From Peter Rabbit to Mrs. Tiggy-winkle, The Tailor of Gloucester to The Fairy Caravan, the works and characters of Beatrix Potter have bewitched children the world over for more than a century – and have never been out of print. This lively and curious book explores Potter's works via a series of short, interlinked essays that take their starting point from 26 key words and phrases from her children's books, her letters, journals and other writings. For students and enthusiasts alike, this engaging collection of essays offers fresh angles on familiar Potter themes and topics (A is for Animal; C is for Clothes) whilst others cast light on uncharted corners of her imagination (D is for Dancing; U is for Uncanny; G is for Ginnett's Circus). Entries like F is for Fairy, T is for Trees, S is for Seasons and R is for Rabbit Tobacco look at topics related to race, gender and the environment as other essays use key words to open up discussion of Potter's legacies and impact (L is for Lake District; P is for Peter Rabbit; H is for The Horn Book), including global reception, TV and film adaptations, and the development of Potter's beloved Lake District as a thriving tourist destination.
Paying close attention to the texts while also considering the broader contexts at play, this book broaches questions that offer intriguing ways into the works readers feel they know so well: how does a youthful encounter with a circus come to shape Potter's imagination? Why does eating and food feature so extensively in her writing and how does this relate to contemporary debates on diet and environmental crisis? Providing a close-up encounter with one of the most celebrated children's authors, this book invites new recognition of the ways in which Beatrix Potter's writing explores ideas which remain deeply relevant today, including the relationship between humans and the natural environments they inhabit.
A lively way into the works of beloved children's author Beatrix Potter, this book provides fresh understanding of her writing and its legacies via twenty six alphabetically arranged and interlinked essays covering her published work and private writings
Arvustused
There are already many books about Beatrix Potter and her famous Tales. This one surprised me with its delightfully fresh approach, its lively opinions, and its wealth of background knowledge, organized through connections created by the sequence of the alphabet. The result is multifaceted, dynamic, and unfailingly readable. * Margaret Mackey, Professor Emerita, School of Library and Information Studies, University of Alberta, Canada *
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A lively way into the works of beloved children's author Beatrix Potter, this book provides fresh understanding of her writing and its legacies via twenty six alphabetically arranged and interlinked essays covering her published work and private writings
Introduction
A is for Animal
B is for Beatrix
C is for Clothes
D is for Dancing
E is for Eating
F is for Fairy
G is for Ginnetts circus
H is for Horn Book
I is for Illness
J is for Journal
K is for Key
L is for Lake District
M is for Myriads of fairy fungi
N is for National Trust
O is for Over the hills and far away
P is for Peter Rabbit
Q is for Queerly
R is for Rabbit-tobacco
S is for Seasons
T is for Trees
U is for Uncanny
V is for Violence
W is for War
X is for Xarifa
Y is for Yellow
Z is for Zoo
Bibliography
Index
Penny Bradshaw is Associate Professor of English Literature at the University of Cumbria, UK where she is Programme Leader for MA Literature, Romanticism, and the English Lake District. She is also the theme lead for Cultural Landscapes within the Universitys research Centre for National Parks and Protected Areas, and the author of two critical editions, as well as several book chapters and journal articles, relating to the literary contexts of the Lake District.
