Sid Fleischman

Albert Sidney Fleischman (1920–2010), an American author of children's books known for their humor, vivid imagery, and historical settings, won the Newbery Medal for The Whipping Boy (1987) and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Humbug Mountain (1979). New York Times obituary. Before focusing on writing, he performed as a professional magician in vaudeville and wrote screenplays such as Blood Alley (1955) starring John Wayne, along with nonfiction on magic. His career highlights include U.S. nomination for the Hans Christian Andersen Award (1994) and authoring over a dozen children's novels, tall tales like the McBroom series, and his autobiography The Abracadabra Kid.