SIU Carbondale School of Education Dean Victoria Groves-Scott will give a presentation honoring Cricket Magazine founder Marianne Carus’ legacy on Friday, April 17, in Morris Library’s Hall of Presidents and Chancellors. (Photo by Russell Bailey)
April 14, 2026
SIU’s Morris Library to highlight Marianne Carus’ legacy, Cricket Magazine papers
CARBONDALE, Ill. — An exhibition celebrating Marianne Carus’ international advocacy for children’s learning and wellbeing — and the opening of her papers for public research — is Friday, April 17, in Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Morris Library.
The reception is from 4 to 6 p.m. in the library’s Hall of Presidents and Chancellors. Carus, who died in 2021 at 92 years old, founded Cricket Magazine with her husband, Blouke, in 1973. The children’s award-winning literary magazine helped to launch the imagination and inquisitiveness of millions of youths.
SIU Carbondale School of Education Dean Victoria Groves-Scott will give a presentation honoring Carus’ legacy. Blouke Carus will attend the exhibition opening and reception.
“As an elementary teacher in the early 1990s, I often saw children’s lack of enthusiasm for reading as a reflection of how little high-quality literature was available in many classrooms,” Groves-Scott said. “One exception was ‘Cricket Magazine,’ which consistently brought joy, imagination, and learning to my students. Marianne and Blouke Carus made that possible. I am honored to celebrate Marianne's legacy by the opening her papers for public research at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.”
The magazine, designed for children ages 9 to 14, has featured literary giants and daring illustrations designed to stimulate curiosity, imagination and a sense of wonder about history, art, science and world cultures. The magazine also features new stories and adaptations written by celebrated authors and interpreted by award-winning illustrators.
The impetus for Cricket Magazine began after the family returned from Germany with their young son. The couple was “dismayed” to find their son’s education was with easy readers, “so they began developing and publishing enriched readers for school children.”
Valuable research material
Anne Marie Hamilton-Brehm, associate dean of Library Affairs directing the Special Collections Research Center, said Carus’ papers will be valuable to researchers who are interested in 20th century educational reform and literacy advocacy worldwide. The papers will also be interesting to Cricket Magazine fans and admirers of Lloyd Alexander, who contributed to the magazine and was a close friend of Marianne and Blouke Carus for many years, Hamilton-Brehm said.
Marianne Carus traveled the world while directing Cricket Magazine “and became a leading force in international organizations aimed at children’s reading advocacy,” Hamilton-Brehm said. Carus’ personal papers “provide greater context and reveal the extent of her worldwide influence.”
The donation of Carus’ papers included additional records, books and correspondence related to Cricket, along with records of Carus’ development of Open Court Basic Readers and her service as a member of the International Board on Books for Young People. The donation features substantial correspondence with Alexander, a Cricket board member and Newbery Medal winning author.
In 2017, Carus and her family donated Cricket Media records to the Special Collections Research Center. The collection contains more than 600 boxes documenting the history of the children’s magazine, including publications, business records and correspondence with authors, illustrators, staff and readers.
Visitors are welcome to peruse the Cricket Magazine collection in the library’s Special Collections Research Center. For more information, visit the website, call 618/453-2516 or email speccoll@lib.siu.edu.