Today is the 200th anniversary of the birth of George MacDonald

The Scottish writer, speaker and pastor George MacDonald was born on December 10th 1824, 200 years ago today. 

His goblins are mentioned in the article about Michael de Larrabeiti's Borribles, and a spot-on comment he made is featured in a post about unsatisfactory politicians.

His name is in the list of of writers with Celtic connections; he also appears in the list of Sagittarian writers, where I said this:

“It is time to take another look at some of his work, which I last read when still at school.”

While the reader's dilemma of 'so many books, so little time' applies here, I have refreshed my memories of a few of his stories that I particularly liked; I have also learned a little about their author. 

While the details of George MacDonald's life are very interesting and some of his fantasy stories are still enjoyable to read despite their being very dated, he and his many works do not on the whole inspire much in the way of commentary. However, two books that made a very big impression when I first discovered them deserve a mention here.

The Princess and the Goblin 
I remember my first encounter with the works of George MacDonald very clearly; I was seven years old at the time. I came across a very old, illustrated edition of The Princess and the Goblin and found it fascinating. 

I thought that the goblins with their hard heads and soft toeless feet were both sinister and very funny. I loved the little poem that the miner's son Curdie makes to frighten off the goblins. It includes these lines:

“One, two—
Hit and hew!
Three, four—
Blast and bore! 
…

There's a toad
In the road!
Smash it!
Squash it!
Fry it!
Dry it! ...“

Curdie and Princess Irene being pursued by a goblin:

The Princess and  Curdie
The Princess and  Curdie is the sequel to The Princess and the Goblin. 

I really liked the story when I first read it, but I was too young to have got much from the philosophical statements that the book contains.

A few words about Frances Hodgson Burnett on her birthday

The writer Frances Hodgson Burnett was born on this day, November 24th, in 1849. 

She was briefly mentioned in the article that lists some more Sagittarian writers. I read her three most popular children's books when I was very young and quite liked The Secret Garden and The Little Princess, but I knew almost nothing about her. After learning that she was interested in metaphysical matters, I put an investigation of her life on my to-do list.

I have looked again at the children's books and trawled through some biographical material. I found a lot of fairly interesting information about Frances Hodgson Burnett's life, some of it unexpected and some of it depressing. 

Where this blog is concerned, the results of the investigation to date are rather disappointing. Unlike fellow Sagittarian L. M. Montgomery, whose books, journals and letters are packed with article-inspiring material, Frances Hodgson Burnett provides very little that resonates or that I want to quote and comment on.

There is nothing new about her being different from the people around her as a child or being an avid reader and an inventor of exciting adventure stories from an early age. She was not the only writer to find books and the products of her imagination better than real life either.

Wanting to have something to show for my efforts, I selected enough material for a short article. It consists mainly of some elements that Frances Hodgson Burnett had in common with L. M. Montgomery.

Frances Hodgson Burnett and L. M. Montgomery

As might be expected, both Frances Hodgson Burnett and L. M. Montgomery were voracious and compulsive readers from an early age.

Frances Hodgson Burnett has been described as a writing machine; L. M. Montgomery felt compelled to write and was also very prolific. 

Both writers were profoundly influenced by works of the Brontës. There are some parallels to both Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights in Frances Hodgson Burnett's Secret Garden for example.

Both writers had their first stories published when they were still teenagers.

Both writers became the main breadwinner in their families; in Frances Hodgson Burnett's case this started at the age of 18, when she began to make money from writing.

Some more Sagittarian writers of interest

I noticed a while back that a few writers of interest were born at the end of November.  

I found some good connections while I was looking to see what these astrological Sagittarians had in common.

A few more writers whose work I like or at least am familiar with and/or who are of interest for other reasons were born under the sign of Sagittarius – some before the end of November and some in December.

Most of them have been featured or at least mentioned in articles in the past; there may be more to say about a few of them in the future. There may also be some new names to add to the list.

Jane Austen was born on December 16th 1775.
Although her books don't inspire commentary, she has been mentioned on here in a few articles in connection with suspicious deaths. She also appears in articles about tangled webs of connections.

She mentions a witch on one occasion:

“Ah, Mother! How do you do?” said he, giving her a hearty shake of the hand. “Where did you get that quiz of a hat? It makes you look like an old witch...”

From Northanger Abbey

The Reverend Richard Harris Barham was born on December 6th 1788. 
His Ingoldsby Legends, which contain some stories about witches, are praised by Allan Quatermain in Sir Henry Rider Haggard's King Solomon's Mines and its sequel.

Lucy M. Boston was born on December 10th 1892.
She lived to the age of 97. One of her Green Knowe books features the witch Dr. Melanie Powers, who is mentioned in a few places on here, and her autobiography is the subject of an article.

Flying horses, which were mentioned in connection with writers born in late November, appear in The River at Green Knowe.

Frances Hodgson Burnett was born on November 24th 1849.
Her children's classics A Little Princess, The Secret Garden and Little Lord Fauntleroy are her most famous works. They are rather dated but still selling well. She was involved with metaphysical matters; I will investigate this once the people and topics of current interest are finished with.

Some wise words from Winston Churchill on his birthday

A previous article covers a few writers who were born at the end of November.

Sir Winston Churchill is one of the most prominent people ever to have been born at this time of year: he arrived in this world at Blenheim Palace on November 30th 1874.

To mark the occasion, I have selected a few quotations from the huge number available. I have chosen non-political and non-historical statements that have some relevance to this blog, and added some comments of my own to his words of wisdom. 

“You have enemies? Good. It means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”

Yes indeed, although it should be re-phrased to say that people who stand up for something will have enemies. For example, I know from experience that people who show respect for the truth, question and criticise the behaviour of cult leaders, speak out against injustice and demonstrate that they can think for themselves and operate as individuals often become public enemy number 1.

“Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened .“

This undeniable fact and some of the factors involved have been covered in several articles. Many people just don’t want or can’t afford to recognise and face up to the truth.

Born at the end of November

Some of the writers who have been mentioned in previous articles were born during the last two days of November. 

Here is some interesting information to mark the occasion.

Born on the 29th
November 29th is the 333rd day of the year (except in leap years). 

Amos Bronson Alcott entered this world on the 29th November 1799; Louisa May Alcott, his daughter, was born in the early hours of the 29th in 1832, thus they were born exactly 33 years apart.

C. S. Lewis was born on the 29th November 1898.

Madeleine L’Engle was born on the 29th November 1918.

Born on the 30th
Angela Brazil was born on the 30th November 1868.

L. M. (Lucy Maud) Montgomery was born on the 30th November 1874.

Influences and connections
For the Alcotts, sharing the same birthday was not the only connection. Bronson died in March 1888; Louisa died 2 days later.

C. S. Lewis died one week short of his 65th birthday and one hour before President John F. Kennedy died.

Louisa M. Alcott, L. M. Montgomery and Angela Brazil all wrote classic girls’ books.

One of Madeleine L’Engle’s main characters is called Meg; so is one of Louisa M. Alcott’s.

Madeleine L’Engle said this about books she read in childhood:

“My favorite was Emily of New Moon by Lucy Maude Montgomery, who is better known for her Anne of Green Gables books. Emily wanted to be a writer. Emily and I had a lot in common. Emily lived on Prince Edward Island and I live on Manhattan Island. Both are islands! Emily's father was dying of bad lungs and so was mine…“

Both C. S. Lewis and Madeleine L’Engle have been called Christian myth-makers. When asked whether her work has been compared to his, she replied:

“Yes, it has. I think that the main difference is that C. S. Lewis has more answers and I have more questions…”

C. S. Lewis created a flying horse, wrote a book called Surprised by Joy and married an American called Joy.

Madeleine L’Engle’s winged unicorn is called Gaudior, which has a meaning connected with joy and rejoicing. 

Being born at the end of November means that they were born under the astrological sign of Sagittarius. 

Flying horses, centaurs, philosophy, joyful religion and angels are all very Sagittarian.