Which Actress Has a Bookish Baby?

Since April 2 is International Children's Book Day, in the April 2007 issue of American Baby we asked you which actress celebrated her love of children's books by naming her baby after the title character in eight Beverly Cleary novels: Reese Witherspoon, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, or Liv Tyler?

ANSWER! Maggie Gyllenhaal, born Maggie Ruth Gyllenhaal, has a little girl named Ramona, as in Ramona Quimby -- the title character in beloved books such as Ramona the Brave, Ramona the Pest, and more. Despite her penchant for literature (it was one of her majors when she attended Columbia University), Gyllenhaal comes from a cinema-centric family. She is the daughter of a director and a screenwriter and her brother is actor Jake Gyllenhaal, with whom she co-starred in Donnie Darko. Gyllenhaal has also appeared in Monster House, Stranger Than Fiction, Secretary, and Sherrybaby. The latter two garnered her Golden Globe nominations. Gyllenhaal is engaged to fellow actor Peter Sarsgaard and the couple welcomed Ramona on October 3, 2006.

Reese Witherspoon, born Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon, was a literature major at Stanford University before pursuing acting. Nine must be Witherspoon's lucky number because in 1999 she starred in a breakthrough role in Election, married her Cruel Intentions costar Ryan Phillippe, and gave birth to daughter Ava Elizabeth (on 9/9/99). She went on to star in Legally Blonde and then Walk the Line, which won her an Academy Award for her portrayal of June Carter Cash. On October 23, 2003, Witherspoon and Phillippe (now filing for divorce) welcomed son Deacon Reese (10/23/03: 1+0+2+3+0+3=9, by the way). This year Witherspoon will star in Penelope, a fairy tale film from her production company.

Liv Tyler, as the daughter of Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, has music in her blood -- which may explain why it's so prevalent in her life. She started her career as a model, but then went on to appear in Aerosmith videos -- then music-themed movies, like Empire Records and That Thing You Do! Tyler is married to Royston Langdon of the British band Spacehog and they welcomed their son Milo William Langdon on December 14, 2004. Tyler went epic with her acting career when she played Arwen in the Lord of the Rings trilogy based on the fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Michelle Williams, born Michelle Ingrid Williams, became a household name when she played Jen Lindley on the teen TV drama Dawson's Creek. While working on the hit show, she took time to act in independent films. Appearances in films like The Station Agent, changed her reputation from TV actress to respected film star. Williams added "mom" to her credits when she and fiance Heath Ledger welcomed daughter Matilda Rose Ledger on October 28, 2005. This year she acts alongside Ledger again -- they were in Brokeback Mountain together -- in the Bob Dylan biopic I'm Not There. She will also appear in the film adaptation of the beloved children's book Where the Wild Things Are.

Originally published on AmericanBaby.com, March 2007.