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Growing Up

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description Growing Up Overview

Growing Up is a 1982 memoir by American journalist and columnist Russell Baker. It recounts his childhood during the Great Depression, his family's moves from rural Virginia to New Jersey and Baltimore, and the influence of his widowed mother, Lucy Elizabeth Baker. The book combines family history with a social portrait of economic hardship and American life between the world wars, and it received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.

help Growing Up FAQ

What period of Russell Baker's life does Growing Up cover?

The memoir follows Baker from his childhood in rural Virginia through the Great Depression and his family's moves to New Jersey and Baltimore. It also reaches his early work as a journalist rather than stopping with his childhood.

Who is Lucy in Growing Up?

Lucy Elizabeth Baker is Russell Baker's mother and one of the memoir's dominant figures. After becoming widowed, she pushes her children toward education and economic security during the Depression.

Did Growing Up win a Pulitzer Prize?

Yes. Growing Up received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography, giving Baker a second Pulitzer after his earlier recognition for commentary.

Is Growing Up mainly funny or serious?

It combines comic family observation with poverty, bereavement, ambition, and the pressures of the Great Depression. Readers familiar with Baker's New York Times column will recognize the same restrained, self-mocking narrative voice.

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