May Crommelin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
May Crommelin
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| Born | 1850  |
| Died | 10 August 1930 (aged 79–80) |
| Occupation | Novelist |
May de la Cherois Crommelin (1850–1930) was a famous novelist and travel writer. Her full name was Maria Henrietta de la Cherois Crommelin. She was born in Ulster, Ireland, at Carrowdore Castle in County Down.
May and her sisters, Evelyn and Caroline, became joint heads of their family after their brother passed away. This was a special role in their family.
When May was young, her family often lived in different places. This was because of some political issues in their home country. May was taught at home by private teachers called governesses.
In the 1880s, her family moved to England. After her father died in 1885, May lived on her own in London. Even though her family had a long history and some important ancestors, they were not rich. So, May earned her living by writing books. An interesting fact is that her cousin, Andrew Claude de la Cherois Crommelin, was a well-known astronomer!
May's Adventures in Writing
May Crommelin loved to travel and explore new places. She visited many parts of the world. For example, she went to the Andes mountains in South America. She wrote about this trip in her 1896 book, Over the Andes From the Argentine to Chili and Peru. She also traveled to the West Indies and North Africa.
Her travels inspired her writing. May wrote an amazing 42 novels! Many of her stories were based on the places she had seen.
Her First Books
May's very first novel, Queenie, was published in 1874. Later, in 1879, she wrote Orange Lily. This book was set in Ulster, the part of Ireland where she was born.
In 1884, she published a book called Joy. This story took place on Dartmoor, an area in England where she lived after moving there. Her 1890 book, Cross-Roads, used her knowledge of France and Italy.
How Her Books Were Received
People had different opinions about May's books. For instance, her novel Goblin Gold, published in 1885, did not get very good reviews at the time. Besides her novels, May also wrote travel stories and short stories. These were published in magazines like The Idler.
