Ludwig Bemelmans (1898-1962) was an Austrian-born American writer and illustrator of books for children and adults. He travelled from Austria to American in 1914, at the age of sixteen, and worked for three years in the dining halls of what he called, in his autobiographical works, the Hotel Splendide. In 1926, he quit working in hotels to become a full-time cartoonist and made frequent contributions to the New Yorker, Vogue and Town and Country. He is perhaps most well-known at the author of the beloved Madeline books.
'The charm of To the One I Love the Best lies in the peerless combination of author and subject' - Lucy Scholes 'One reads Bemelmans not as one reads a serious novelist but for the sheer momentary pleasure given by his evocation of atmosphere and mood' - Punch 'An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein' - Kirkus Reviews (1953)