Lee Bennett Hopkins

Lee Bennett Hopkins (1938–2019) was an American educator, children’s poet, and prolific anthologist of poetry for young people, recognized by Guinness World Records as “the world’s most prolific anthologist of poetry for children.” Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, he studied at Newark State Teachers College (now Kean University) and earned a master’s degree from Bank Street College of Education, later also completing a professional diploma in Educational Supervision and Administration from Hunter College. After working as an elementary school teacher and classroom resource coordinator, he became an editor at Scholastic and, from the mid-1970s, a full-time writer and anthologist, ultimately compiling more than 100–120 poetry anthologies for children and authoring numerous books of his own poetry.

Hopkins’s work includes both original collections—such as Been to Yesterdays: Poems of a Life, Alphathoughts: Alphabet Poems, and City I Love—and themed anthologies like I Remember: Poems and Pictures of Heritage, an illustrated collection of poems highlighting childhood memories and cultural heritage. His many honors include the Christopher Award, the National Council of Teachers of English Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children, the Regina Medal, the Florida Libraries’ Lifetime Achievement Award, the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion,