A Victorian Street Seller (A Day in the Life of a...) - Hardcover

Wood, Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 075022374X ISBN 13: 9780750223744

Publisher: Wayland, 1999

Synopsis

A young girl's adventures selling muffins aims to introduces curriculum themes of living and working conditions, daily life in the town, transport and health in Victorian times. The book attempts to capture the interest of the young reader through the nature of bizarre street characters: sellers of dog-collars, puppies, sherbet and songs, shoe-blacks, rat-catchers and funeral mutes. The illustrations and photographs show individual street sellers and a street scene where they are at work. Captions encourage readers to search for information hidden in the artwork. This book is one of a series which focus on a day in the life of a fictional character providing the opportunity for a detailed look at how people dressed, ate, worked, travelled and survived in different eras. It aims to combine fictional narrative, informative factual text and quotes to enhance literacy skills and to encourage the reader to consider concepts of time, chronology, biography and diary .

About this title

From the Author:

Writing fact and fiction
What I really liked about writing for this series (I've also written "A Day in the Life of a Roman Centurion") was the chance to combine an element of fiction with some sound historical facts.

The first problem was choosing a credible identity for the street-seller child character. I called her Joss, after my great-aunt Joss, who would have been a contemporary of my character (though not a street-seller!) I though the name was not too obviously feminine, so it might help boys to identify with her.

Henry Mayhew's "London Labour and London Poor" provided a wonderful source of information about the lives of working people in Victorian London. It also yielded some very memorable quotes which I hope will appeal to an 8 - 12 year-old readership.

The choice of the funeral as a topic for one spread may seem a little odd in a children's book. But my recent experience of setting up an exhibition at the Norfolk Rural Life Museum on "Life and Death in the Workhouse" (sponsored by a local firm of funeral directors!) showed me how fascinated children were to learn about this sombre but central aspect of Victorian life.

Anyway, I hope that readers - parents, librarians, and especially the children themselves - will find the book entertaining and informative as well as useful background for Key Stage 2 history.

Book Description:

Spend the day with a historical figure and discover how people lived in different eras.

About this edition

• Publisher: Wayland
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 075022374X
• ISBN 13: 9780750223744
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32