Patricia “Patty” MacLachla was an American children’s author best known for the Newbery Medal-winning novel Sarah, Plain and Tall, which was later turned into a television film starring Glenn Close and Christopher Walken.

After her children started school, MacLachlan began writing at the age of 35. MacLachlan later collaborated on many picture books with her daughter, Emily MacLachlan Charest.

She served on the board of the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance, a non-profit organization that promotes literacy, books, and libraries. When Mrs MacLachlan’s children were in school, she had more time to jot down her experiences and observations and transform them into stories.

Her half-century career included more than 60 children’s books. She deplored children’s novels of the moralizing variety, those sledgehammers of literature wielded by grown-ups aiming to pound ideas into young heads.

What Killed Patricia MacLachlan? How Did Patricia MacLachlan Die?

Millions of young readers knew her as the author of “Sarah, Plain and Tall,” a novel about two motherless farm children, and she died on March 31 at her home in Williamsburg, Massachusetts.

She died at the age of 84. John MacLachlan, her son, confirmed her death but did not give a reason. As a result, the reason for her death has yet to be revealed.