Robert Middendorf and Rodger Tarr collections of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

This collection includes the materials of Robert D. Middendorf and Rodger L. Tarr that related to author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896-1953) was an American author of young adult novels. A Florida native, she often used her rural surroundings and upbringing to lend reality to her fiction. Rawlings was a prolific writer, her body of work including novels, short stories, and poetry, along with consultation on films inspired by her work.

The Middendorf portion of the collection focuses on the works of Rawlings, with materials relating to both Rawlings’s manuscripts and the films based on her works. This includes set photos and promotional materials from the films.

The Tarr portion of the collection is primarily focused on correspondence to and from Rawlings. Tarr was the editor of a book of correspondence that focused exclusively on the relationship Rawlings had with her editor, Max Perkins. The collection includes an uncorrected from of the book, titled Max and Marjorie and published in 1999. The bulk of the collection contains letters Rawlings received from her readers. Of particular note are those letters from members of the U.S. Military serving during World War II, especially those from Caleb Milne, whose letters to his own mother were published as I Dream of the Day.