| _ |
 |
|
 |
|
Frances Hodgson
Burnett |
"I wonder if I could quite forget and begin to drop my h's and not
remember that Henry the Eighth had six wives." - A Little
Princess
Born November 24, 1849 in Manchester, Endland
Married Dr. L.M. Burnett of Washington, D.C. in 1873
Divorced in 1893
Married Mr. Stephen Townsend in 1900
Died October 29, 1924
Hodgson moved to Knoxville, Tenessee in 1865, from her home in England. Miss
Hodgson began writing for magazines soon after. Her first widely-known story
appeared in "Scribner's Magazine" in 1872.
Frances' reputation as a novelist was made with her story of Lancashire life,
That Lass o' Lowrie's. A number of other works followed, with Through One
Administration and A Lady of Quality as the most notable.
In 1886 she published the Little Lord Fauntleroy, which was dramatized during
her life and (now safely out of copyright) continues as videos and movies.
Her children's books, including the marvelous Secret Garden and Sara Crew
(later rewritten to become: A Little Princess) are what she is best known
for today, but her romance novels were very popular during her lifetime.
Reference Tools:
AITLC Guide to Frances Hodgson
Burnett
Links to electronic texts, as well as lesson plans for various
books
Classicreader.com:
Frances Hodgson Burnett
Very nice online texts of several works |
Little Lord Fauntleroy |
Buy
this book at Amazon.com |
Information on this book coming soon
top of page |
A Little Princess |
Buy
this book at Amazon.com |
Resources:
Film: The Little Princess
1939, starring Shirley Temple
Click here for info from
the Internet Movie Database
Film: A Little Princess
1995, starring Eleanor Bron
Click here for info from IMDB |
Calculo Review
Many of you probably know the rags-to-riches scenario so often rehashed
in so many ways. More often than not, it's the same old tale; pitious girl/boy
in a sad situation, suddenly thrust in the hands of a generous benefactor.
Just look at Annie.
'A Little Princess' however, is a little bit different, and therefore deserves
to be set apart from the other humdrum, run-of-the-mill tales. The story
begins as our heroine, 'Little Missus' Sara Crewe, is sent to boarding school
by her loving, and incredibly wealthy, father. She's treated, albeit
begrudginglin, as a princess by the greedy Headmistress of the
seminary. Sara quickly gains the respect and adoration of many of her
fellow students because she's so wonderfully intelligent, and because her
imagination is so intune, she can create fanciful stories for her friends,
and indeed for herself.
Life is pleasant for the Little Princess, until wham, the other shoe
drops in the inevitable rags-to-riches equation; hard times strike,
and they strike hard. Everyone's favorite 'Little Princess' is now
penniless; whatever can she do next?
The one thing that sets this tale apart from others like it is the heroine
herself. Sara Crewe is the epitome of selflessness, kindness, and, well,
childhood perfection. She's accepting of others, aware of their needs, and
does all she can to help her fellow beings, even when it means she may have
to go to bed hungry. Sara Crewe is a true heroine. Instead of lazing around
with her head in her hands, mumbling "woe is me," she took advantage
of her sad situation, and turned it around into a way to help
others. But most importantly, she did with a smile on her face.
There is so much to be learned from this book that it seems too important
not to read. Read it for the knowledge to be gained from its pages; read
it for the entertainment that comes from Sara's strange, yet enjoyable brain;
and read it for the sheer enjoyment of it. Then, you can curl of in
front of the tube and watch the Shirley Temple film based on the book.
But, by all means, read the book first!
-Megora McGonagall, Senior Calculo
top of page |
The Lost Prince |
Buy
this book at Amazon.com |
Information coming soon
top of page |
The Secret Garden |
Buy
This Book At Amazon.com |
Resources:
Lesson
Plan from Utah State University
Social Studies lesson that studies the Psychology of the characters,
Socio-linguistics, Geography, and History. Aimed at 4th and 5th grades.
University
of Richmond Lesson Idea
Basic idea for a classroom activity. |
Must-See Film: The Secret Garden
Directed by Agnieszka Holland
Starring Kate Mayberly, Heydon Prowse, Maggie Smith
Rating: G
Calculo quick-review: Cinematic heaven! It would be impossible to
find better child-actors. Everything about this film is superb; we highly
recommend it.
Click
here to purchase VHS from Amazon.com, or
here
for DVD. |
 |
|
Calculo Review
I've yet to read another amazing story that'd make you laugh and cry at the
same time. And, as the title of the book implies, The Secret Garden is very
well secret, but not only because it's hidden.
The hidden garden is revealed, of course, by the heroine of the book: an
orphan, who very rarely smiles. Inside the garden, however, she is exposed
to the true beauty of a land now filled with nothing but misery and despair.
Yet, she finds out that the only reason why that land is so sunk in wretchedness,
is because The Secret of the Garden is not revealed to anyone. She, a girl
who never experienced the true feeling of being happy, now fights her way
through the tough rules of the land, in order to open the secret -yet forbidden-
garden and spread the beauty and richness of it, and bring happiness back
to the place!
She, along with her cousin and another boy, work together to fulfill that
dream, will they be able to do it? What is the true 'Secret' of the Garden?
To find out you have to do nothing more than read this wonderful novel!
-Alex Granger, Calculo Extraordinaire
top of page |
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
_ |
|
_ |
