Growing Up
Baker's Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir is the clearest introduction to his life, voice, humor, and autobiographical writing.
Author guide
Russell Baker Books in Order
Russell Wayne Baker (1925–2019) was an American journalist, humorist, satirist, essayist, and memoirist. He wrote The New York Times “Observer” column from 1962 to 1998, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 1979. His memoir Growing Up won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1983. Baker also wrote political satire, essay collections, a novel, a children’s book, a musical play, and the memoir sequel The Good Times; he edited major humor and light-verse anthologies and hosted PBS’s Masterpiece Theatre from 1993 to 2004.
HumorSatireEssaysMemoirJournalismChildren's literature
Catalog record updated .
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
No Cause for Panic
This early collection presents Baker's political and social satire through his Observer columns.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Novels (3)
- Washington: City on the Potomac
graphic_nonfiction · 1958
- An American in Washington
nonfiction · 1961
Nonfiction (2)
- The Good Times
memoir · 1989
A “superb [and] often hilarious” memoir of a life in journalism, from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Growing Up (The New York Times Book Review). “Baker here recalls his years at the Baltimore Sun, where, on ‘starvation wages,’ he…
Essays and speeches (7)
- No Cause for Panic
essay_collection · 1964
- All Things Considered
essay_collection · 1965
- Poor Russell's Almanac
essay_collection · 1972
- So This Is Depravity
essay_collection · 1980
- The Rescue of Miss Yaskell and Other Pipe Dreams
essay_collection · 1983
- There's a Country in My Cellar
essay_collection · 1990
- Looking Back: Heroes, Rascals, and Other Icons of the American Imagination
essay_collection · 2002
Children's books (1)
- The Upside-Down Man
children's_book · 1977
Plays (1)
- Home Again, Home Again
play · 1979
Edited works (2)
- The Norton Book of Light Verse
edited_anthology · 1986
- Russell Baker's Book of American Humor
edited_anthology · 1993
Other (1)
- Baker's Dozen: A Sampling of Essays
chapbook · 1964
Frequently asked questions about Russell Baker
Who was Russell Baker?
Russell Baker (1925–2019) was an American journalist, humorist, satirist, essayist, and memoirist. He became widely known for his newspaper commentary and later hosted PBS’s Masterpiece Theatre.
Sources: pulitzer.org (opens in a new tab)pbs.org (opens in a new tab)
What was Russell Baker best known for?
He was best known for his long-running satirical Observer column in The New York Times, written from 1962 to 1998. His career also included nearly 5,000 commentaries and work as a political correspondent.
Sources: theatlantic.com (opens in a new tab)pbs.org (opens in a new tab)
How did Russell Baker’s early life influence his writing?
Baker’s childhood in rural Virginia, Newark, and Baltimore during the Great Depression shaped his memoir writing and sense of humor. Those experiences, including family hardship and tensions, became central to Growing Up.
Sources: pulitzer.org (opens in a new tab)penguinrandomhouse.com (opens in a new tab)
Which awards did Russell Baker win?
Baker won the 1979 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for his work in The New York Times and the 1983 Pulitzer Prize in Biography for Growing Up.
Sources: pulitzer.org (opens in a new tab)pulitzer.org (opens in a new tab)
What is Russell Baker’s legacy?
Baker is remembered for combining political observation, satire, and self-deprecating humor in widely read newspaper commentary. He also broadened his public reach through PBS’s Masterpiece Theatre and became one of the first American writers to win Pulitzer Prizes in both Journalism and Letters.
Sources: pulitzer.org (opens in a new tab)pbs.org (opens in a new tab)