School Library Journal wrote, "...children who have been dragged around tourist sights will relate to John's boredom".[5]

Partial bibliography

Journalism

References

  1. ^ a b "Patrick Skene Catling bio". HarperCollins website. http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/HarperChildrens/Kids/AuthorsAndIllustrators/ContributorDetail.aspx?CId=15980. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
  2. ^ Better Than Working by Patrick Skene Catling. New York: Macmillian. 1960. Also: The Baltimore Sun 1837-1987 by Harold A. Williams. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. 1987. p.335-336
  3. ^ "list of Patrick Skene Catling reviews". The Spectator. http://www.spectator.co.uk/search/author/?searchString=Patrick%20Skene%20Catling. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
  4. ^ "Reasons to be paranoid". The Daily Telegraph. July 3, 2008. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/fictionreviews/3554350/Reasons-to-be-paranoid.html. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
  5. ^ "review of John Midas of The Chocolate Touch". School Library Journal. http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:HeApbf7STAwJ:martsubhub.lib.wv.us:8000/kcweb/kcContent%3Fisbn%3D9780688061074%26type%3Dreview%26controlnumber%3D%2B%2B%2B86005392%26referedby%3Dtitlelist+%22John+Midas+in+the+Dreamtime%22,+review&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
  6. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Margot Apple (1979). The Chocolate Touch. Juvenile Fiction. HarperCollins. pp. 128. ISBN 0688321879, 9780688321871. http://books.google.com/books?id=aYRdZXQNle4C&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0. 
  7. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1960, 2004). Better Than Working. Journalists. Macmillan, Secker & Warburg. pp. 212, 356. ISBN 0436206242, 9780436206245. http://books.google.com/books?id=FN_nAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  8. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1986). John Midas in the Dreamtime. Juvenile Fiction. Morrow. pp. 119. ISBN 0688321879, 9780688321871. http://books.google.com/books?id=xQWpAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  9. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1969). The Exterminator. Bodley Head. pp. 252. ISBN 0370006550, 9780370006550. http://books.google.com/books?id=LglnAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  10. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1981). Jazz, Jazz, Jazz. Fiction. St Martins Press. pp. 320. ISBN 0312440731, 9780312440732. http://books.google.com/books?id=jo6_HAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  11. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1968). The Experiment. pp. 317. http://books.google.com/books?id=cEEcGQAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  12. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1974). Best Summer Job. Simon and Schuster. pp. 283. ISBN 0671217534, 9780671217532. http://books.google.com/books?id=mgb3AAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  13. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1963, 1965, 1970). Tourist Attraction. Macmillan, London, Sphere. pp. 185, 220, 175. ISBN 0722121741, 9780722121740. http://books.google.com/books?id=cMPLAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  14. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1969). Freddy Hill: The Story of a Modern Man of Pleasure. Bodley Head. pp. 220. ISBN 037001412X, 9780370014128. http://books.google.com/books?id=vB5MAgAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling. 
  15. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Mark Foreman (1993). Eskimo Surprise. Juvenile Fiction. Heinemann. pp. 42. ISBN 0434962651, 9780434962655. http://books.google.com/books?id=oNWsAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  16. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Philip Hopman (2000). Chocolate Magic. Girls. Mammoth. pp. 96. ISBN 0749742119, 9780749742119. http://books.google.com/books?id=A6RqAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  17. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1972). The Catalogue. HarperCollins. pp. 203. ISBN 0586035893, 9780586035894. http://books.google.com/books?id=kaU3AAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  18. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Tony Ross (1994, 1996). John Midas and the Vampires. Children's. Methuen, Egmont. pp. 111. ISBN 0416189172, 9780416189179. http://books.google.com/books?id=ecsqAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  19. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene (1994). John Midas and the Radio Touch. Mammoth. pp. 109. ISBN 0749717688, 9780749717681. http://books.google.com/books?id=f-M2AQAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  20. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Mark Foreman (1994). A Trunkful of Tricks. Heinemann. pp. 48. ISBN 043497823X, 9780434978236. http://books.google.com/books?id=rKjcAQAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=. 
  21. ^ Catling, Patrick Skene; Tony Ross (1995). John Midas and the Rock Star. Methuen. pp. 90. ISBN 041619124X, 9780416191240. http://books.google.com/books?id=lCSAAAAACAAJ&dq=Patrick+Skene+Catling&lr=.