George Selden was an American children's writer best known for his book The Cricket in Times Square, which won the 1961 Newbery Honor and became a timeless children's classic.

Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Selden received his B.A. from Yale University, where he was a member of the Elizabethan Club and contributed to the literary magazine. He further enriched his education by spending three summer sessions at Columbia University and studying for a year in Rome on a Fulbright Scholarship.

Selden often recounted how he conceived the idea for The Cricket in Times Square: "One night I was coming home on the subway, and I did hear a cricket chirp in the Times Square subway station. The story formed in my mind within minutes. An author is very thankful for minutes like those, although they happen all too infrequently."