Edith Kellogg Dunton was an American author and literary critic best known for her contributions to early twentieth-century children's and young adult literature. Born in Rutland, Vermont, to Walter C. Dunton and Miriam E. Barrett, she pursued her higher education at Smith College, graduating in 1897. Dunton began her professional writing career shortly thereafter, launching her highly successful "Betty Wales" novel series in 1904 under the pseudonym Margaret Warde. Published by the Penn Publishing Company, the series quickly gained traction, though Dunton's true identity as the author was kept secret until late 1907. During this period of anonymity, she also established herself as a literary critic, writing under her own name for the Chicago-based magazine The Dial.\n\nThe "Betty Wales" books followed the adventures of their titular protagonist from her freshman year at the fictional Harding College through her graduation and subsequent life. The series became a cultural phenomenon of its era, so much so that it inspired a commercial line of "Betty Wales Dresses" in 1915, which packaged a free novel with every dress purchase. After concluding the series with a final volume in 1917, Dunton transitioned to writing her "Nancy Lee" series, continuing her focus on juvenile fiction. She lived in Vermont until her death in late 1944 and was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery in Rutland.
