J. Walker McSpadden (1874–1960) was an American author and editor. He is known for adapting classic stories and for writing opera synopsis books; his representative work, Robin Hood, is a retelling of the Robin Hood legend and is classified in the library under inspirational and personal-growth reading. Public information about him is limited, so biographical details are difficult to set out; judged by his works, however, his writing focuses on reshaping long-circulated classic narratives into versions suitable for general readers, with accessible language and clear plots that make traditional stories easier for young readers to approach and understand. Such adaptations were common in the twentieth-century English-speaking world and played a part in popularizing classic literature.
