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Borrowers by Mary Norton — book cover
Fiction - Adventure, Adventurers & Heroes, Fiction - Children's Classics, Fiction - Fantasy & Magic, Fiction - Family Life

Borrowers

by Mary Norton, Beth Krush (Illustrator), Joe Krush
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Overview

The Borrowers—the Clock family: Homily, Pod, and their fourteen-year-old daughter, Arrietty, to be precise—are tiny people who live underneath the kitchen floor of an old English country manor. All their minuscule home furnishings, from postage stamp paintings to champagne cork chairs, are “borrowed” from the “human beans” who tromp around loudly above them. All is well until Pod is spotted upstairs by a human boy! Can the Clocks stay nested safely in their beloved hidden home, or will they be forced to flee? The British author Mary Norton won the Carnegie Medal for The Borrowers in 1952, the year it was first published in England. This repackaged paperback edition still has the delightful original black-and-white illustrations by Beth and Joe Krush inside. A charmer! Awards: 1952 Carnegie Medal, a Lewis Carroll Shelf Award Book Don’t miss the other classics in the Borrowers series: The Borrowers Afield, The Borrowers Afloat, The Borrowers Aloft, and The Borrowers Avenged.

Miniature people who live in an old country house by borrowing things from the humans are forced to emigrate from their home under the clock. Includes a letter and a sketch of Homily and Arrietty by the author.

Synopsis

An exquisite gift edition celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the beloved Borrowers.

Publishers Weekly

For 50 years, fans have enjoyed Mary Norton's classic story of The Borrowers, the tiny family (Pod, Homily and their daughter, Arrietty) that secretly lives under the floorboards. This new gift edition features sepia-toned pen-and-inks that Diana Stanley drew for the original 1952 British edition a new foreword by Leonard Marcus explains the book's history, and a ribbon bookmark keeps the place for avid fans. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

About the Author, Mary Norton

MARY NORTON (1903-1992) lived in England, where she was an actress, playwright, and award-winning author. As a child she created a make-believe world in which tiny people inhabited the hedgerows, living their lives out of the sight of humans. It's from this private fantasy that her most well-known books, those about the Borrowers, came about.

LEONARD S. MARCUS is a well respected critic and historian of children's literature. His many books include Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom and Margaret Wise Brown: Awakened by the Moon. He lives in New York.

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Editorials

From the Publisher

Praise for Mary Norton's The Borrowers:
"A book that begs to be shared."—The Horn Book

"The magic and charm of the writing convince children and grown-ups, too, that Borrowers really do exist."—School Library Journal

Publishers Weekly

For 50 years, fans have enjoyed Mary Norton's classic story of The Borrowers, the tiny family (Pod, Homily and their daughter, Arrietty) that secretly lives under the floorboards. This new gift edition features sepia-toned pen-and-inks that Diana Stanley drew for the original 1952 British edition a new foreword by Leonard Marcus explains the book's history, and a ribbon bookmark keeps the place for avid fans. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

Long winter nights are perfect for delving into the hidden rooms of The Borrowers. The handsome 50th anniversary edition provides a remarkable reading adventure—and insight into the book's creation and popularity, thanks to a foreword by literary critic Leonard Marcus and an author's introduction. From her own childhood imaginings, author Mary Norton wrote this children's classic about three tiny people living under the floorboards of an English country house. To survive, they secretly "borrow" needles, spools and other household items from the human inhabitants. They are careful never to be seen. When the lonely daughter, six-inch-high Arrietty, befriends a human boy, her parents fear danger. Before long, Mrs. Driver, the efficient housekeeper, discovers their little home—and they are doomed. Only the boy can help them. 2003 (orig. 1952), Harcourt, Ages 8 up.
—Mary Quattlebaum

Children's Literature - Deborah Palgon

In a quiet, old house in the countryside of England, hidden beneath the floorboards of the kitchen, live the Borrowers. They are the Clock family: Pod, Homily, and their daughter Arriety, miniature people who live by "borrowing" what they need from the human beings who live above them. Postage stamps are used for paintings, matchboxes are used for chests of drawers and miniature doll teacups and saucers are borrowed because they are just the right size for the Borrowers. All is quiet until Arriety, the daughter, ventures out and is discovered by a young boy living in the house. Written over forty years ago, the appeal of this fantasy continues with the release this year of the movie version. 1981 (orig.

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

This fist in a series of tales about miniature people, who live in an old country house by borrowing things from the humans has recently been reissued. Pod and Homily and their daughter Arriety are the clock family, so named because they live under the grandfather clock that has stood in the hall for 200 years. In this book they are forced to emigrate from their home under the clock and a friendship blossoms between the grandnephew of the bedridden mistress of the house and Arrietty. Winner of the Carnegie Medal as the outstanding children's book of 1952. The entire series has been reissued in hard and soft cover due to the soon to be released film. The other titles include The Borrowers Afield, The Borrowers Afloat, The Borrowers Aloft, and The Borrowers Avenged. 1971 (orig.

Book Details

Published
March 1, 2003
Publisher
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pages
192
Format
Paperback
ISBN
9780152047375

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