Brian Alderson is a respected and influential author, editor, translator, critic, scholar, collector and curator of children’s books.

As well as writing, editing and translating a number of children’s books, Dr. Alderson has written several critical works on the history of children’s books in Britain and beyond.

His decades as children’s books editor of The Times (1967 – 1996) helped to establish children's literature’s place at the centre of the nation’s cultural life. 

As a writer and speaker, and as the founder of the Children’s Books History Society (1969) and editor of over 100 of its Newsletters, including over 50 articles on unusual children's books, he has done much to establish the scholarly study of children’s literature both in Britain and around the world. Brian has also served for many years as the President of The Beatrix Potter Society. In 2010 he was elected an Honorary Member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association.

Dr. Alderson is a distinguished collector of children’s books and has curated a number of major public exhibitions, from the British Library in London to the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York. He has also held Visiting Fellowships in both the UK and USA. 

In 2016, Brian Alderson was awarded an honorary degree by Newcastle University, recognising his work on the history of children's books.