Elizabeth Goudge
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth de Beauchamp Goudge (b. 24 April 1900 in Wells
, England
– d. 1 April 1984) was an English
author of novel
s, short stories
and children's books as Elizabeth Goudge. She was a former vice-president of the Romantic Novelists' Association
.
, where her father, Henry Leighton Goudge, was vice-principal of the Theological College. The family moved to Ely
when he became principal of the Theological College there and then to Christ Church, Oxford
when he was appointed Regius Professor of Divinity at the University
. Elizabeth was educated at Grassendale School, Southbourne
(1914–18), and at the art school at University College Reading, then an extension college of Christ Church. She went on to teach design and handicrafts in Ely and Oxford.
Goudge's first book, The Fairies' Baby and Other Stories (1919), was a failure and it was several years before she authored her first novel, Island Magic (1934), which was an immediate success. It was based on Channel Island stories, many of which she had learned from her mother, a native of Guernsey
. Elizabeth herself regularly visited Guernsey as a child, recounting in her autobiography The Joy of the Snow spending many of her summers with her maternal grandparents and relatives. .
The Little White Horse
(1946) was Goudge's own favourite among her works, and also the book which J. K. Rowling
, author of the Harry Potter
stories, has said was her favorite as a child. The television mini-series Moonacre and the 2009 film The Secret of Moonacre
were based on The Little White Horse. Her Green Dolphin Country (1944) was made into a film (under its American title, Green Dolphin Street
) which won the Academy Award for Special Effects in 1948.
After her father's death in 1939, Goudge moved to a bungalow in Devon, where she nursed her ailing mother. After her mother's death in 1951, she moved to Oxfordshire, spending the last 30 years of her life living at a cottage on Peppard Common
, just outside Henley-on-Thames
, where a blue plaque
was unveiled in 2008.
She died on 1 April 1984.
Wells
Wells is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, England, on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. Although the population recorded in the 2001 census is 10,406, it has had city status since 1205...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
– d. 1 April 1984) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
author of novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s, short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
and children's books as Elizabeth Goudge. She was a former vice-president of the Romantic Novelists' Association
Romantic Novelists' Association
The Romantic Novelists' Association is a writers' association in the UK. Founded in 1960, mainly through the efforts of Denise Robins , Barbara Cartland , Vivian Stuart , and other authors like Elizabeth Goudge, Netta Muskett, Catherine Cookson, Rosamunde Pilcher and Lucilla Andrews.The RNA runs...
.
Biography
Elizabeth de Beauchamp Goudge was born on 24 April 1900 in the cathedral city of WellsWells
Wells is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, England, on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. Although the population recorded in the 2001 census is 10,406, it has had city status since 1205...
, where her father, Henry Leighton Goudge, was vice-principal of the Theological College. The family moved to Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
when he became principal of the Theological College there and then to Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
when he was appointed Regius Professor of Divinity at the University
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. Elizabeth was educated at Grassendale School, Southbourne
Southbourne, West Sussex
Southbourne is a village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. It lies to the east of Emsworth, the west of Nutbourne and south-east of Westbourne....
(1914–18), and at the art school at University College Reading, then an extension college of Christ Church. She went on to teach design and handicrafts in Ely and Oxford.
Goudge's first book, The Fairies' Baby and Other Stories (1919), was a failure and it was several years before she authored her first novel, Island Magic (1934), which was an immediate success. It was based on Channel Island stories, many of which she had learned from her mother, a native of Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
. Elizabeth herself regularly visited Guernsey as a child, recounting in her autobiography The Joy of the Snow spending many of her summers with her maternal grandparents and relatives. .
The Little White Horse
The Little White Horse
The Little White Horse is a children's fantasy novel by Elizabeth Goudge which won the 1946 Carnegie Medal for children's literature. The original edition was illustrated by C. Walter Hodges...
(1946) was Goudge's own favourite among her works, and also the book which J. K. Rowling
J. K. Rowling
Joanne "Jo" Rowling, OBE , better known as J. K. Rowling, is the British author of the Harry Potter fantasy series...
, author of the Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
stories, has said was her favorite as a child. The television mini-series Moonacre and the 2009 film The Secret of Moonacre
The Secret of Moonacre
The Secret of Moonacre is a film adaptation of the novel The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge. The film, which started filming on 1 October 2007, was released in the UK February 2009 by Warner Bros. The film will be distributed to select theatres in the United States on August 12, 2010...
were based on The Little White Horse. Her Green Dolphin Country (1944) was made into a film (under its American title, Green Dolphin Street
Green Dolphin Street
Green Dolphin Street is a 1947 historic drama film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-Plot summary:In the 1840s, two sisters fall in love with the same man...
) which won the Academy Award for Special Effects in 1948.
After her father's death in 1939, Goudge moved to a bungalow in Devon, where she nursed her ailing mother. After her mother's death in 1951, she moved to Oxfordshire, spending the last 30 years of her life living at a cottage on Peppard Common
Rotherfield Peppard
Rotherfield Peppard is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire. It is just over west of Henley-on-Thames, about north of Reading, Berkshire and just over west of the village of Rotherfield Greys.-History:Rotherfield derives from the Old English redrefeld meaning...
, just outside Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
, where a blue plaque
Blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
was unveiled in 2008.
She died on 1 April 1984.
Themes in her Writings
Goudge's books are notably Christian in outlook, containing such themes as sacrifice, conversion, discipline, healing, and growth through suffering. Her novels, whether realistic, fantasy, or historical, interweave legend and myth and reflect her spirituality and her deep love of England. Whether written for adults or children, the same qualities pervade Goudge's work and are the source of its appeal to readers.Awards and honours
- Fellow of the Royal Society of LiteratureRoyal Society of LiteratureThe Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
, 1945. - Carnegie MedalCarnegie MedalThe Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...
1947 for The Little White HorseThe Little White HorseThe Little White Horse is a children's fantasy novel by Elizabeth Goudge which won the 1946 Carnegie Medal for children's literature. The original edition was illustrated by C. Walter Hodges...
. - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Annual Novel Award, 1944, for Green Dolphin Country.
City of Bells series
- A City of Bells (1936)
- Towers in the Mist (1938)
- The Dean's Watch (1960)
- Three Cities of Bells (omnibus) (1965)
Eliots of Damerosehay series
- The Bird in the Tree (1940)
- The Herb of Grace (1948) aka Pilgrim's Inn (1948 )
- The Heart of the Family (1953)
- The Eliots of Damerosehay (omnibus) (1957)
Novels
- Island Magic (1934)
- The Middle Window (1935)
- The Castle on the Hill (1941)
- Green Dolphin Country (1944) aka Green Dolphin Street (USA title)
- Gentian Hill (1949)
- The Rosemary Tree (1956)
- The White Witch (1958)
- The Scent of Water (1963)
- The Child From the Sea (1970)
Children's books
- Sister of the Angels: A Christmas Story (1939)
- Smokey House (1940)
- The Well of the Star (1941)
- Henrietta's House (1942) aka The Blue Hills
- The Little White HorseThe Little White HorseThe Little White Horse is a children's fantasy novel by Elizabeth Goudge which won the 1946 Carnegie Medal for children's literature. The original edition was illustrated by C. Walter Hodges...
(1946) - Make-Believe (1949)
- The Valley of Song (1951)
- Linnets and Valerians (1964) aka The Runaways
- I Saw Three Ships (1969)
Collections
- The Fairies' Baby: And Other Stories (1919)
- A Pedlar's Pack: And Other Stories (1937)
- Three Plays: Suomi, The Brontës of Haworth, Fanny Burney (1939)
- The Golden Skylark: And Other Stories (1941)
- The Ikon on the Wall: And Other Stories (1943)
- The Elizabeth Goudge Reader (1946)
- Songs and Verses (1947)
- At the Sign of the Dolphin (1947)
- The Reward of Faith: And Other Stories (1950)
- White Wings: Collected Short Stories (1952)
- The Ten Gifts: An Elizabeth Goudge Anthology (1965)
- A Christmas Book: An Anthology of Christmas Stories (1967)
- The Lost Angel: Stories (1971)
- Hampshire Trilogy (omnibus) (1976)
- Pattern of People: An Elizabeth Goudge Anthology (1978)
Non fiction
- God So Loved the World: The Story of Jesus (1951)
- Saint Francis of Assisi (1959) aka My God and My All: The Life of St. Francis of Assisi
- A Diary of Prayer (1966)
- The Joy of the Snow: An Autobiography (1974)
Anthologies edited by Elizabeth Goudge
- A Book of Comfort: An Anthology (1964)
- A Book of Peace: An Anthology (1967)
- A Book of Faith: An Anthology (1976)
External links
- http://www.elizabethgoudge.org The Elizabeth Goudge Society
- http://www.elizabethgoudge.com Elizabeth Goudge books and discussion forum