Hal Borland
Harold "Hal" Glen Borland (May 14, 1900 – February 22, 1978) was an American writer, journalist and naturalist. In addition to writing many non-fiction and fiction books about the outdoors, he was a staff writer and editorialist for The New York Times.[1]
Early life and education
Borland was born on the plains in
Career
Borland started writing as a journalist for publications such as The
In 1937 Borland began writing for The New York Times, first as a staff writer for The New York Times Sunday Magazine (1937-1943) and then in 1942 as an editorial writer for The New York Sunday Times, a position he held until his death in 1978. While at The Times, Borland began writing about his experience as an outdoorsman in a series of editorials that were later compiled into two books. He wrote similar pieces for the Berkshire Eagle (1958-1978), Pittsburgh Press (1966-1978), and Torrington Register (1971-1978).
Borland also wrote short stories, poetry, novels (including westerns under the pseudonym Ward West), biographical novels, non-fiction, articles for a variety of magazines, and one play.
His 1963 novel When the Legends Die was adapted for film in 1972.
Works
- Heaps of Gold (1922), a collection of verse
- Rocky Mountain Tipi Tails (1924), a young adult novel.
- Valor, the Story of a Dog (1934)
- Winter poetry (1935)
- What is America? : or, America is Americans, a patriotic playlet in one act (1942)
- Halfway to Timberline (1953)
- The Amulet (1957)
- High, Wide, and Lonesome (1956, 1990), Hal's experience on the homestead south of Brush, Colorado.
- The Seventh Winter (1960)
- The Dog Who Came to Stay (1961), a must read for any dog lover
- An American Year: Country Life and Landscapes Through the Seasons (1946, 1957)
- Beyond Your Doorstep: A Handbook to the Country (1962)
- Ute Indianto live apart from white society, has become a young adult classic.
- How to Write and Sell Non-Fiction (1956)
- This Hill, This Valley (1957)
- The Youngest Shepherd : a tale of the Nativity (1962)
- Sundial of the Seasons: A Selection of Outdoor Editorials from the New York Times (1964)
- King of Squaw Mountain (1964)
- Sundial of the Seasons (1964)
- The History of Wildlife in America (1975, 1988) a publication of the National Wildlife Federation
- Hal Borland's Book of Days (1976)
- Our natural world : the land and wildlife of America as seen and described by writers since the country's discovery (Ed., 1969)
- Hal Borland's Twelve moons of the year : his own selections from his nature editorials in The New York times (1979, 1985)
- Countryman: A Summary of Belief (1965)
- Hill Country Harvest (1967)
- Homeland: A Report from the Country (1969)
- Country Editor's Boy (1970),[2] growing up in Flagler, Colorado.
- Borland Country childhood memoirs (1971)
- Penny; the story of a free-soul basset hound (1972)
- This World of Wonder (1973)
- Sunrise (1975)
- A Countryman's Woods (1983)
- A Place to Begin: The New England Experience (1976) Sierra Club
- The Golden Circle: A Book of Months (1977)
- A Countryman's Flowers gardening and botany (1981)
- Plants of Christmas (1987)
Awards and honors
- Meeman Award for Conservation Writing (1966)
- John Burroughs Medal for Distinguished Nature Writing (1968)
- Interpretive Naturalists Award (1973)
Personal life
Borland was married twice, to Helen Alice
In 1952, Borland and wife Barbara moved to a 100-acre farm in Connecticut, where they lived and worked until his death in 1978 at the age of 77 from emphysema.[3]
References
External links
- Hal and Barbara Borland Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
- Hal Borland Room, Flagler, CO