Alice Bach (1942-2022) was a writer, scholar, and activist who grew up in Manhattan and in Princeton, NJ eventually attending boarding school. After graduating from Barnard with degrees in French and literature, she worked as an editor at Random House, and soon made a name for herself as a children’s and young adult writer, publishing more than 20 volumes. Her novel They’ll Never Make a Movie Starring Me was inspired by her boarding school experience. Her picture books include The Smartest Bear and His Brother Oliver, The Most Delicious Camping Trip Ever, and Millicent the Magnificent. Waiting for Johnny Miracle was named a Notable Book by the American Library Association.
She earned a Ph.D. in biblical studies in the 1980s, but continued to support herself through her writing. She became an assistant professor in religious studies at Stanford (1990-2001), the Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan Professor of Catholic Studies at Case Western Reserve University (2001-2012); and in retirement as an emerita professor, Bach dedicated herself to raising awareness of Palestinian causes. According to The New York Times, on Facebook she identified herself as an “Irritant to the Dirty Rotten System.”
