author
Lida B. (Lida Brown) McMurry
1853–1942
A teacher and children's writer with a gift for making big ideas simple, she helped shape reading lessons for young students and retold classic fables in a clear, lively way. Her work grew out of a lifelong commitment to education, moral learning, and practical classroom teaching.
1 Audiobook
Fifty Famous Fables
by Lida B. (Lida Brown) McMurry
About the author
Born in New York in 1853 and raised in Illinois, she became part of a family deeply involved in education. She graduated from Illinois State Normal University in 1874 and went on to teach in public schools before building a longer career as an educator and author.
She is especially remembered for writing and co-writing school readers, language textbooks, and children's books, including Fifty Famous Fables. Her work was closely tied to the Herbartian movement in education, which emphasized careful teaching, character formation, and connecting lessons to a child's experience.
Beyond the classroom and the page, she was also active in women's and educational organizations, including early YWCA work. She died in 1942, leaving behind books that reflect both her literary charm and her belief that reading should help children grow in judgment as well as skill.