E. Nesbit facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Edith Nesbit
Edith Nesbit, ca. 1890
Born	(1858-08-15)15 August 1858 Kennington, Surrey (now Greater London), England
Died	4 May 1924(1924-05-04) (aged 65) New Romney, Kent, England
Pen name	E. Nesbit
Occupation	Writer, poet
Nationality	English
Period	1886–1924
Genre	Children's literature
Notable works	The Story of the Treasure Seekers The Railway Children Five Children and It
Spouse	Hubert Bland ​ ​ (m. 1880; died 1914)​ Thomas Tucker ​ (m. 1917)​

Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; born August 15, 1858 – died May 4, 1924) was an English author and poet. She wrote her popular books for children using the name E. Nesbit.

She wrote or helped create over 60 books for children. She was also involved in politics and helped start the Fabian Society. This was a group that believed in socialism, a way of organizing society where important things like factories and services are owned by everyone, not just private companies. The Fabian Society later joined with the Labour Party in the UK.

About Edith Nesbit's Life

Edith Nesbit was born in 1858 in Kennington, England. Her father, John Collis Nesbit, was a chemist who studied farming. He passed away when Edith was almost four years old. Her mother was Sarah Green.

Edith's older sister, Mary, was often sick. Because of this, the family traveled a lot for several years. They lived in different places like Brighton in England, and many towns in France, Spain, and Germany.

In 1871, Edith's sister Mary died from a lung disease called tuberculosis while they were in France.

After Mary's death, Edith and her mother lived for three years at Halstead Hall in Kent, England. This place later gave Edith ideas for her famous book, The Railway Children.

When Edith was seventeen, her family moved back to London.

Family Life and Children

At eighteen, Edith met Hubert Bland in 1877. They got married on April 22, 1880. Their marriage was sometimes difficult. Edith and Hubert had three children together: Paul, Mary, and Fabian.

Edith also adopted two children, Rosamund and John, who were Hubert's children from another woman, Alice Hoatson. Alice lived with the family as a housekeeper and secretary.

Sadly, Edith's son Fabian died at age 15 after a tonsil operation. Edith dedicated several of her books to him, including The Story of the Treasure Seekers. Her adopted daughter Rosamund even worked with her on a book called Cat Tales.

E. Nesbit's grave in St Mary in the Marsh's churchyard has a wooden marker made by her second husband, Thomas Terry Tucker. There is also a special plaque for her inside the church.

Political Involvement

Edith Nesbit was a supporter of the socialist ideas of William Morris. In 1884, she and her husband Hubert Bland helped start the Fabian Society. Their son Fabian was even named after this group. Edith was very active in speaking and writing about socialism in the 1880s.

From 1899 to 1920, Edith lived in Well Hall in Eltham, London. This house appears in some of her books. She and her husband often had many friends and famous people visit their home.

On February 20, 1917, about three years after Hubert Bland passed away, Edith married Thomas "the Skipper" Tucker. He was a captain on the Woolwich Ferry.

Edith Nesbit passed away in 1924 and was buried in the churchyard of St Mary in the Marsh.

Edith Nesbit as a Writer

Edith Nesbit's first published works were poems. Her poem "Under the Trees" was printed in a magazine called Good Words in March 1878, when she was not yet twenty.

Nesbit published about 40 books for children, including novels, story collections, and picture books. She also worked with others to publish many more.

Many people consider Edith Nesbit to be the "first modern writer for children." She changed children's literature by writing about real children in everyday settings, but then adding magical things and adventures. She influenced many famous writers who came after her, such as P. L. Travers (who wrote Mary Poppins), C. S. Lewis (who wrote Narnia), and J. K. Rowling (who wrote Harry Potter).

Some of Nesbit's most famous books include The Story of the Treasure Seekers (1899) and The Wouldbegoods (1901). These books tell stories about the Bastables, a family who faces some tough times. The Railway Children is also very well-known, especially because it was made into a movie in 1970.

Edith Nesbit also wrote for adults, including eleven novels and collections of scary stories.

Edith Nesbit's Legacy

• The Edith Nesbit Walk, which is also a bike path, runs along the south side of Well Hall Pleasaunce in Eltham, London.
• In Lee Green, South East London, there is a place called Edith Nesbit Gardens.
• A walking path in Grove Park, London, is named Railway Children Walk. It celebrates Nesbit's famous novel.
• There is a Nesbit Road in St Mary's Bay, Kent, where Nesbit's former home was located.

A play about Edith Nesbit's life, called Larks and Magic, was created by Alison Neil.

The Edith Nesbit Society was started in 1996. It helps keep her memory and works alive.

Books About Edith Nesbit

Besides her own book, Long Ago When I was Young (1966), many other books have been written about Edith Nesbit's life:

• Doris Langley Moore, E. Nesbit, 1933.
• Noel Streatfeild, Magic and the Magician: E. Nesbit and her Children’s Books, 1958.
• Julia Briggs, A Woman of Passion, 1987.
• Elisabeth Galvin, The Extraordinary Life of E. Nesbit, 2018.
• Eleanor Fitzsimons, The Life and Loves of E Nesbit, 2019.

Edith Nesbit's Works

Novels for Children

The Bastable Series

• 1899 The Story of the Treasure Seekers
• 1901 The Wouldbegoods
• 1904 The New Treasure Seekers

The Complete History of the Bastable Family (1928) is a collection of these three novels. The Bastables also appear in the 1902 adult novel The Red House.

The Psammead Series

• 1902 Five Children and It
• 1904 The Phoenix and the Carpet
• 1906 The Story of the Amulet

The House of Arden Series

• 1908 The House of Arden
• 1909 Harding's Luck

Other Children's Novels

Novels for Adults

Stories and Story Collections for Children

Non-fiction Books

• 1913 Wings and the Child, or The Building of Magic Cities
• 1966 Long Ago When I Was Young (first appeared as a series in Girl's Own Paper in 1896–97)

Poetry Collections