Helen Brodie Cowan Bannerman was a Scottish author of children's books. She is best known for her first book, Little Black Sambo (1899).
Bannerman was born at 35 Royal Terrace Edinburgh. She was the eldest daughter and fourth child of seven children of Robert Boog Watson (1823-1910), minister of the Free Church of Scotland, and his wife Janet (1831-1912), daughter of Helen Brodie and the papermaker and philanthropist Alexander Cowan.
Because women were not admitted into British universities, she sat external examinations set by the University of St. Andrews, attaining the qualification of Lady Literate in Arts (LLA) in 1887. She then married William Burney Bannerman, a physician and an officer in the Indian Medical Service (IMS).
The couple then moved to India, taking up residence in Madras. During their 30 years in India they had four children. She died in Edinburgh in 1946 of cerebral thrombosis.
The illustrations and settings of Bannerman's books are considered by many to be racist depictions of Black people and their cultures. In 1976, Platt & Munk Publishers issued a version of Little Black Sambo with the parents' names identifiably Indian, and the picturesque illustrations altered to indicate decidedly Indian clothing. In a new version co-authored by Fred Marcellino the book was called The Story of Little Babaji, with the names of the main characters changed.
(source: wikipedia)