Annie Keary facts for kids
Anna Maria (Annie) Keary (3 March 1825 – 3 March 1879) was an English writer. She wrote novels and poems, and was known for her new ideas in children's books.
Life Story
Annie Keary was born in 1825 in a village called Bilton, in Yorkshire. Her father, William Keary, was a former army chaplain from Ireland. Her mother was Lucy Plumer. Annie was taught at home. She often had poor health and was a little deaf.
Later, her family moved several times because of her father's work. First, they went to Nunnington in North Yorkshire. Then, when Annie was 20, they moved to Clifton, near Bristol. This move was because her father's health was not good. Annie and her father were very close. He shared many stories about Ireland with her. These stories later helped her write her novels.
In 1848, Annie moved to Staffordshire to help her widowed brother. He had three children, and she kept house for them. She spent six happy years there. However, this time ended when her brother got married again. Soon after, she lost two other brothers she loved. Also, a long engagement she had was broken off.
Annie's sister, Eliza, wrote a book about Annie's life after Annie passed away in Eastbourne in 1879. A few years later, a collection of Annie's letters was also published.
Eliza's book tells how she traveled with Annie, who was often frail. They went to places like Egypt and Cannes. These trips helped Annie research her books. The sisters also helped run a home for young women who were looking for work. They became friends with the famous writer Charles Kingsley and his family. Family was very important to Annie. She took care of her mother when she was sick in 1869. Later, she looked after four young cousins whose parents were living in India.
Her Books
Annie Keary's first book for children came out in 1856. This was the year after her father died. Her third children's book, The Heroes of Asgard (1857), was special. It was the first of three books she wrote with her sister Eliza. Another book, The Rival Kings (1858), was quite new for children's stories. It featured groups of rival children and showed how they disliked each other.
Annie continued to write books for children and educational books. Examples include Early Egyptian History (1861) and The Nation Around (1870). But in 1859, she also started writing novels for adults. Her first adult novel was Through the Shadows (1859). She became more famous with Castle Daly: The Story of an Irish Home Thirty Years Ago (1875). This book was printed many times. It tells about the Great Famine and the Young Irelanders' Uprising in Ireland. It first appeared in parts in Macmillan's Magazine. Her book Oldbury (1869) is set in the small town where she grew up. She also worked with her sisters Eliza and Maud on a book of poems for children called Enchanted Tulips and Other Verses for Children. This book was published much later, in 1914.
Her last novel, A Doubting Heart (1879), was finished by a friend, Mrs K. Macquoid. Like her other adult books, it had strong characters and good descriptions of places.
Eliza Harriett Keary (1827–1918)
Eliza Harriett Keary was Annie's sister. Besides working with Annie and writing about her, Eliza also wrote poetry. Her poems were published during her lifetime. Some experts who study women's writing have recently looked at her work again. Eliza passed away in Torquay in 1918. Her nephew, Charles Francis Keary (1848–1917), was also a well-known author. He also worked on studying old coins.
