McEwan masterfully combines a laconic narrative style with an unpredictable ending. At the center of his story are two friends, the editor of a popular newspaper and the composer who composes the Millennium Symphony. True, almost nothing remained of their friendship, only hidden anger and resentment. It is worth reading to find out how the confrontation of the old comrades ended.
In this collection we have included the most English novel a writer in which he tries to explain what good old England is like. Events unfold on the attraction island of Wight, where all sorts of stereotypes about the country are collected: the monarchy, Robin Hood, The Beatles, beer ... Indeed, why do tourists need modern England if there is a miniature copy that combines all the most interesting things?
A romance about the love of 19th-century Victorian poets that is intertwined with the history of modern scientists. A book for the intelligent reader who will enjoy rich language, classic stories and numerous allusions to cultural and historical phenomena.
Coe has been composing jazz music for a long time, which was reflected in his literary creativity. "What a swindle!" akin to improvisation, this is a bold and unexpected novel.
Michael, a mediocre writer, is given the opportunity to tell the story of the wealthy and highly influential Winshaw family. The problem is that these greedy relatives who have taken possession of all spheres public life, poison the lives of other people and do not cause sympathy.
If you've watched Cloud Atlas, then you should know that David Mitchell came up with this incredible convoluted story. But today we recommend that you start reading another, no less interesting novel.
"Dream No. 9" is often compared to the best works. Eiji, a young boy, comes to Tokyo in search of his father, whom he has never seen. For eight weeks in the metropolis, he managed to find love, fall into the clutches of the yakuza, make peace with his alcoholic mother, find friends ... You have to figure out for yourself what happened in reality and what happened in a dream.
"Tennis balls of heaven" - a modern version of "The Count of Monte Cristo", supplemented with new details and meanings. Although the plot is known to us, it is simply impossible to stop reading.
Main character- student Ned Maddstone, whose life is going nowhere better. He is handsome, smart, rich, educated, from a good family. But because of the stupid joke of envious comrades, his whole life changes dramatically. Ned finds himself locked in a psychiatric hospital, where he lives with only one goal - to get out in order to take revenge.
A novel about the life of 30-year-old Bridget Jones is popular all over the world. Thanks in part to a Hollywood film adaptation starring Renee Zellweger and Colin Firth. But by and large because of the eccentric and so charming Bridget. She counts calories, tries to quit smoking and drink less, experiences setbacks in her personal life, but still looks to the future with optimism and believes in love.
There are books to which you forgive the simplicity of the plot, and the banality of the scenes, and stupid coincidences, simply because they have soulfulness. "Bridget Jones's Diary" is that rare case.
The story of the boy with the scar is a real cultural phenomenon. The first book "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was rejected by 12 publishers, and only a small Bloomsbury decided to publish it at its own peril and risk. And it didn't fail. "" was a resounding success, and Rowling herself was the love of readers around the world.
Against the backdrop of magic and sorcery, we are talking about familiar and important things - friendship, honesty, courage, readiness to help and resist evil. Therefore, the fictional world of Rowling captivates readers of any age.
The Collector is John Fowles' most frightening yet gripping novel. The protagonist Frederick Clegg loves to collect butterflies, but at some point he decides to add the cute girl Miranda to his collection. We learn this story from the words of the kidnapper and from the diary of his victim.
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Brilliant classic detective stories and tragic love stories, lengthy biographies and incomparable subtle humor, a world of mesmerizing fantasy and adventurous adventure. British literature is rich in masterpieces!
Famous British writers and their best works
Pioneer Geniuses
In order to tell about all the most worthy representatives of Great Britain who created wonderful works (from plays and poems to short stories and novels), you need a voluminous volume. But let's get acquainted (more or less adhering to the chronology) at least with some of them!
Geoffrey Chaucer is considered to be the pioneer of English literature. It was he (it was in the XIV century) who first began to write his works in his native language (and not in Latin). Among his "program" creations, we note the ironic "Canterbury Tales" and the voluminous heroic-romantic poem "Troilus and Chryseis". The earthly in Chaucer is intertwined with the sublime, vulgarity coexists with moralizing, and everyday pictures are replaced by passionate scenes.
IN Lately here and there disputes arose over another recognized classic - William Shakespeare. They doubted the authorship, attributed his works to other personalities (up to Queen Elizabeth the First). We will stick to the traditional point of view. The immortal lines of sonnets, the colorful characters of tragedies, the life-affirming optimism of the comedies of the Great Bard are modern to this day. His plays are leading in the repertoires of theaters (in terms of the number of productions), they are endlessly filmed. Some "Romeo and Juliet" filmed more than fifty (counting from the era of silent films). But Shakespeare worked in the distant XVI-XVII centuries!
Novels for ladies, and not only
"Women's" prose in the British classics is vividly represented by Jane Austen (who has not read the book "Pride and Prejudice" transferred more than once to the movie screen!). And also the Bronte sisters. Emotional and tragic Wuthering Heights» Emily and the very popular and now (again, thanks to film adaptations) Jane Eyre by Charlotte are the best examples of the literature of the first half of XIX centuries. But both sisters died very early, and many of their plans remained unfulfilled.
The powerful prose writer Charles Dickens is the pride of Britain. In his works one can find realism and sentimentalism, a fabulous beginning and riddles. He did not have time to finish The Secret of Edwin Drood, and readers are still scratching their heads over it. But this novel could be the best detective work of that era.
Mystery and adventure
In general, the founder of this genre is a friend of Dickens, Wilkie Collins. His "Moonstone" is considered the first detective story written in English. very interesting and full of mysticism and the mystery novel The Woman in White.
Two Scots - Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson - contributed to British literature. They were unsurpassed masters of historical adventure novels. "Ivanhoe" of the first and "Treasure Island" of the second are masterpieces.
Two more personalities stand apart: the gloomy romantic John Gordon Byron and the ironic Oscar Wilde. Read their lines! It `s Magic. Life did not indulge both, but the stronger the emotions in the works.
Graceful prose, humor and masters of the detective
Wilde was persecuted for his homosexuality. Suffered from it and his other compatriot - Somerset Maugham. An English intelligence agent, he is the author of the most elegant prose. If you are in a bad mood, re-read "Theater" or re-watch the film - even with Via Artmane, even an American one, with Annette Benning, wonderful medicine!
Other great pep writers are Jerock K. Jerome and Pelham G. Wodehouse. Didn't you laugh when you read about the adventures of the "three in a boat" or the misadventures of the half-hearted aristocrat Bertie Wooster, patronized by the stiff valet Jeeves?
Even those who do not like detective stories will sooner or later turn to the work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. After all, his hero Sherlock is the favorite object of modern filmmakers.
What can we say about Lady Agatha! Christie is perhaps the most famous detective (may she forgive us such a dissonant word!) Of all times and peoples. And words are superfluous. Poirot and Marple glorified the British woman for centuries.
In the arms of fantasy
A huge amazing world - with its own language, geography, funny (courageous, terrifying, cute, and not very different!) inhabitants - was invented by John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, honor and praise be to him. For fantasy fans, his "Lord of the Rings" is what the Bible is for believers.
Among modern British writers, Joanne Rowling has achieved the greatest fame and success. Seeing some images in a half-asleep one day and deciding to write down the story of an orphan boy that came to mind, the impoverished housewife became one of the revered prose writers of our days. Screen adaptations of "Potteriana" were seen by millions, and the author herself became a multi-millionaire.
Erotic escapades of David Lawrence's characters, John Fowles' throwing heroes, H.G. Wells' other worlds, Thomas Hardy's tragic plots, Jonathan Swift's and Bernard Shaw's evil satire, Robert Burns' ballads, Galsworthy's and Iris Murdoch's realism. This is also wealth. British literature. Read and enjoy!
One can talk a lot about the role of the individual in history, but where more interesting topic about the role of personality in the development of the English language. After all, there is no doubt that a number of people whose names we know for sure made an invaluable contribution to English with their literary works. Of course, we are talking about the most famous British writers.
William Shakespeare often called the greatest British writer and one of the brightest playwrights in the world. The writer was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. During his career, Shakespeare created about two hundred works that have been translated into many languages and are constantly staged. In addition, Shakespeare himself performed in theaters for a long time. Among the most famous works of the author are the most famous tragedies "Romeo and Juliet", "Hamlet", "Othello", "Macbeth", "King Lear".
Oscar Wilde- Another famous and interesting representative of British literature. He was born in 1856 to an Irish family. The talent and sense of humor of Oscar Wilde are recognized all over the world, just like his famous novel, "The Picture of Dorian Grey". The writer has always said that aesthetic feelings are the driving force behind human development, and he repeatedly touched on this topic in his works. Oscar Wilde left a large number of magnificent fairy tales, plays and novels, which are often staged in our time.
Charles Dickens- British writer, who gained popularity during his lifetime, is a recognized classic of world literature. Dickens was born in 1812 in Porsmouth, England, and grew up in big family. From childhood, the writer was forced to earn a living, and his hardships were later reflected in such famous works as Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, the heroes of which were poor orphan boys. No less famous works are "Dombey and Son", "A Tale of Two Cities" and " Posthumous notes Pickwick Club, which brought him great fame.
Agatha Christie Often referred to as the Queen of the Detective. The writer, who was born in 1890, is among the most frequently published writers. Agatha Christie gave the world about a hundred works, including detective and psychological novels, stories and plays. Christie's most famous creations are the play "The Mousetrap", the detective novel "Ten Little Indians", "Murder on the Orient Express" and many others.
Another great master of the detective is considered Arthur Conan Doyle, who gave the world the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes and many other bright characters.
Among contemporary authors British writer stands out Joanne Rowling, famous for a series of books about the wizard Harry Potter and the magical world. These books not only brought her world fame, but also turned her from a single mother living on welfare to a multimillionaire. After the release of all the Harry Potter books, Rowling released several books for adult readers, including under the pseudonym "Robert Gilbraith".
This list can be continued for a long time, but we have listed the real "giants". Without them, the English language, which you can study in courses at, would be completely different. That is why it is so important to remember them and know their names.
Today, many schools no longer study such a subject as foreign literature. The younger generation, as a rule, learns about some famous English writers, their fascinating works from textbooks in English classes and thanks to modern cinema. However, everyone who studies English needs to know which English writers are classics. foreign literature. Thanks to this knowledge, you can expand your general horizons and replenish your vocabulary by reading works in the original.
About the most famous
Even those who are not particularly fond of reading literature have heard the names of English writers who have gained worldwide fame. We are talking about Shakespeare, Kipling, Byron, Conan Doyle and others. Let's talk briefly about the authors whose works deserve the attention of everyone.
Rudyard Kipling (Sir Joseph Rudyard Kipling) was an English poet, writer and short story writer who lived from 1865 to 1936. In the history of world literature, he is known as the creator of stories and fairy tales for children, many of which were filmed. Rudyard Kipling became not only the youngest recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, but also the first Englishman to receive this award. The most famous works: "The Jungle Book", "Riki-Tiki-Tavi", "Kim", "Kaa's Hunt", etc. Children's stories: "Elephant", "How the first letter was written", "The cat that walked by itself yourself”, “Why does a rhinoceros have a folded skin”, etc.
Oscar Wilde ( Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde) - an outstanding Irish poet, playwright, writer and essayist. One of the most famous playwrights of the late Victorian period and a key figure in the development of aestheticism and European modernism. The most famous work is the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890). The years of the writer's life - 1854−1900.
George ByronGeorge Gordon Byron- English romantic poet, who was in the period from 1788 to 1824 a symbol of romanticism and political liberalism in Europe of the 19th century. During his lifetime, he was commonly referred to as "Lord Byron". Thanks to him, such terms as "Byronic" hero and "Byronism" appeared in literature. The creative heritage left by the poet is represented by the poem "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" (1812), the novel "Don Juan", the poems "Gyaur" and "Corsair", etc.
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle- English writer (although a doctor by training). He is the author of countless novels and stories that are of an adventure, historical, journalistic, fantastic and humorous nature. Most Popular detective stories about Sherlock Holmes, science fiction about Professor Challenger, and a number of historical novels. Peru Conan Doyle also owns plays and poems. The creative heritage is represented by such works as The White Squad, The Lost World, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and others.
Daniel Defoe- English writer and publicist who wrote about 500 books, magazines and pamphlets on various topics. He is one of the founders of the European realistic novel. In 1719, Daniel Defoe saw the light of the first and best novel in the entire creative life of the writer under the name "Robinson Crusoe". Famous works also include "Captain Singleton", "The Story of Colonel Jack", "Moth Flanders", "Roxanne" (1724) and others.
William Somerset Maugham ( William Somerset maugham) British novelist, playwright, screenwriter and literary critic. One of the most successful prose writers of the 20th century. For achievements in art and literature awarded the Order Cavaliers of Honor. Maugham has 78 works to his credit, including short stories, essays and travel notes. Main works: "The burden of human passions", "Moon and penny", "Pies and wine", "The razor's edge".
Who wrote for children
Not all famous English writers were passionate about exclusively serious life topics. Some great authors devoted part of their work to the younger generation, writing fairy tales and stories for children. Who hasn't heard of Alice in Wonderland or Mowgli the boy who grew up in the jungle?
Biography of the writer Lewis Carroll whose real name is Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, no less interesting than his book Alice in Wonderland. He grew up in a large family with 11 children. The boy was very fond of drawing and always dreamed of becoming an artist. This writer told us the story of the restless heroine Alice and her endless journeys to a wonderful Magic world, where it meets the set interesting characters: Cheshire Cat, and the mad hatter, and the queen of cards.
Rold Dahl ( Roald Dahl) originally from Wales. The author spent most of his childhood in boarding houses. One of these boarding houses was located near the famous chocolate factory Cadbury. It is assumed that the idea to write his best children's story called "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" came to him during this period. The hero of the story becomes a boy named Charlie, who receives one of the five tickets that allows him to get into a closed chocolate factory. Charlie, along with 4 other participants, goes through all the tasks in the factory, and remains the winner.
Rudyard Kipling known for his "The Jungle Book", which tells the story of the boy Mowgli, who grew up among animals in wild forests. Most likely, this story was written under the impression of his own childhood. The fact is, after the birth of the first 5 years of his life, the writer lived in India.
Joanne Rowling- the most famous writer-"storyteller" of our time. It was she who gave us such a character as Harry Potter. The story of the wizard boy Harry, who goes to Hogwarts school, was written by Joan for her children. This allowed them to plunge into the world of magic and magic and forget for a while about the poverty in which the family lived at that time. The book is full of interesting adventures.
Joan Aiken (Joan Delano Aiken) She became a writer because everyone in her family wrote, from her father to her sister. However, Joan was engaged in children's literature. Her most famous work was the short story "A Piece of Heaven in a Pie".
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson invented the pirate Captain Flint in his famous history"Treasure Island". Hundreds of boys followed the adventures of this hero. Robert himself comes from cold Scotland, an engineer and a lawyer by education. The first book was published when the author was only 16 years old, he borrowed money for the publication from his father. The story about the treasure island was invented by him much later during the games with his son, during which they drew a treasure map together and came up with plots.
John Tolkien Ronald Reuel Tolkien He is the author of the fantastic and breathtaking stories of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. John is a teacher by education. As a child, the writer learned to read early, and did so often throughout his life. As John himself admits, he fiercely hated the story "Treasure Island", but was crazy about "Alice in Wonderland". The writer himself, after his stories, became the founder of the fantasy genre, it is no coincidence that he was called the "father of fantasy".
Henry Rider Haggard (1856-1925).
Sir Henry Rider Haggard was born June 22, 1856 in Bradenham (Norfolk) in the family of Squire William Haggard, he was the eighth of his ten children. At nineteen, Henry Rider Haggard fell deeply and, as it turned out, for life, in love with the daughter of a squire who lived next door, Lily Jackson. But the father considered it premature that his son intended to marry and considered it best to send him to South Africa as secretary to Henry Bulwer, the English governor of the province of Natal. So his only one was destroyed real love, as Haggard later wrote. Cool breaking personal fate young man, a trip to South Africa, determined his further creative destiny: it was Africa that became for Haggard an inexhaustible source of themes, plots, human types his numerous books, and the very longing for lost love has become one of the defining themes of the writer's works, embodied in unusual images.
Africa gave Haggard a delightful sense of personal freedom: by occupation and love of travel, he traveled a lot in Natal and the Transvaal, conquered by the boundless expanses of the African veld, the beauty of impregnable mountain peaks - Haggard poetically and romantically recreated these peculiar landscapes in many of his novels. He was fond of activities characteristic of an English gentleman in Africa - hunting, riding, etc. However, unlike many compatriots, he was also interested in the customs of the local residents, the Zulus, their history, culture, legends - Haggard got to know all this firsthand, having soon learned the Zulu language. He adopted the traditional “Englishman in Africa” dislike for the Boers and a patronizing, benevolent, paternalistic attitude towards the Zulus, for whom, Haggard believed, like the vast majority of his compatriots, the rule of the British was a boon (however, as can be judged from some of his statements, he was aware of the devastating effect of the English invasion on traditional Zulu customs). This position of "enlightened imperialism" Haggard retained until the end of his life.
In 1878, Haggard became the Governor and Registrar of the Supreme Court in the Transvaal, resigned in 1879, went to England, married, and returned to Natal with his wife at the end of 1880, determined to become a farmer. However, in South Africa Hagard farmed for a very short time: already in September 1881, he finally settled in England. In 1884, Haggard passed the relevant examination and became a practicing lawyer. However, Haggard's law practice did not attract him - he wanted to write.
Haggard, with considerable success, tried his hand at composing historical, psychological and fantastic works. Everything he created is marked by a rich imagination, extraordinary credibility and scale of the story. worldwide fame Haggard was brought novels about adventures in South Africa, in which fantasy element; the constant fascination of the author with lost worlds, the ruins of ancient mysterious civilizations, archaic cults of immortality and the reincarnation of souls made him, in the eyes of many critics, one of the unconditional forerunners of modern fantasy. Popular Hero Haggard, white hunter and adventurer Allan Quatermain is central character many books.
For contemporaries, Haggard was not only a popular prose writer, a writer of fascinating historical adventure novels. He is also a publicist, a singer of rural England, a measured and meaningful farming way of life, so familiar to Haggard from his Norfolk estate Ditchingham. He was actively engaged in farming, sought to improve it, mourned, seeing its decline, the gradual replacement by industry.
In the last two decades of his life, Haggard became violently involved in political life countries. He ran for Parliament in the election of 1895 (but lost), was a member and consultant of an endless number of various government committees and commissions on the colonies, as well as agriculture. The merits of Haggard were appreciated by the authorities: as a reward for his work for the benefit of the British Empire, he was knighted (1912), and in 1919 he received the Order of the British Empire.
Beatrice Potter (1866-1943).
Who does not know today the fairy tale about the forest washerwoman Uhti-Tukhti, who helped all the little animals to keep their clothes clean? Its author, Beatrix Potter, is one of the most popular English writers. Her fairy tales, basically didactic, turned almost into adventure novels, so the action was “twisted”, funny episodes quickly succeeded each other
In the art of England there is a concept - "the book of one person." The tradition of creating author's books, illustrations for which were made by the authors themselves, was very strong in England. Since the time of the great William Blake, English poets have reserved the right to supply a book with their own drawings and engravings. The poet became an artist; and the artist is a writer.
Potter was both a writer and an artist. She was born on July 28, 1866 in Bolton Gardens to a wealthy family. Parents hired governesses and home teachers for Beatrice, she did not go to school and had no friends. And her loneliness was brightened up by pets, which were allowed to be kept in the classroom. For hours, Beatrice looked after them, talked, shared children's secrets, painted them. The Potter family spent summers either in Scotland, or in Wales, and in the famous Lake District, where it was possible to communicate with animals in the wild. The first childhood impressions of young Beatrice were poetic. Potter biographers rightly believe that these cats and rabbits are the prototypes of characters in future children's books.
Arranging games for kids in the meadow near her house, staging her own fairy tales, Potter showed outstanding pedagogical (and acting!) abilities. She had a rare teaching gift. Forest lawn and in her books became a corner for children fairy world, inhabited by funny hares, kind hedgehogs, funny frogs. They were dressed in charming costumes, they had quite human headdresses, canes and even muffs. Comic comparisons of human manners and the habits of animals have always brought joy to readers.
Beatrice carried her first "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" with her own drawings to publishers for a long time, meeting rejection everywhere, and finally published it in 1901 at her own expense. The little book had unexpected success, was republished, and until 1910, the young artist-writer regularly composed, illustrated and published an average of two books a year, which immediately became then "bestsellers". Everyone liked her funny little animals - bunnies, mice, hedgehogs, goslings and other small creatures that funny copied people, but retained their bestial habits.
In 1903-1904, Potter's books "The Tailor of Gloucester", "Bunny Rabbit", "The Tale of Two Bad Mice" appeared, which secured the author's reputation as an artist with her own unique style. The father of the future artist was engaged in photography, and young Beatrice was also fond of photographing plants. During one of these walks, the idea of the first fairy tale was born. Hence, probably, photographic, almost "documentary" accuracy in the depiction of nature. From photographic art, the artist takes both a subtle gradation of tones and soft light and shade transitions.
The irresistible charm of the Potter characters lies in the humanization of animals. Duck Jemima in a headscarf, Uhti-Tukhti in an apron, rabbits in children's costumes - all these are examples of comical combinations of nature and civilization.
The special charm of Potter's heroes, their touching weakness, defenselessness before the forces of nature captivates readers.
Drawings of Beatrix Potter live not only on book pages. Potter-style children's tableware has gained wide popularity. Let's add here decorative applique and embroidery on children's aprons. With full confidence, we can talk about the existence of a special Potter world.
In 1905, after the death of her husband, the publisher of her books, Beatrice buys Hill Top Farm in the Lake District and tries to live there as long as possible. Her drawings depict the landscapes surrounding the farm.
In 1913, Beatrice marries again and completely devotes herself to agricultural concerns: a farm, sheep breeding, so there is no time left for creativity. But she has an important life goal: to preserve the beautiful Lake District in its original form. For the sake of this, Potter, sparing no expense, bought up plots around the farm, mountain and lake places. Dying in 1943, Beatrice bequeathed 4,000 acres of land and 15 farms to the state with the condition that they be turned into a nature reserve. It still exists today.
Alan Milne (1882-1956).
Alan Alexander Milne - prose writer, poet and playwright, classic of literature of the twentieth century, author of the famous "Winnie the Pooh" was born on January 18, 1882.
The English writer, of Scots origin, Alan Alexander Milne spent his childhood in London. Studied at a small private school owned by his father, John Milne. One of his teachers in 1889-1890 was H. G. Wells. Then he entered the Westminster School, and then to Trinity College, Cambridge, where from 1900 to 1903 he studied mathematics. As a student, he wrote notes for the student newspaper Grant. He usually wrote with his brother Kenneth, and they signed notes with the name AKM. Milne's work was noticed, and the British humor magazine Punch began to collaborate with him, later Milne became an assistant editor there.
In 1913, Milne married Dorothy Daphne de Selincourt, goddaughter of magazine editor Owen Seaman (claimed to be the psychological prototype of Eeyore), and in 1920 his only son, Christopher Robin, was born. By that time, Milne had managed to visit the war, write several funny plays, one of which - "Mr. Pym passed" (1920) was a success.
When his son was three years old, Milne began to write poems about him and for him, devoid of sentimentality and accurately reproducing children's egocentrism, fantasies and stubbornness. The enormous success of the book of poems illustrated by Ernest Shepard prompted Milne to write the fairy tales The Rabbit Prince (1924), The Princess Who Couldn't Laugh, and green door(both 1925), and in 1926 Winnie the Pooh was written. All the characters in the book (Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger, Kang and Roo) except for Rabbit and Owl were found in the nursery (now the toys that served as prototypes are kept in the Museum of Toy Bears in the UK), and the topography of the Forest resembles the neighborhood of Cotchford, where the family Milna spent the weekend.
In 1926, the first version of Bear with sawdust in his head appeared (in English - Bear-with-very-small-brains) - "Winnie the Pooh". The second part of the stories, "Now there are six of us", appeared in 1927, and the final part of the book "The House at the Pooh Corner" - in 1928. Milne never read his own stories about Winnie the Pooh to his son, Christopher Robin, preferring to educate him on the works of the writer Wodehouse, beloved by Alan himself, and Christopher first read poems and stories about the Pooh bear only 60 years after their first appearance.
Before the publication of books about Winnie the Pooh Milne was already a fairly well-known playwright, but the success of Winnie the Pooh acquired such proportions that Milne's other works are now practically unknown. Worldwide sales of Pooh Bear books translated into 25 languages from 1924 to 1956 exceeded 7 million, and by 1996 had sold about 20 million copies, and only by Muffin (this figure does not include publishers in the US, Canada and non-English speaking countries). A survey conducted in 1996 by English radio showed that the book about Winnie the Pooh was ranked 17th in the list of the most striking and significant works published in the twentieth century. That same year, Milne's favorite teddy bear was sold in London at the Bonham House auction to an unknown buyer for £4,600. In 1952, Milne fell seriously ill, and spent the next four years, until his death, on his estate in Cotchford, Sussex.
In 1966 Walt Disney released the first cartoon based on Milne's Winnie the Pooh.
In 1969-1972 in the USSR at the film studio "Soyuzmultfilm" three cartoons directed by Fyodor Khitruk "Winnie the Pooh", "Winnie the Pooh Goes to Visit" and "Winnie the Pooh and the Day of Worries" were released, which won the love of the children's audience Soviet Union. These cartoons and modern children watch with pleasure.
John Tolkien (1892-1973).
Future Writer was born on January 3, 1892 in the city of Blumfotein (South Africa). The son of an English merchant settled in South Africa, Tolkien returned to England already at a conscious age, after the death of his father. Soon he also lost his mother. Before her death, she converted from Anglicanism to Catholicism, so a Catholic priest became John's tutor and guardian. Religion had a significant impact on the writer's work.
In 1916, after graduating from Oxford University, Tolkien married Edith Brett, whom he loved from the age of 14 and with whom he did not part until her death in 1972. Edith became the prototype of one of Tolkien's favorite images - the elven beauty Luthien.
Since 1914, the writer has been busy implementing an ambitious plan - the creation of a "mythology for England", which would combine his favorite ancient tales of heroes and elves and Christian values. The result of these works was the "Book of Forgotten Tales" and the mythological code "Silmarillion" that grew out of it by the end of the writer's life.
In 1937 saw the light magic story The Hobbit, or There and Back Again. In it, for the first time in a fictional world (Middle-earth), funny creatures appear, reminiscent of the inhabitants of rural "good old England".
The hero of the fairy tale, the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, becomes a kind of intermediary between the reader and the gloomy majestic world of ancient legends. Persistent requests from publishers prompted Tolkien to continue the story. This is how the fabulously epic trilogy The Lord of the Rings appeared (the novels The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, both 1954, and The Return of the King, 1955, revised edition 1966). In fact, it was a continuation not only and not so much of The Hobbit, but also of The Silmarillion, which was not published during the life of the writer, as well as the unfinished novel about Atlantis, The Lost Road.
The main idea of The Lord of the Rings is the need for a consistent and unceasing fight against evil. It cannot be overcome without following Christian moral values. At the same time, only a “chance” will help to win the victory itself - the Providence of God. However, the writer does not impose his religious beliefs on the reader. The action in the novels takes place in a mythical pre-Christian world, and God is not mentioned even once in the entire trilogy (unlike The Silmarillion).
Tolkien devoted the remaining years of his life to finalizing The Silmarillion, which, however, never saw the light of day during the author's lifetime (1974). Having embodied ancient legends by means of modern literature, Tolkien became one of the creators of a new literary genre - fantasy.
Clive Lewis (1898-1963).
Some only found out who Clive Lewis was when Narnia hit the screens. And for some, Clive Staples has been an idol since childhood, when they read the Chronicles of Narnia or the stories of Balamut. In any case, the writer Staples Lewis discovered for many magical land. And, going along with his books to Narnia, almost no one thought about the fact that Clive Staples Lewis, in fact, wrote about God and religion. Clive Staples Lewis indeed has a religious theme in almost all his works, but it is unobtrusive and dressed in beautiful fairy tale on which more than one generation of children grew up.
Clive Staples was born November 29, 1898 in Ireland. When he was little, his life could indeed be called happy and carefree. He had a great brother and mother. Mother taught little Clive different languages, without even forgetting about Latin and, moreover, raised him in such a way that he would grow up as a real person, with normal views and understanding of life. But then grief happened and my mother died when Lewis was not even ten years old. For the boy, this was a terrible blow.
After that, his father, who was never known for his tenderness and cheerful character, sent the boy to closed school. This was another blow for him. He hated school and education until he got to Professor Kirkpatrick. It is worth noting that this professor was an atheist, while Lewis has always been distinguished by religiosity. And yet, Clive simply adored his teacher. He treated him like an idol, a standard. The professor also loved his student and tried to pass on all his knowledge to him. In addition, the professor was really very smart person. He taught the guy dialectics and other sciences, transferring to him all his knowledge and skills.
In 1917, Lewis was able to enter Oxford, but then he went to the front and fought on French territory. During the hostilities, the writer was wounded and ended up in the hospital. There he discovered Chesterton, whom he began to admire, but, at that time, he could not understand and love his views and concepts. After the war and the hospital, Lewis returned to Oxford, where he remained until 1954. Clive was very fond of the students. The fact is that he lectured so interestingly on English literature that many came to him again and again, in order to attend his classes again and again. At the same time, Clive wrote various articles, and then took up books. First great job was a book published in 1936. It was called "Allegory of Love".
What can be said about Lewis as a believer. In fact, the history of his faith is not so simple. Perhaps that is why he never tried to impose his faith on anyone.
Rather, he wanted to present it in such a way that whoever wanted to see it could see it. As a child, Clive was a kind, gentle and believing person, but after the death of his mother, his faith was shaken. Then he met a professor who, being an atheist, was a much smarter and kinder person than many believers. And then came university years. And, as Lewis himself said, unbelieving people, the same atheists like him, made him believe again. At Oxford, Clive made friends who were as smart, well-read and interesting as he was. In addition, these guys reminded him of the concepts of conscience and humanity, because, having come to Oxford, the writer had almost forgotten about these concepts, remembering only that one should not be too cruel and steal. But new friends were able to change his views, and he regained faith and remembered who he is and what he wants from life.
Clive Lewis wrote many interesting treatises, stories, sermons, fairy tales, novels. These are the Letters of the Balamut, and The Chronicles of Narnia, and the space trilogy, as well as the novel Until We Have Found Faces, which Clive wrote at a time when his beloved wife was very seriously ill. Lewis created his stories without trying to teach people how to believe in God. He was just trying to show where there is good and where there is evil, that everything is punishable, and even after a very long winter, summer comes, as it did in the second book of The Chronicles of Narnia.
Lewis wrote about God, about his associates, telling people about wonderful worlds. In fact, as a child, it is difficult to distinguish between symbolism and metaphor. But it is very interesting to read about the world that was created by the golden-maned lion Aslan, where you can fight and rule as a child, where animals talk, and various people live in the forests. mythical creatures. By the way, some church ministers treated Lewis extremely negatively. The point was that he mixed paganism and religion. In his books, naiads and dryads were, in fact, the same children of God as animals and birds. Therefore, the church considered his books unacceptable when viewed from the side of faith. But only some ministers of the church thought so. Many have a positive attitude towards Lewis's books and give them to their children, because, in fact, despite the mythology and religious symbols, in the first place, Lewis has always promoted goodness and justice. But his kindness is not perfect. He knows that there is evil that will always be evil. And, therefore, this evil must be destroyed. But this should not be done out of hatred and a sense of revenge, but only for the sake of justice.
Clive Staples did not live very long, though not very long. short life. He wrote many works of which he can be proud. In 1955 the writer moved to Cambridge. There he became head of the department. In 1962, Lewis was admitted to the British Academy. But then his health deteriorates sharply, he resigns. And on November 22, 1963, Clive Staples died.
Enid Blyton (1897-1968).
Enid Mary Blyton is a famous British writer, the creator of wonderful adventure works of children's and youth literature. She became one of the most successful teenage writers of the twentieth century.
Blyton was born August 11, 1897 in London, Lordship Lane (West Dulwich), house 354. She was the eldest daughter of Thomas Carey Blyton (1870-1920), a cutlery merchant, and his wife Teresa Mary, née Harrison (1874-1950 ). There were two younger sons, Hanley (b. 1899) and Carey (b. 1902), who were born after the family moved to the nearby suburb of Beckenham. From 1907 to 1915 Blyton studied at St. Christopher's School in Beckenham, where she excelled. Both academic work and physical activity were equally to her liking, although she did not like mathematics.
She was noted for several series of books intended for various age groups, with periodically recurring main characters. These books have been a huge success in many parts of the world, with over 400 million copies sold. According to one assessment, Blyton is the fifth most popular author worldwide: according to the Translatability Index; By 2007, more than 3,400 translations of her books had been made by UNESCO; in this respect it is inferior to Lenin, but superior to Shakespeare.
One of the most famous characters The writer is Noddy, who appears in stories for young children just learning to read. However, its main strength was novels, in which children got into exciting adventures and unraveled intriguing mysteries with little or no help from adults. The following series are particularly popular in this genre: The Fab Five (consisting of 21 novels, 1942-1963; the main characters are four teenagers and a dog), Five Young Detectives and a Faithful Dog (or Five Finders and a Dog, according to other translations ; consists of 15 novels, 1943-1961, in which five children certainly bypass the local police in investigating complicated incidents), as well as The Secret Seven (15 novels, 1949-1963, seven children solve various mysteries).
Enid Blyton's books contain children's adventure stories as well as fantasy elements, sometimes with magic involved. Her books were and still are extremely popular in Great Britain and in many other countries of the world, including Russia. Her work has been translated into over 90 languages, including Chinese, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hebrew, Japanese, Malay, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Slovenian, Serbian, Croatian, Spanish and Turkish.
Pamela Travers (1899-1996).
Travers Pamela Liliana - famous English writer, poetess and publicist, author of a series of children's books about Mary Poppins; Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
She was born on August 9, 1899 in Maryborough, Australia, Queensland. Parents were Travers bank manager Robert Goff and Margaret Agnes, before marriage - Morehead. Her father died when she was seven years old.
She began to write since childhood - she wrote stories and plays for school plays, and entertained her brothers and sisters magical stories. Her poems were published when she was not even twenty years old - she wrote for the Australian magazine The Bulletin.
As a young woman, she traveled to Australia and New Zealand, then went to England in 1923. At first she tried herself on the stage (Pamela is a stage name), playing exclusively in Shakespeare's plays, but then her passion for literature won, and she devoted herself completely to literature, publishing her works under the pseudonym “P. L. Travers" (the first two initials were used to hide a woman's name - a common practice for English-speaking writers).
In 1925, in Ireland, Travers met the mystic poet George William Russell, who had a great influence on her both as a person and as a writer. He was then editor of the magazine and accepted several of her poems for publication. Through Russell, Travers met William Butler Yeats and other Irish poets, who instilled in her an interest in and knowledge of world mythology. Yeats was not only an outstanding poet, but also a noble occultist. This direction becomes decisive for Pamela Travers up to last days her life.
In 1934, the publication of Mary Poppins was the first literary success Travers. The writer admitted that she did not remember how the idea of this fairy tale arose. In response to persistent questions from journalists, she usually cited the words of Clive Lewis, who believed that there is “only one Creator” in the world, and the writer’s task is only to “collect already existing elements into a single whole”, and by remaking reality, they change themselves.
The Disney film Mary Poppins was released in 1964 (starring Mary Poppins was played by actress Julie Andrews). The film was nominated for an Oscar in 13 categories and won five awards. In the Soviet Union in 1983, the film "Mary Poppins, goodbye!" Was released.
In her life, the writer was distinguished by the fact that she tried not to advertise the facts of her personal life, including her Australian origin. “If you are interested in the facts of my biography,” Travers once said, “the story of my life is contained in Mary Poppins and my other books.”
Although she has never been married, shortly before her 40th birthday, Travers adopted an Irish boy named Camillus, while separating him from his twin brother, since she refused to take two children (the boys were not reunited until a few years later).
In 1977, Travers was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire. Her talent as a writer was recognized everywhere, and as another confirmation - a simple fact: in 1965-71 she lectured on writing in colleges in the UK and the USA. Her house was filled with books, books were everywhere, on countless shelves along the walls, on tables, on the floor. The author once joked: “If I were left without a roof over my head, I could build a house out of books.” In general, she was an active and active woman, traveled a lot, and even in extreme old age, from 1976 until her death in 1996, she worked as an editor of the mythological magazine Parabola. Her later writings include the travel essays and essay collections What the Bee Knows: Reflections on Myth, Symbol, and Plot.
Pamela Travers died in 1996, but the writer believed in the infinity of life: "Where the core is strong, there is neither beginning nor end, there is no word goodbye ...". It's probably right: storytellers don't die...
Mary Norton (1903-1992).
Mary Pearson was born on December 10 in London, and was the only girl among five children. Soon the family moved to Bedfordshire, to the same house that was described in The Getters. After graduating from high school and briefly working as a secretary, she became an actress.
Two years later theater life in 1927 Mary Pearson married Edward Norton and left with her husband for Portugal. She had two sons and two daughters there, and it was there that she began to write.
After the outbreak of war, Mary's husband entered the service in the Navy, and in 1943 she herself returned with her children to England. In 1943, her first children's book, The Magic Knob, or How to Become a Witch in Ten Easy Lessons, was published, followed by The Fire and the Broom. A few years later, both tales were reworked and combined into one, "The Head and the Broom", the film rights to which were sold to Disney Studios for a very small amount.
The most famous fairy tale Norton - "Getters" was published in 1952 and received the Carnegie Medal, the main award for English children's writers. "Getters" were filmed many times.
Movies and TV shows based on Mary Norton's books are drawing new generations of readers to them.
Mary Norton died in Devon, England in 1992.
Donald Bisset (1910-1995)
Donald Bisset is an English children's writer, artist, film actor and theater director. Born August 30, 1910 in Brentford, Middlesex, England.
He studied at the school of clerks. During World War II he served as an artillery lieutenant.
Bisset began writing fairy tales for London television. Soon he began to read them in children's programs. And since he was a professional actor, he read his fairy tales just fine. He accompanied his reading with a display of amusing and expressive drawings. The broadcast lasted about eight minutes, and, accordingly, the volume of the tale did not exceed two or three pages.
In 1954, he published the first book of his short stories, published in the Read It Yourself series. The book was called "I'll Tell You When You Want". It was followed by "I'll tell you another time", "I'll tell you someday." This series was followed by collections united by the same heroes - "Yak", "Conversations with a Tiger", "The Adventures of Miranda the Duck", "Horse Named Smoky", "Uncle Tick-Tock's Journey", "Trip to the Jungle" . All books were illustrated with drawings by Bisset himself.
As an actor, Bisset played roles in 57 films and television series, which, unfortunately, remained unknown outside of England. Bisset played his first role in the film Carousel in 1949. He also distinguished himself as an inventive theater director. He himself staged his tales at the Royal Shakespeare Theater in Stratford-upon-Avon and even played a dozen small roles in them. The last time in the movie he played in 1991 in the English television series "Bill" the role of Mr. Grimm. On television, he staged and hosted the program for children "The Adventures of Yak" (1971-1975).
Bisset wrote about himself like this : “... Scot. I live in London… Gray hair, blue eyes, 5.9 feet tall. I have been working in the theater since 1933. He began telling fairy tales for children in 1953 on television. ... In philosophy, I am a materialist. By temperament, he is an optimist. My greatest desire is to publish one of my children's books with my own color illustrations... My favorite children's books are The Wind in the Willows, Winnie the Pooh, Alice in Wonderland. And folk tales about giants and witches. I don't really like the fairy tales of Hans Andersen and the Brothers Grimm.
When Donald Bisset was asked why he became a writer, he replied: “Because the grass is green and the trees are growing. Because I can hear the thunder and the rain. Because I love children and animals. I take my hat off to ladybug. I love stroking cats and riding horses... And also writing fairy tales, playing in the theater, drawing... When you love both, then you are rich. Whoever loves nothing cannot be happy.”
He invented and settled in Africa a beast that is never bored: one half of it consists of the Charming Cat, and the other of the Resourceful Crocodile. The animal's name is Crococat. Donald Bisset's favorite friend is the tiger cub Rrrr, with whom Donald Bisset loves to travel along the river of time until the end of the Rainbow, and he knows how to move his brains so much that his thoughts rustle. The main enemies of Donald Bisset and Rrrr Tiger Cub are Vrednyugs with the names Don't, Nesmey and Be ashamed.
Bisset visited Moscow twice, appeared on television, and visited kindergarten, where he even composed the fairy tale “What I want, I do” with the children.
Despite the fact that Bisset has more than one and a half hundred fairy tales, in the English-speaking world he is practically forgotten. Bisset is still reprinted in Russia, and his fairy tales are widely known. In the eighties, a cycle of seven cartoons was filmed in the USSR under the general name "Tales of Donald Bisset" - "The Girl and the Dragon", "Forgotten Birthday", "Crococcote", "Raspberry Jam", "Snowfall from the Refrigerator", "Music Lesson "," Vrednyuga.
Gerald Durrell (1925-1995) - English naturalist, writer, founder of the Jersey Zoo and the Wildlife Conservation Trust, which now bear his name.
He was the fourth and most youngest child in the family of British civil engineer Lawrence Samuel Durrell and his wife Louise Florence Durrell (née Dixie). According to relatives, already at the age of two, Gerald fell ill with "zoomania", and his mother recalled that one of his first words was "zoo" (zoo).
In 1928, after the death of their father, the family moved to England, and seven years later, on the advice of Gerald's older brother Lawrence, to the Greek island of Corfu.
Gerald Durrell's early home teachers had few real educators. The only exception was the naturalist Theodore Stephanides (1896-1983). It was from him that Gerald received the first systematic knowledge of zoology. Stephanides appears on the pages of Gerald Durrell's most famous book, My Family and Other Beasts. The books "Birds, Beasts and Relatives" (1969) and "Amateur Naturalist" (1982) are dedicated to him.
In 1939 (after the outbreak of World War II), Gerald and his family returned to England and got a job in the London Aquarium store.
But the real start to Darrell's career as an explorer was at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire. Here Gerald got a job immediately after the war as a "student-caretaker", or "boy on pets", as he called himself. It was here that he received his first professional training and began to collect a "dossier" containing information about rare and endangered species of animals (and this was 20 years before the appearance of the International Red Book).
After the end of the war, 20-year-old Darrell decides to return to his historical homeland - to Jamshedpur.
In 1947, Gerald Durrell, having reached the age of majority (21 years old), received part of his father's inheritance. With this money, he organized three expeditions - two to British Cameroon (1947-1949) and one to British Guiana (1950). These expeditions do not bring profit, and in the early 50s, Gerald finds himself without a livelihood and work.
Not a single zoo in Australia, the United States and Canada was able to offer him a position. At this time, Lawrence Durrell, Gerald's older brother, advises him to take up a pen, especially since "English people love books about animals."
Gerald's first story, "The Hunt for the Hairy Frog," was an unexpected success, and the author was even invited to personally read this work on the radio. His first book, The Overloaded Ark (1953), was about a trip to Cameroon and received rave reviews from readers and critics alike.
The author was noticed by major publishers, and the fee for "The Overloaded Ark" and the second book by Gerald Durrell - "Three tickets to Adventure" (1954) - allowed him to organize an expedition in 1954 to South America. However, a military coup took place in Paraguay at that time, and almost the entire collection of animals had to be left there. Durrell described his impressions of this trip in his next book, Under the Canopy of the Drunken Forest (1955). At the same time, at the invitation of his brother - Lawrence - Gerald was resting in Corfu.
Familiar places evoked a lot of childhood memories - this is how the famous "Greek" trilogy appeared: "My Family and Other Beasts" (1956), "Birds, Beasts and Relatives" (1969) and "Garden of the Gods" (1978). The first book in the trilogy was a wild success. Only in the UK, "My Family and Other Animals" was reprinted 30 times, in the US - 20 times.
In total, Gerald Durrell wrote about 40 books (almost all of them were translated into dozens of languages) and made 35 films. The debut four-episode television film "In Bafut with the Hounds", released in 1958, was very popular in England.
Thirty years later, Darrell managed to shoot in the Soviet Union, with active participation and assistance from the Soviet side. The result was the thirteen-episode film "Darrell in Russia" (also shown on the first channel of the USSR television in 1986-1988) and the book "Darrell in Russia" (not officially translated into Russian).
In the USSR, Darrell's books were printed repeatedly and in large print runs. These books are still being reprinted.
In 1959, Durrell created a zoo on the island of Jersey, and in 1963, the Jersey Wildlife Conservation Fund was organized on the basis of the zoo.
Darrell's main idea was to breed rare and endangered species of animals in a zoo in order to further resettle them in their natural habitats. This idea has now become an accepted scientific concept. If not for the Jersey Foundation, many species of animals would be preserved only as stuffed animals in museums. Thanks to the Foundation, the pink dove, Mauritius kestrel, monkeys: golden lion marmoset and marmoset, Australian corroboree frog, Madagascar radiant tortoise and many other species have been saved from extinction.
Alan Garner (born 1934) is a British fantasy writer whose work is based on Old English legends. Writers was born on October 17, 1934.
Early childhood Alan Garner held at Alderley Edge, in Cheshire, England. His ancestors lived there for over three hundred years. This influenced his work. Most of the works, including The Magic Stone of Breezingamen, are written based on the legends of those places.
The writer's childhood fell on the Second world war, during which the boy suffered three serious illnesses (diphtheria, meningitis, pneumonia), lying almost motionless on the bed and allowing his imagination to travel beyond the white ceiling and the window sealed in case of bombing. Alan was only child, and although his entire family survived the war, the forced years of loneliness did not pass without a trace for the formation of the personality and worldview of the writer.
At the insistence of a village teacher, Garner was sent to the Manchester Grammar School, later, the library at this school was named after him. After graduating from college, Garner entered the University of Oxford, in the department of Celtic mythology. Without completing his studies, he joined the Royal Artillery, where he served for two years.
The most famous are his books The Magic Stone of Breezingamen (1960), as well as the sequel - The Moon on the Eve of Gomrat (1963), and the story Elidor (1965). After their publication, Garner was talked about as a "very special" children's writer in England. However, the definition of "children's" is not entirely correct. Garner himself claims that he does not write specifically for children; although the characters in his books are always children, he appeals to readers of all ages.
Now the writer lives in his native Alderley Edge in eastern Cheshire in an old house that has stood there since the 16th century. The almost realistic "Stone Book" (1976-1978), composed of "four short stories, four prose poems" about the generations of the Garner family, is devoted to the history of this region.
Jacqueline Wilson (born 1945).
Jacqueline Atkin was born on December 17, 1945, in the center of Somerset, the city of Bath. Her father was a civil servant and her mother an antique dealer. Much of Wilson's childhood was spent in the town of Kingston upon Thames, where she attended primary school Lachmer. At the age of nine, the girl wrote her first story, 22 pages long. At school, she was remembered as a dreamy child who was at odds with the exact sciences, and was even given the nickname "Jackie Dream", which Jacqueline later used in her autobiography.
After leaving school at the age of 16, Wilson went to secretarial courses, but soon changed jobs, getting a job in the girls' magazine Jackie (Jackie). Because of this, she had to move to Scotland, but it was there that she met and fell in love with her future husband, William Millar Wilson. In 1965 they got married, and two years later they had a daughter, Emma, who later also became a writer.
In 1991, a book was published that brought her fame - "Tracey Beaker's Diary", although since the 60s, Jacqueline has written about 40 books for children. The diary formed the basis of the popular British television series of the BBC channel - "The Tracey Beaker Story", which ran successfully from 2002 to 2006.
In 2011 in national center children's books "Seven Stories" ("Seven stories") in Newcastle opened an exhibition dedicated to the life and career of the English writer.
JK Rowling (b. 1965).
Joan Kathleen Rowling was born on July 31, 1965 in English city Bristol. A few years later, the family moved to Winterburn, where the Potters lived next to the Rowlings, with whose children Joan played in the yard.
When Rowling was 9 years old, the family moved to the small town of Tutshill near big forest. Rowling's parents were Londoners and always dreamed of living in nature.
After a school where Joan's favorite subject was English and her least favorite was physical education, Rowling entered the University of Exeter and earned a degree in French.
After university, Rowling worked in the London office of Amnesty International as a secretary. She says the best thing about this job was that you could use your office computer to type in your stories when no one was watching. It was while working for Amnesty International, while traveling by train from Manchester to London in the summer of 1990, that Rowling came up with the idea for a book about a boy who is a wizard but doesn't know it. By the time the train arrived at Charing Cross Station in London, many chapters of the first book had already been written.
In 1992, Rowling went to Portugal to work as an English teacher. She returned back with her little daughter and a suitcase full of notes about Harry Potter. Rowling settled in Edinburgh and devoted herself entirely to writing the book. When the book was finished, Rowling, after several failed attempts to interest publishers, assigned the task of selling the book to literary agent Christopher Little. She got a job teaching French.
In 1997, an agent told her that Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone had been published by Bloomsbury. The book was a success almost immediately. She bought up superbly and received several literary prizes. The rights to publish it in America were already bought for $105,000, $101,000 more than the English ones.
It is from this moment that the rapid ascent of JK Rowling on the ladder of fame begins. Books and films about Harry Potter brought Joan a huge fortune, today it is estimated at one billion one hundred million dollars. The writer herself is a Chevalier of the Order of the Legion of Honor, as well as the owner of the Hugo Award and many other no less significant awards.
Rowling is currently active charitable activities, supporting the Single Parents Foundation and the Multiple Sclerosis Research Foundation, from which her mother died.
