Pierre Auguste Renoir, Impressionist painter, b. 1841.

Cynthia Voigt, Newbery Award winning children’s author, b.1942. Author of Homecoming, Dicey’s Song, The Runner, and Seventeen Against the Dealer (among others). Voigt’s characters are so vivid and enjoyable to get to know. Dicey is an independent young lady, a little bit prickly, but fiercely committed to her two younger brothers and her younger sister. James, one of the brothers, is a genius, has great ideas, but he’s not always tuned in to what’s going on in the real world. Maybeth is just the opposite; she has a lot of difficulty learning, but she’s quite artistic and emotionally intelligent. Sammy, the youngest Tillerman, is all boy, somewhat belligerent, but good at heart. These four children come to live with their grandmother, an eccentric character in her own right. And they make friends with other people who have their own quirks and attitudes. These are great books.