Dr. Miriam A. Marecek, 80, a professor of early childhood education, known as the "Children's Book Lady," passed away peacefully on October 23, 2020 with her children and caregivers by her side. She battled Multiple Sclerosis for twenty years; though it had taken away her mobility, she never lost her passion for connecting children to books. Miriam was born during World War II in Prague, Czechoslovakia. She was the middle child of the late Maria Marecek, an opera singer, linguist, and teacher. Her father, the late Karel Marecek was a journalist, scholar, and diplomat. He represented the Czech government and greeted General Patton and the American soldiers in Pilsen. In 1948, as Soviet domination of Czechoslovakia was established, culminating in the "Czech coup d'etat" and the death, probably by murder of Jan Masaryk. Her father was in danger as a political dissident, and American Ambassador Laurence Steinhardt helped the family escape to the United States. Arriving in the United States as a "displaced person" at age 8, Miriam knew just a few words of English. People like her brothers sixth grade teacher in Atlantic City, Ms. Florence McHale, and her high school home economics teacher, Mrs. Willis had a profound impact on her life and they influenced her creative pursuits and educational ambitions, to teach and to educate teachers. Miriam graduated from Earlham college in Richmond, IN, and received her PHD from Columbia University, Teachers College. As a young teacher in Port Washington, her imaginative classroom was known as "Miss Marecek's Magic Room". She loved to inspire and encourage her students. She believed in the power of teachers to transform the lives of students. She was a Professor of Education at Boston University, Harvard, and Tufts University. She worked with school systems, school administrators, parents, teachers, caregivers, and pediatricians across the country and internationally. She served as president of Children's Literature for the International Reading Association. She consulted with film and television productions including, "A Likely Story", "Words that Cook" and several of Weston Woods' adapted childrens book films. Despite persistent life challenges, Miriam kept the optimism and determination she acquired as an American immigrant. Even when she was confined to a wheelchair, she insisted on staying in her own home, which was filled with childrens books, childrens artwork, hand-written letters, and photographs. She read aloud nightly to her grandchildren over FaceTime. She valued her long-lasting friendships with family, classmates, colleagues, students, caregivers, and neighbors. She continued to take joy in receiving and reviewing children's books, and corresponding with authors, illustrators, animators, and educators like Katherine Patterson, Joy Cowley, Uri Shulevitz, Gene Deitch, and Perri Klass. Miriam is survived by her daughter, Alenka Zeman, MD, of Concord, MA; two sons, Jan Zeman of Burlingame, CA, and Tom Zeman of Boston MA; and five grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to George School, where she attended high school. Miriam was so grateful for her classmates who kept in touch with her and supported her through illness.