Canadian writer Budge Wilson, who was best known as a children's author but wrote more than 30 books for all ages, died March 19 at age 93. A mentor to many Nova Scotia writers, and good friend of fellow Canadian literary icon Margaret Laurence, Wilson was a member of the Order of Canada and Order of Nova Scotia. Her books include The Leaving, an award-winning collection of short stories; The Best/Worst Christmas Present; Lorinda's Diary and Thirteen Never Changes. After Swissair, Wilson's first book of poetry, was about the Swissair crash of 1998, and children's author Jill MacLean said the collection was very important to Wilson, whose former home overlooked the waters where the plane went down.
One of her recent works, Before Green Gables, is a prequel to L.M. Montgomery's famous book series. The L.M. Montgomery Institute tweeted: "Today we remember our friend, Budge Wilson, who died last week. Wilson's novel, Before Green Gables, was a big part of the 2008 Biennial Conference, 100 Years of Anne.... She will be missed." The Japanese translation of Wilson's book was titled Konnichiwa Anne, and in 2009 it was adapted into a 39-episode anime series called Kon'nichiwa Anne: Before Green Gables. Before Green Gables is available in paperback from Berkley ($16).