author
Martha Evans Martin
d. 1925
Best remembered for bringing astronomy down to earth for young readers, this Indiana-born writer and editor turned the night sky into something welcoming and full of story. Her most noted books, including The Friendly Stars and The Ways of the Planets, helped popularize science in the early 1900s.
1 Audiobook
The Ways of the Planets
by Martha Evans Martin
About the author
Born in Terre Haute, Indiana, Martha Evans Martin studied at DePauw University and worked first as a schoolteacher and later as a court reporter. She moved into journalism and became associate editor of the Richmond Daily Telegram, which she and her husband, Edwin Campbell Martin, reportedly helped publish for about a decade.
After moving to New York City around 1890, she wrote popular science pieces for newspapers and magazines and was associated with publications including McClure’s and Demorest’s. She is most closely linked with astronomy writing for general readers, especially young people.
Her best-known books are The Friendly Stars (1907) and The Ways of the Planets (1912), both written in a clear, inviting style that made the basics of the sky feel approachable. Sources also indicate that a memorial for her was held at Pen and Brush in April 1925, and reference works list her death in 1925.