# Helen Borten

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American author and illustrator (born 1930)

**Helen Borten** (b. 1930) is an American author and illustrator of [books for children](/source/Children's_literature), and an award-winning [broadcast journalist](/source/Journalist).

## Early life and education

Helen Borten was born in [Philadelphia](/source/Philadelphia), Pennsylvania.[1] Her father, a [jeweler](/source/Bench_jeweler) who had fallen into financial difficulty due to the [Great Depression](/source/Great_Depression), abandoned the family on the day of her birth. He re-entered her life when she was eight years old.[2]

Borten attended the [Philadelphia Museum College of Art](/source/University_of_the_Arts_(Philadelphia)) on a full scholarship, and intended to become a painter. She described her first few years after art school as "trudging [her] portfolio around NYC from art director to art director," which resulted in work as a freelance illustrator for book jackets, album covers, and greeting cards.[3]

## Children's books

Helen Borten began writing and illustrating books for children in the late 1950s and continued her work throughout the 1960s. Her first published book was *Little Big-Feather* (1956), written by Joseph Longstreth with illustrations by Borten.[4] *Little Big-Feather* was named one of the ten best illustrated books of 1956 by *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. Borten appeared on that list again in 1959 with *Do You See What I See?,* her first book as sole author and illustrator.[5] She went on to write a total of nine books of her own and illustrated, by her estimate, more than 20 others, including several from the [Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science](/source/Let's-Read-and-Find-Out_Science) books series.[3]

After falling [out of print](/source/Out_of_print), Borten's work received renewed attention in the 21st century. In 2016 Flying Eye Books, the children's imprint of [Nobrow Press](/source/Nobrow_Press), announced that it would be reprinting several of her books. Flying Eye's co-founder Sam Arthur described Borten's work as "groundbreaking" and in line with the publisher's mission to rediscover and republish striking examples of [vintage](/source/Vintage_(design)) children's book art. The books were prepared for reprint using original artwork held in the Children's Literature Research Collections at the [University of Minnesota](/source/University_of_Minnesota) libraries, as well as by making scans of original editions.[4]

The publisher Enchanted Lion also planned a series of reprints, beginning with *The Jungle* in 2017.[4] Borten called this wave of interest in republishing her decades-old work "an eerie kind of rebirth."[6]

Borten used the [monotype](/source/Monotyping) technique for her illustrations, working with [oil paint](/source/Oil_paint) on glass to make a transfer print.[4] Although working in the limited palette of [four-color separations](/source/Four-color_process), she used areas of overlap to mix colors and achieve a wider range.[6] She has cited the woodcuts of [Antonio Frasconi](/source/Antonio_Frasconi) as a major inspiration, as well as the work of [Leonard Baskin](/source/Leonard_Baskin).[3]

Her books focus on exploring perception and introducing aspects of science and the natural world to young readers.[7][6] The reprint of *Do You See What I See?* was praised in [Kirkus Reviews](/source/Kirkus_Reviews) for the way it "explores the relationship between the design elements of line, shape, and color and how they make readers feel."[6]

## Journalism

In 1989, Borten moved from children's literature to a career in broadcast journalism.[8] She began volunteering at the [public radio](/source/Public_broadcasting) station [WNYC](/source/WNYC) in New York City, where she worked with [Leonard Lopate](/source/Leonard_Lopate) on his weekly program *New York and Company.* She was quickly hired on as an assistant producer at WNYC, creating award-winning work for the station over the course of two years before losing her job during staff-wide layoffs.[2] Borten went freelance from then on, building a national career as a reporter and producer. Her work was presented by [National Public Radio](/source/NPR) (NPR), [Monitor Radio](/source/Monitor_Radio), and Crossroads.[8]

### A Sense of Place

Between 1994 and 2004 Borten created a sprawling documentary series titled *A Sense of Place,* which covered a wide variety of topics over its three seasons and 43 parts.[4] It was inspired by a six-week cross-country road trip she took with her son Laurence in 1987.[2][6]

The first 13 parts were broadcast nationally during the summer of 1997. The *Times* described Borten's approach to the series as "poking her tape recorder into odd and overlooked corners of the American landscape." She made episodes on the lives of [sideshow performers](/source/Sideshow), [agricultural workers](/source/Farmworkers_in_the_United_States), and [Akwesasne Mohawk ironworkers](/source/Mohawk_people#Mohawk_ironworkers_in_New_York), among many other subjects, and profiled larger-than-life figures like writer [Tom McGuane](/source/Thomas_McGuane), blues singer [Diamond Teeth Mary](/source/Diamond_Teeth_Mary), and composer [Conlon Nancarrow](/source/Conlon_Nancarrow).[2][9][10]

The series was edited by Borten herself, and was initially funded using $157,000 inches (400,000 cm) grant awards from the [Corporation for Public Broadcasting](/source/Corporation_for_Public_Broadcasting) (CPB) and the [National Endowment for the Arts](/source/National_Endowment_for_the_Arts).[2] A second round of grants from CPB and the [New York State Council on the Arts](/source/New_York_State_Council_on_the_Arts) put more than $230,000 toward expanding the series into further seasons.[9] Season 2 of *A Sense of Place* was distributed by [Public Radio International](/source/Public_Radio_International) (PRI) in 2001, followed by Season 3 in 2004.[11]

### Awards and honors

Helen Borten won a [Peabody Award](/source/Peabody_Awards) for her 1991 audio documentary *The Case Against Women: Sexism in the Courts*, produced for NPR's Horizons program while she was still on staff at WNYC.[7][2] Another of Borten's NPR Horizons pieces, *And Justice for All*, a documentary about tenant [evictions](/source/Eviction) in New York City, received a [duPont-Columbia](/source/Alfred_I._duPont%E2%80%93Columbia_University_Award) Silver Baton in 1991.[12] Borten said she was proud of receiving this award, adding "I feel good about giving a voice to people who have no voice and trying to show the less fortunate as the human beings they are."[8]

Borten has been honored twice by the [National Women's Political Caucus](/source/National_Women's_Political_Caucus) with their Exceptional Merit in Media award. She received an Honorable Mention from the [Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards](/source/Robert_F._Kennedy_Journalism_Award) in 2002.[11]

## Other writing

Helen Borten continued writing into her eighties. In 2016, she told [Publishers Weekly](/source/Publishers_Weekly) that she was working on a nonfiction book called *Dark Victories:* *A Murder Case, the Terrorist Scare and Lies in the Name of Justice.*[4] She also described working on an unpublished memoir.[6]

## Personal life

Helen Borten married shortly after finishing art school, and had two children before the marriage ended in divorce.[2] She moved to New York City and raised her sons, Peter and Laurence, as a single mother.[8]

Borten is a longtime resident of the [Upper West Side](/source/Upper_West_Side) of [Manhattan](/source/Manhattan), where she lived in the same apartment for more than 40 years.[4] She has expressed a great love for her neighborhood, saying, "there is no such thing as a boring walk in this neighborhood. I enjoy the electricity and the street life and the diversity".[8]

## Bibliography

- *Little Big-Feather.* By Helen Borten and Joseph Longstreth. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1956.

- *Do You See What I See?* By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1959.

- *The Moon Seems To Change*. By Helen Borten and Franklyn M. Branley. New York: Crowell, 1960.

- *Do You Hear What I Hear?* By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1960. Reprint: London: Flying Eye Books, 2016.

- *What Makes Day and Night*. By Helen Borten and Franklyn M. Branley. New York: Crowell, 1961.

- *Copycat*. By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1962. Reprint: London: Happy Books Press, 2021.

- *A Picture Has a Special Look*. By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1962.

- *Do You Move As I Do?* By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1963. Reprint: London: Flying Eye Books, 2017.

- *Halloween*. By Helen Borten. New York: Crowell, 1965.

- *The Jungle.* By Helen Borten. New York: Harcourt, Brace, & World, 1968. Reprint: New York: Enchanted Lion Books, 2018.

- *Do You Know What I Know?* By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1971.

- *Do You Go Where I Go?* By Helen Borten. New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1972.

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:0_1-0)** ["Collection: Helen Borten Papers | University of Minnesota Archival Collections Guides"](https://archives.lib.umn.edu/repositories/4/resources/6198). *archives.lib.umn.edu*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:5_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:5_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:5_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:5_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:5_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:5_2-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-:5_2-6) Blumenthal, Ralph (August 18, 1997). "Radio Documentaries Focus on Overlooked Corners". *New York Times*.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:4_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:4_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:4_3-2) ["Helen Borten: A chance chat with a famous Children's Illustrator"](https://fishinkblog.com/2012/09/12/helen-borten-a-chance-chat-with-a-famous-childrens-illustrator/). *Fish Ink*. 2012-09-12. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:2_4-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:2_4-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:2_4-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:2_4-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-:2_4-6) Burnett, Matia. ["Classic Children's Books by Helen Borten Return to Print"](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/70206-classic-children-s-books-by-helen-borten-return-to-print.html). *PublishersWeekly.com*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Inglis, Theo (2019). *Mid-century modern graphic design*. London, United Kingdom: Batsford. p. 219. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-84994-482-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-84994-482-3).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:6_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:6_6-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:6_6-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:6_6-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:6_6-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:6_6-5) Danielson, Julie (April 27, 2016). ["Seeing the World with Helen Borten"](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/seeing-world-helen-borten/). *Kirkus Reviews*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_7-1) Popova, Maria (2019-06-28). ["A Day in the Life of the Jungle: A Poetic Vintage Illustrated Ode to the Wilderness and the Glorious Diversity of Life on Earth"](https://www.themarginalian.org/2019/06/27/the-jungle-helen-borten/). *The Marginalian*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:3_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:3_8-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:3_8-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:3_8-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:3_8-4) Kansas, Dave (March 19, 1991). "Manhattan Profile / Helen Borten". *Newsday*. p. 28.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:7_9-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:7_9-1) Michaelson, Judith (1998-11-26). ["An American Mosaic"](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-nov-26-ca-47807-story.html). *Los Angeles Times*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["A Sense of Place: The Life and Work of Conlon Nancarrow"](https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185134/http://radiom.org/detail.php?omid=AM.1994.01.28). *radiOM.org*. Archived from [the original](http://radiom.org/detail.php?omid=AM.1994.01.28) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:8_11-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:8_11-1) ["PRX – Helen Borten"](https://exchange.prx.org/users/653-hebo). *PRX – Public Radio Exchange*. Retrieved 2023-07-10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Carter, Bill (January 30, 1991). "Series on U.S.S.R. Tops Broadcast Awards". *New York Times*. pp. C14.

## External links

- [Helen Borten Papers](https://archives.lib.umn.edu/repositories/4/resources/6198) at the University of Minnesota

- [*Hollister* audio documentary](https://www.thirdcoastfestival.org/feature/hollister) from *A Sense of Place* at Third Coast International Audio Festival

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Helen Borten](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Borten) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Borten?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.