Librarian Susan Hadden Woodcock Dies at 60

By Luann Toth -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2006

Susan Hadden Woodcock, who spent the last 10 years as cochair of School Library Journal’s Adult Books for High School Students committee, died of cancer at her home in Burke, VA, on December 14, 2005. She was 60.

Woodcock worked for the Fairfax County Library System since 1987 and was a strong advocate of audiobooks. She, along with her friend and colleague, Jackie Gropman, met with publishers, requested review materials, and organized a diverse group of librarians to discuss and review books for SLJ’s Adult Books for High School Students column. She also served as president of the Virginia Chapter of Metropolitan Area Young Adult Literature Interest Group since its inception in 2003.

Born in Columbus, OH, Woodcock received a bachelor’s degree from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts in 1966 and a master’s degree in library science from Southern Connecticut State University in the early 1970s. She is survived by her husband of 35 years, Ted Woodcock, and two daughters, Rebecca and Elizabeth.

“Susan was a book lover and a librarian extraordinaire and took enormous satisfaction in bringing young people and quality literature together,” says Trev Jones, SLJ’s book review editor. “We shall miss her professional contributions, her great sense of humor, and her generous spirit.”