Patricia (Giulia Caulfield Kate) Rubinstein (1915-2003) Biography

(Antonia Forest)

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for SATA sketch: Born May 26, 1915, in London, England; died November 29, 2003, in Bournemouth, England. Author. Best known by her pen name, Antonia Forest, Rubinstein was the author of the popular children's books featuring the Marlow family. After studying journalism at London University, she worked as a clerk in the British Civil Service and was later employed at a library. Although Rubinstein aspired to write novels for adults, three attempts to do so were rejected by publishers, and so she wrote a juvenile book, hoping this would help her break into the market. This book, Autumn Term (1948), was the first to feature her popular characters, the Marlow children, eight siblings who spend their holidays productively by foiling the nefarious plot of various criminals. Twelve more adventures would follow this debut, including Peter's Room (1961), The Ready-made Family (1967), The Cricket Team (1974), and Run Away Home (1982). Rubinstein gained a wide following of loyal readers with these books, although many of the books have gone out of print since their original publication; the author's reluctance to grant interviews also facilitated her fade later into obscurity. Nevertheless, many critics of children's literature still consider Rubinstein to have been one of the best authors of juvenile fiction of the twentieth century.