Little Lord Fauntleroy (Penguin Popular Classics) - Softcover

Burnett, Frances Hodgson

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140621687 ISBN 13: 9780140621686

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 1995

Synopsis

Little Lord Fauntleroy (1885, 1886) by Frances Hodgson Burnett is a beloved children's novel that made a huge impact on the 19th century public, shaping everything from boys' clothing fashions to copyright law. Cedric Errol is a generous, kind, and exemplary middle-class American boy who is suddenly found to be the heir of the Earl of Dorincourt. Saying loving goodbyes to his working-class friends, Cedric goes to England together with his mother to embrace his new fortune. His grandfather, the old earl, is a bitter old man ridden with gout and a foul temper, trusting no one. However the angelic boy elicits a profound transformation in the grandfather, which not only benefits the castle household but the whole populace of the earldom. If only the old man's heart would soften toward Cedric's estranged mother, the family would be healed at last. And when another potential heir to the earldom makes a claim, it seems that everything is lost.... But all things are possible through a child's innocent trust, true friendship, and unconditional love.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Little Lord Fauntleroy is the engaging, amusing, and moving story of a boy living on the edge of poverty in New York, who suddenly learns that he is the heir to an English lord with vast lands and wealth. Travelling to his grandfather's castle, Cedric shows his trusting and democratic nature in his dealings with lawyers and clergymen, servants and farmers, but it is his relationship with his proud and unfeeling grandfather which lies at the heart of the novel, and developments there take an unexpected turn when the appearance of an unforeseen rival claimant to the title brings the book to a dramatic climax. First published in 1886, the story soon became a huge success throughout Europe and America, and achieved unjust notoriety when its hero's costume of black velvet with lace collar created a fashion for Little Lord Fauntleroy suits which were foisted upon reluctant children. Despite this reaction, however, the warmth and humour of Frances Hodgson Burnett's story have ensured its survival as a children's classic and an enduring phenomenon of popular culture. The text is that of the first English edition with significant variations from the first serialization of the story and the first American edition recorded in the notes.

Synopsis:

The story of a small angelic New York boy who is told he is the heir to an English earldom and is whisked away to the English countryside where he begins to win over his bad-tempered old grandfather. When the boy's identity is challenged, his old friends from New York come to his rescue.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0140621687
• ISBN 13: 9780140621686
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176