Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Railway Children
The Railway Children
The Railway Children
Ebook264 pages3 hours

The Railway Children

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars

()

Read preview

About this ebook

The Railway Children is a children's book by Edith Nesbit, originally serialised in The London Magazine during 1905 and first published in book form in 1906. It has been adapted for the screen several times, of which the 1970 film version is the best known. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography credits Oswald Barron, who had a deep affection for Nesbit, with having provided the plot. The setting is thought to be inspired by Edith's walks to Chelsfield railway station close to where she lived, and her observance of the construction of the railway cutting and tunnel between Chelsfield and Knockholt. The story concerns a family who move from London to "The Three Chimneys", a house near the railway in Yorkshire, after the father, who works at the Foreign Office, is imprisoned after being falsely accused of spying. The children befriend an Old Gentleman who regularly takes the 9:15 train near their home; he is eventually able to help prove their father's innocence, and the family is reunited. The family takes care of a Russian exile, Mr Szczepansky, who came to England looking for his family (later located) and Jim, the grandson of the Old Gentleman, who suffers a broken leg in a tunnel. The theme of an innocent man being falsely imprisoned for espionage and finally vindicated might have been influenced by the Dreyfus Affair, which was a prominent worldwide news item a few years before the book was written. The Russian exile, persecuted by the Tsars for writing "a beautiful book about poor people and how to help them" and subsequently helped by the children, was most likely an amalgam of the real-life dissidents Sergius Stepniak and Peter Kropotkin who were both friends of the author.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateMay 19, 2017
ISBN9783961898640
Author

Edith Nesbit

Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) was an English writer of children’s literature. Born in Kennington, Nesbit was raised by her mother following the death of her father—a prominent chemist—when she was only four years old. Due to her sister Mary’s struggle with tuberculosis, the family travelled throughout England, France, Spain, and Germany for years. After Mary passed, Edith and her mother returned to England for good, eventually settling in London where, at eighteen, Edith met her future husband, a bank clerk named Hubert Bland. The two—who became prominent socialists and were founding members of the Fabian Society—had a famously difficult marriage, and both had numerous affairs. Nesbit began her career as a poet, eventually turning to children’s literature and publishing around forty novels, story collections, and picture books. A contemporary of such figures of Lewis Carroll and Kenneth Grahame, Nesbit was notable as a writer who pioneered the children’s adventure story in fiction. Among her most popular works are The Railway Children (1906) and The Story of the Amulet (1906), the former of which was adapted into a 1970 film, and the latter of which served as a profound influence on C.S. Lewis’ Narnia series. A friend and mentor to George Bernard Shaw and H.G. Wells, Nesbit’s work has inspired and entertained generations of children and adults, including such authors as J.K. Rowling, Noël Coward, and P.L. Travers.

Read more from Edith Nesbit

Related to The Railway Children

Related ebooks

Children's Classics For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for The Railway Children

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
0 ratings

0 ratings0 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

    Book preview

    The Railway Children - Edith Nesbit

    ?2^book_preview_excerpt.html\ےFw#legu[IcV$$U|s ɖc#fnP<Wg=1|[׾;~c~ _޼*>ݭ~^ ӬOٻCcуxGɏp?~~8?^珿TŢ mnkEWmY}/wN]TT6Dn| *qGի/~Wmplz~*> }UWu}[.U-VEڛÁGޕ&}vp0 ?׮pE]q;x{_Z_@tPp-8uѵ}h/ jⵋ p;W_sCyM'EeպA!];&:#b?g\c_n#M,v dRju|HH0D,]8Q/NZV1Ʀ㚸-,;\ !p2\ ֔q_Wmoox -57 ^iDdg->8KŇ-b5vE+ڻ=!6J6]K7wJ4rQT}TT?M޴m!Y(G/"!Vi*λ}B=?.6X YOS|ܟl.uMoːE]I.RF< C w=~tܘ]Yt]ef*x* q g8КtXڿ83RBޕ'Wl&A+_S鶸e;HKqW+L+>DgL:yimpMpA[޻$(,ָжP :Cӂﺊ+Axl\W:nu%c!$jsٱ[hl\3Jѳ e} ̇was?IEmfz˟CxaamrE5i-m5&{wpKRׁq[܁%p(Ӥr4/ìrHڃ̀,P;3rt'dM?|ŤyOA`'Ҋ;L ~Ljf\5lpPz@˧B+Bt k]2X8Uz;̟aeUP#gsXݨD qǿmI7A߈s7+sN>GO8ԛ'RYޛaƥhKeb kJϭ(y%[s[6 %PD=1EB,tV?w ULqNh.%$p[bs^j^fv VZ#ZcQ?I񕳍]az B z+J꿻M/=n ‘W6.G"!ށV(@B%ȹTJa̕×RRFtۼb5Y:'o9AI[RDN<FBo[.v{X.8]¡ixWI1Iğ1' aa_wv!&R}ɓBe&J3!(J>d_=Upz\4dUᵥb`zFj:EOTg(G$LS#~_$l1 Mf]NV;esi0 R W3;oyQvUo}bJǽp 4ZiCP:|Ӧ1t$7֎Ə~#zŘzcľF${|6(^I=@_&~v?]m7XLM~y #[W_ rS7e(B{LgHm,eKY  7(U/v!P6PQ=&X%9ҧ nBwAj2 b1HOڸxY]["FF?q8: y^3e!H#4ř%hSGbODZ+:71{8"xE4 ҵ\x'9+aj,#R\b82U<(>Dt +R++pu5<.S>icoy+X@iML~s#h1#P5vPSV,:jV@(iBy&w{)1yri:ޝEP=I2企ЋE AZ*ҵ|&JetuʝΔ.QC.$؁RiJf9ck# [-˅Ya& )3n9ys*Tmzo+6I8SllpnX#ū"\W |Nֻ mٔ9Wt(k!\ *?vhsiysO\yx6ET䦃b):0*Y 8~.<1lLICD,X\ʵPEp#Uܲ\RXe39 ;";NNSD gL.v93@M8U{OF5,RM˜X?cU V*x5)na'UOie#) 2cφ~Xm6Cݏ\. p_lJ GS ELWk"c#3/-O@s#s+s9&mPMdSOvAZ|]\WY*{>FIQtgc/-2U9"iJc1Sq8o9>1>o2M"[XcF9~(Oʟz ʓj$1 ,Hi:Z& Ġ-f<܈r\ɝ(aPqzP( tBe0^`l*rs}IhqxB^ Fu^inEs2Y"DBTIKӥwh/L΄r~Py I:edN]17MD㪒**ZWU+p&i dkYKT܍=Ob"r|1gٹ Hr懡ϚezHؕ) vF#RNkw18^[n:|RW"-.UVGz(R{*3?btxmEU \ZԈ?+)0gK_4 3G}Qs(pk3}n4 @/Ft HD>'h7tO x2!)3Ip31X3Aձȗc_·ſeu0f%{UŹ\*h;gQPF 6'X&hU:*d߁M6} K(گJfI4r: KL-|Rg%]fxQӎoή歌9ܫbR}cI_OE! v9/~8ܽcb=PrT.?6o}V.+~[,; BΨڏ0F\ iG07_rVE"^8ع̿]cc,a*6"a&tVjMQ7g:oC[۫&=s޸bb#[h,$t] DU+-6(US)n>*ct>7*ILug}Ejr6NJ ZPE^:ә͛ZQ||J˥ u^w{׺D hiBÒ cC#o ;\ٯ~f2ו?J&jeb`^HJ{Q9Q[ nvZ먽A3H )GSP$mI:8?q7l:jrqxK*/&N04KzɳZVe@ێy<9*W^D \291k13wc ?Rͩ'Ӊ(MgUߠB8hBU.DUD9[ 3<eݰ,~5[U]wo]Sż*w*Я+n$cfr-o'Ʋe:iҪpQ/Ē$0M@re1ei#.1]:eTxHxx+Aw|,t>mNCqu}J*\|o1pc]lt:[.1?!9rŰJE*#xUOP:Q&:R;ͶS_D"7N#5OЮ.w0-=\S_'_Ӛұ4nOۺ{_ĩhu}O62p ֨۫Wo5_Z-s^pcGr~`&j>rWt,LxV6MyWouKeU[~攪ߌuZ-b ̾l! D!KJ1PlQVe'p7&3!%sug2f IJ&Xu"G{yLЮX-Mgs{%re*L0R/)Y <ߞզ]ظli$E9^7@d:3*R+g!N<>ڴ*_&+K%SmnYfN#TXBUsiSCP+͹u n?2fn iQFT6}6~sa2;^}ey$æH;a:A&kBϑgWÙl,V>طOM̭;(^r`&E=o,pC]5⹿h*rT٤V,jOGn3*?3J@QK>>f߀efi1}3CB:B ?&:7jrIJ[ǻ?<>Ӧ_Jʳqr{E=?肺3)uS-a1ML]4?9}˜>LeDt'KجT]k}emXY4.*Ȏ/0,?!h$ ) ;6q8䂫OVs[/ROnX'[mfɧ##j@ԡ3&/p>]jn'iV= 9>7/Eci.lF
    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1