Maria is the orphan mistress of a crumbling manor four times as long as Buckingham Palace. Her grounds are so vast and overgrown that Maria is already ten years old before she discovers that a community of Lilliputians live on her land - the proud but tiny people whom Gulliver met on his famous travels. To keep their secret safe, Maria must outsmart her vile Governess and the greedy Vicar as they plot to steal her inheritance. Fortunately, Maria has a few tricks up her sleeve, and an entire army in her pocket. Includes ...
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Maria is the orphan mistress of a crumbling manor four times as long as Buckingham Palace. Her grounds are so vast and overgrown that Maria is already ten years old before she discovers that a community of Lilliputians live on her land - the proud but tiny people whom Gulliver met on his famous travels. To keep their secret safe, Maria must outsmart her vile Governess and the greedy Vicar as they plot to steal her inheritance. Fortunately, Maria has a few tricks up her sleeve, and an entire army in her pocket. Includes exclusive content: In the 'Backstory' you can take the Mistress Masham quiz and find out why this is Anne Fine's favourite book. Vintage Children's Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from Peter Pan and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
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Seller's Description:
Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages.
Read Gullivers Travels prior to this story there are some connections to it. Fun and light hearted.
Avidhomeschooler
Feb 14, 2008
Old-fashioned enjoyment
I purchased this book, along with Gulliver's Travels, as part of a literature unit for my 9 year old. T.H. White's children's novel imagines the delightful possibility that Gulliver's rescuer returned to Lilliput and captured the people with the intent to show them and thereby make his fame and fortune. The book picks up years later, when 10 year old Maria, an orphan being brought up in dire and dreary conditions, discovers the escaped little people. My son and I both enjoyed the book (though he found it dull at first, by the closing chapters he was reading eagerly). Not only is the world of the Lilliputians fully imagined in every possible detail (from how they might catch fish and defend themselves against magpies to the way in which they hollowed out a home for themselves in a column), but White manages to intersperse a valuable lesson: no matter how small, people are people, an they deserve respect and care.