Harlin Quist, publisher of children's books dead at 69

VIRGINIA (AP) -- A memorial gathering will be held May 27 for publisher Harlin Quist, who gained an ''enfant terrible'' reputation decades ago for tackling unusual subjects for children and illustrating them with the work of leading French artists.

Quist, who was born and grew up in Virginia, lived and worked in Paris. He died May 13 while visiting his niece in Minneapolis. Quist, who had had hip surgery earlier this year and a degenerative muscle disease, was 69.

He charmed and startled the world of children's books from the 1960s to the 1980s, publishing works that stimulated adults, as well as children. One of the best-known works was ''The Geranium on the Window Sill Just Died But Teacher You Went Right On,'' an international best seller.

Quist published children's books by Eugene Ionesco, Marguerite Duras and Richard Hughes. The French institute Alliance Francaise organized a show in New York in December called ''The Art of Harlin Quist Books.''