Pulitzer Prize Biography Winner

Growing Up

by Russell Baker

Summary

Russell Baker, the New York Times columnist, recalls his Depression era boyhood in rural Virginia and Baltimore, raised by a determined widowed mother. The memoir centers on her drive to push her children toward something better and on Baker's slow path toward becoming a writer. Warm, funny, and clear eyed, it turns an ordinary American childhood into a moving family story.

Historical Context & Significance

This autobiography won Baker the Pulitzer for Biography, distinct from the Pulitzer for Commentary he had already received for his Times column.