Natalie Babbitt was born and grew up in Ohio, where she was raised by artist parents. She attended Smith College and studied to be an illustrator specializing in children's books. She married a classmate, Samuel Fisher Babbitt, and had three children (Christopher [born in 1956], Tom [1958], and Lucy [1960]) with him.
Samuel wrote a children's book entitled The Forty-Ninth Magician (published by Pantheon, 1966), and Natalie illustrated it. Shortly after, however, Samuel was appointed the head of Kirkland College, which left him little time for the artistic and literary ventures that he and Natalie had shared. Natalie decided to try writing children's books as well as illustrating them....
