{{Short description|British author (1929–2023)}} {{Use British English|date=August 2014}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}} {{Infobox author | birth_name = Kathleen Wendy Herald | image = KM_Peyton_MBE.png | caption =in 2014 | birth_date = {{birth date|1929|8|2|df=y}} | birth_place = Birmingham, England | death_date = {{death date and age|2023|12|19|1929|8|2|df=y}} | death_place = | honorific_suffix = MBE | nationality = British | occupation = Author | genre = children's and young adults' fiction | awards = {{plainlist}} *Carnegie Medal (1969) *Guardian Children's Fiction Prize (1970) {{endplainlist}} | spouse = Mike Peyton (m. 1950) | education = {{plainlist}} *Kingston School of Art *Manchester Art School {{endplainlist}} | children = 2 daughters }}
'''Kathleen Wendy Herald Peyton''' (2 August 1929 – 19 December 2023), who wrote primarily as '''K. M. Peyton''', was a British author of fiction for children and young adults in the 1960s and 1970s.
Peyton wrote more than fifty novels in the including the ''Ruth Hollis'' series, the ''Pennington'' series, and the ''Flambards'' series, the latter about the Russell family which spanned the period before and after the First World War. For the ''Flambards'' series, Peyton won both the 1969 Carnegie Medal from the Library Association<ref name="medal1969" /> and the 1970 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, judged by a panel of British children's writers.<ref name="relaunch" /><ref name="awards" />{{efn|name=GCFP}} In 1979, the Flambards trilogy was adapted by Yorkshire Television<ref name="awards" /> as a 13-part TV series, ''Flambards'', starring Christine McKenna as the heroine Christina Parsons.
==Personal life and education== Kathleen Wendy Herald Peyton was born on 2 August 1929 in Birmingham, England.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Peyton, Kathleen Wendy (Herald) 1929- |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/children/scholarly-magazines/peyton-kathleen-wendy-herald-1929 |access-date=2023-06-02 |website=Encyclopedia.com |archive-date=2 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230602232742/https://www.encyclopedia.com/children/scholarly-magazines/peyton-kathleen-wendy-herald-1929 |url-status=live }}</ref> Peyton began writing when she was nine-years-old and was first published when she was fifteen.<ref name=":1" /> Peyton has stated that she "never decided to become a writer...[she] just was one."<ref>Peyton, i.</ref> Growing up in London, she could not own a horse, and instead developed an obsession with them—all her early books are about young girls who have ponies. In 1950, Peyton published her first novel ''Sabre, the Horse from the Sea'', illustrated by British artist Lionel Edwards.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |date=27 December 2023 |title=KM Peyton, doyenne of pony fiction who won the Carnegie Medal for her Flambards series – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/12/25/km-peyton-pony-fiction-novelist-carnegie-flambards/?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral |access-date=28 December 2023 |publisher=Telegraph |archive-date=28 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231228184917/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/12/25/km-peyton-pony-fiction-novelist-carnegie-flambards/?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral |url-status=live }}</ref>
Later, she attended Kingston Art School, and then Manchester Art School. It was there that she met another student, Mike Peyton, an ex-serviceman who had been a military artist and prisoner of war. He shared her love of walking in the Pennines.<ref name="welcome">Peyton, "Welcome".</ref> They married in 1950,<ref name=":0" /> and travelled around Europe. When they returned to Britain, Peyton completed a Teaching Diploma and taught for three years at Northampton High School.<ref name=":1" />
==Career== As a secondary school teacher, Peyton started writing young boys' adventure stories and sold them as serials to ''The Scout'', a magazine owned by The Scout Association.<ref name=":1" /> These stories were later published in full-length.<ref name="Peyton, iii">Peyton, iii.</ref> During this time, she began writing under the name K.M. Peyton—the 'M' represented her husband Mike who helped create the plots of her stories.<ref name="Peyton, iii" /> Peyton soon left her teaching career, in pursuit of becoming a full-time writer.<ref name=":1" />
After the birth of her two daughters, Peyton started writing fiction novels and returned to the topic of her "first love"—ponies, horses and equestrianism.<ref name=":1" /> These ideas are explored in the two book series: ''Flambards'' and ''Ruth Hollis''.<ref>Peyton, iv.</ref> Later in life, Peyton became involved in horse racing and used her own personal experiences of owning horses as further inspiration for her writing.<ref name=":1" />
In association with the Oxford University Press, Peyton's novels were illustrated by artist Victor G. Ambrus in the late 1960s.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pitts |first=Mike |last2=Eccleshare |first2=Julia |date=2021-03-10 |title=Victor Ambrus obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/mar/10/victor-ambrus-obituary |access-date=2024-05-21 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Peyton was an artist herself and self-illustrated a few of her own novels as well.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2024-01-01 |title=A Tribute to K M Peyton, 1929 - 2023 |url=http://www.lindanewbery.co.uk/2024/01/01/a-tribute-to-k-m-peyton-1929-2023/ |access-date=2024-05-21 |website=Linda Newbery Author |language=en-US |archive-date=21 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240521230154/https://www.lindanewbery.co.uk/2024/01/01/a-tribute-to-k-m-peyton-1929-2023/ |url-status=live }}</ref> During the 1970s, her best-selling series ''Flambards'' was published in multiple languages, such as Italian, German, Finnish, and Swedish.<ref>[http://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n79-086499 "Peyton, K. M."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422031840/http://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n79-086499/ |date=22 April 2016 }}. WorldCat. Retrieved 10 August 2012.</ref>
Writers who cite K.M. Peyton as an influence include Linda Newbery, whose young adult novel ''The Damage Done'' (2001, Scholastic) is dedicated "to Kathleen Peyton, who made me want to try."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Newbery |first=Linda |title=The Damage Done |publisher=Scholastic |year=2001 |isbn=9780439997997}}</ref>
== Death == Peyton died on 19 December 2023, at the age of 94.<ref>{{cite news |date=25 December 2023 |title=KM Peyton, doyenne of pony fiction who won the Carnegie Medal for her Flambards series – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/12/25/km-peyton-pony-fiction-novelist-carnegie-flambards/ |access-date=25 December 2023 |newspaper=The Telegraph |archive-date=25 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225135306/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/12/25/km-peyton-pony-fiction-novelist-carnegie-flambards/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Peyton had two daughters, Hilary and Veronica.<ref name=":0" />
==Honours and awards== Peyton won the Guardian Prize for the Flambards trilogy, and won the Carnegie Medal for its second book.{{efn|name=GCFP |1= The Guardian Prize is a once-in-a-lifetime award; previous winners are ineligible. Ordinarily it recognises one fiction book published during the preceding calendar year; exceptionally Peyton won for the Flambards trilogy completed in 1969.<ref name=relaunch/><ref name=awards/> For that publication year, the trilogy's second book won the Carnegie Medal and its third book was a commended runner-up.<ref name=medal1969/><ref name=ccsu/> Six authors not quite including Peyton have won the Carnegie Medal for their Guardian Prize-winning books. }} She was also a commended runner-up for the Carnegie Medal six times in eight years during the 1960s—one of the books was the first Flambards book, another was the third Flambards book in competition with the Medal-winning second. The others were ''Windfall'' (1962), ''The Maplin Bird'' (1964), ''The Plan for Birdmarsh'' (1965), and ''Thunder in the Sky'' (1966).<ref name=awards/><ref name=ccsu/>{{efn|name=HC}}
Peyton was awarded Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2014 New Year Honours for services to children's literature.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=60728|supp=y|page=17|date=31 December 2013}}</ref>
==Adaptations== The ''Flambards'' trilogy was adapted by Yorkshire Television in 1978. The TV miniseries, ''Flambards'', starring Christine McKenna as the heroine Christina Parsons, comprised 13 episodes.<ref name=pye/> The miniseries was broadcast in the UK in 1979, and eventually the US in 1980. <!--source is our TV series article-->
Peyton's ''The Right-Hand Man'' (1977), a historical novel featuring an English stagecoach driver, was adapted into a feature film. In 1985, it was shot in Australia and was later released in 1987.<!--source is our article-->
''A Pattern of Roses'' (1972) was adapted in 1983 as a TV film, introducing Helena Bonham Carter in her first screen role.<ref name=":2" />
''Who, Sir? Me, Sir?'' (1985) was adapted as a BBC TV series.<ref name="pye" />
==Works== The bibliography of Peyton's "pony books only" by Jane Badger Books includes all nineteen series books and many "other books" (‡) listed here.<ref name=badger>[http://www.janebadgerbooks.co.uk/ponybooksfile2/kmpeyton.html "K M Peyton (1929 – )"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130224033926/http://www.janebadgerbooks.co.uk/ponybooksfile2/kmpeyton.html |date=24 February 2013 }}. ''Pony Books''. Jane Badger Books. Retrieved 10 August 2012. Includes "K M Peyton Bibliography: pony books only" illustrated by thumbnail cover images of many editions.</ref>
===Flambards Series (1967–1981)=== * ''Flambards'' (Oxford, 1967), illustrated by Victor Ambrus * ''The Edge of the Cloud'' (Oxford, 1969), ill. Ambrus * ''Flambards in Summer'' (Oxford, 1969), ill. Ambrus * ''Flambards Divided'' (1981) Peyton's extension of the trilogy followed its television adaptation and reversed the original ending.<!--source is our series article-->
===Ruth Hollis Series (1968–1979)=== * ''Fly-by-Night'' (1968), self-illustrated * ''The Team'' (1975), self-ill. The Pennington series continues the story of Ruth Hollis in 1971.
===Pennington Series (1970–1979)=== * ''Pennington's Seventeenth Summer'' (1970), later as ''Pennington's Last Term'', self-ill. * ''The Beethoven Medal'' (1971), a.k.a. ''If I Ever Marry'', self-ill. * ''Pennington's Heir'' (1973), self-ill. * ''Marion's Angels'' (1979)
===Jonathan Meredith Series (1977–1984)=== * ''Prove Yourself a Hero'' (1977) * ''A Midsummer Night's Death'' (1978) * ''The Last Ditch'' (1984), also published as ''Free Rein''
See also the Ruth Hollis series: Jonathan Meredith is a minor character in ''The Team''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pyenet.co.nz/familytrees/peyton-k-m/ |title=Book Reviews by Jan Pye: K.M. Peyton's Young Adult Books |access-date=9 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014133211/http://www.pyenet.co.nz/familytrees/peyton-k-m/ |archive-date=14 October 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
===Swallow Series (1995–1997)=== * ''The Swallow Tale'' (1995) * ''Swallow Summer'' (1996) * ''Swallow the Star'' (1997)
===Minna Series (2007–2009)=== Set in Roman Britain.<ref name=badger/> * ''Minna's Quest'' (2007) * ''No Turning Back'' (2008) * ''Far From Home'' (2009)
===Other books=== * ''Grey Star, the Story of a Racehorse'' — at age nine, unpublished § * ''Sabre: The Horse from the Sea'' (A & C Black, 1948) ‡, as Kathleen Herald, illus. Lionel Edwards * ''The Mandrake: A Pony'' (Black, 1949) ‡, as Kathleen Herald, ill. Edwards * ''Crab the Roan'' (Black, 1953) ‡, as Kathleen Herald, ill. Peter Biegel
{{colbegin}} * ''North to Adventure'' (1959) * ''Stormcock Meets Trouble'' (1961) * ''The Hard Way Home'' (1962) * ''Windfall'' (1962), ill. Victor Ambrus; US title, ''Sea Fever'' * ''Brownsea Silver'' (1964) * ''The Maplin Bird'' (1964), ill. Ambrus * ''The Plan for Birdsmarsh'' (1965), ill. Ambrus * ''Thunder in the Sky'' (1966), ill. Ambrus * ''A Pattern of Roses'' (1972), self-ill. ‡ * ''The Right-Hand Man'' (1977) ‡, ill. Ambrus * ''Marion's Angels'' (1979), later as ''Falling Angels'', ill. Robert Mickelwright * ''Dear Fred'' (1981) ‡ — based on Fred Archer * ''Going Home'' (1982) * ''Who, Sir? Me, Sir?'' (1983) ‡ * ''The Last Ditch'' (1984) ‡ * ''Froggett's Revenge'' (1985) * ''The Sound of Distant Cheering'' (1986) ‡ * ''Downhill All the Way'' (1988) * ''Plain Jack'' (1988) ‡ * ''Darkling'' (1989) ‡ * ''Skylark'' (1989) * ''No Roses Round the Door'' (1990) ‡ * ''Poor Badger'' (1990) ‡ * ''The Boy Who Wasn't There'' (1992) * ''Late to Smile'' (1992) ‡ * ''Apple Won't Jump'' (1992) * ''The Wild Boy and Queen Moon'' (1993) ‡ * ''Snowfall'' (1994) * ''Mr Brown'' (1995) * ''Unquiet Spirits'' (1997) * ''The Pony That Went to Sea'' (1997) ‡ * ''Windy Webley'' (1997) ‡, ill. Nick Price – picture book * ''Danger Offshore'' (1998) * ''Firehead'' (1998) * ''The Paradise Pony'' (1999) ‡ * ''The Scruffy Pony'' (1999) ‡ * ''Blind Beauty'' (1999) ‡ * ''The Pied Piper'' (1999) * ''Horses'' (2000) ‡ – nonfiction <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/p/k-m-peyton/horses.htm |title=''Horses'' at Fantastic Fiction |access-date=12 June 2015 |archive-date=14 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150614171221/http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/p/k-m-peyton/horses.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> * ''Stealaway'' (2001) ‡ * ''Pony in the Dark'' (2001) ‡ * ''Small Gains'' (2003) ‡ * ''My Alice'' (2004) * ''Greater Gains'' (2005) ‡ * ''Blue Skies and Gunfire'' (2006) * ''Paradise House'' (2011) ‡ * ''All That Glitters'' (2014) ‡ {{colend}}
§ By age fifteen, Kathleen Herald had written "about ten more" novels that publishers rejected with "very nice letters".<ref name=welcome/>
‡ Jane Badger Books lists these titles among Peyton's "pony books only" – as well as all nineteen series books listed above.<ref name=badger/>
==Notes== {{notelist |35em |notes= {{efn|name=HC |1= Today there are usually eight books on the Carnegie shortlist. According to CCSU, some runners up through 2002 were Commended (from 1954) or Highly Commended (from 1966); the Highly Commended distinction became approximately annual in 1979. There were about 160 commendations of both kinds in 49 years including six for 1962, four 1964, six 1965, four 1966 (one highly commended), four 1967, and three 1969. }} }}
==References== {{reflist |25em |refs= <ref name=pye>[http://www.pyenet.co.nz/familytrees/peyton-k-m/ "Peyton K M"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014133211/http://www.pyenet.co.nz/familytrees/peyton-k-m/ |date=14 October 2008 }}. Jan Pye. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. April 2003. Retrieved 2013-06-07.<br> For LIS 304, Library Materials for Young Adults. Includes a "List of all K.M. Peyton's Young Adult Books", brief biography, secondary bibliography, and capsules of some books.</ref>
<ref name=awards>[http://kmpeyton.co.uk/awards "Awards"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130903023304/http://kmpeyton.co.uk/awards |date=3 September 2013 }}. ''K. M. Peyton: Author''. K. M. Peyton. Retrieved 7 June 2013.</ref> <ref name=medal1969>[http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/livingarchive/title.php?id=89 (Carnegie Winner 1969)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130129233908/http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/livingarchive/title.php?id=89 |date=29 January 2013 }}. Living Archive: Celebrating the Carnegie and Greenaway Winners. CILIP. Retrieved 3 August 2012.</ref> <ref name=ccsu>[http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/CarnegieMedal.htm "Carnegie Medal Award"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231442/http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/CarnegieMedal.htm |date=3 March 2016 }}. 2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library. Central Connecticut State University ('''CCSU'''). Retrieved 10 August 2012.</ref> <ref name=relaunch>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/12/guardianchildrensfictionprize2001.guardianchildrensfictionprize "Guardian children's fiction prize relaunched: Entry details and list of past winners"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327090634/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/12/guardianchildrensfictionprize2001.guardianchildrensfictionprize |date=27 March 2019 }}. ''guardian.co.uk'' 12 March 2001. Retrieved 3 August 2012.</ref>
}} ;Citations * "Introduction" by Kathleen Peyton, ''Fly-By-Night'', K M Peyton, Edinburgh: Fidra Books, 2007 * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090427130647/http://kmpeyton.co.uk/ Welcome to the web site of K M Peyton] (autobiographical home page). K M Peyton: Author. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
==External links== {{Portal|Children's literature |Horses }} * {{official website |http://kmpeyton.co.uk }} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20071006170816/http://www.fidrabooks.com/peyton.html KM Peyton] at Fidra Books, reprint publisher * {{LCAuth|n79086499|K. M. Peyton|45|ue}} * [https://lccn.loc.gov/n77004907 Mike Peyton] at Library of Congress, with 4 records * {{isfdb name|28726|K. M. Peyton}} (as joint pseudonym) * {{IMDb name|nm0679040}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peyton, K. M.}} Category:1929 births Category:2023 deaths Category:British children's writers Category:British writers of young adult literature Category:British historical novelists Category:Pony books Category:Carnegie Medal in Literature winners Category:Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners Category:Writers from Birmingham, West Midlands Category:Members of the Order of the British Empire