Rose Fyleman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rose A. Fyleman
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Rose Fyleman photographed by Howard Coster, 1926
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Rose Amy Fyleman
6 March 1877 |
| Died | 1 August 1957 (aged 80) |
Rose Amy Fyleman (born March 6, 1877 – died August 1, 1957) was an English writer and poet. She was famous for her stories and poems about fairies, especially for children.
One of her most well-known poems is "There are fairies at the bottom of our garden." An English composer named Liza Lehmann later set this poem to music. Rose Fyleman also wrote a carol called "Lift your hidden faces." This carol was included in popular hymn books like Songs of Praise and The Oxford Book of Carols.
Life and Writing Journey
Rose Fyleman was born in Nottingham, England, on March 6, 1877. She was the third child of John and Emilie Feilmann. Her father worked in the lace business.
When Rose was a young girl, she went to a private school. At just nine years old, one of her writings was printed in a local newspaper! She wanted to become a schoolteacher and studied at University College, Nottingham. However, she did not finish that program.
Rose had a beautiful singing voice, so she decided to study music instead. She learned singing in Paris, Berlin, and then at the Royal College of Music in London. After her studies, she returned to Nottingham. There, she taught singing and helped at her sister's school. In 1914, when the First World War started, her family changed the spelling of their last name to Fyleman.
When Rose was forty, she sent some of her poems to Punch magazine. Her first poem, "There are Fairies at the Bottom of Our Garden," was published in May 1917. People loved it so much that publishers asked for more of her fairy poems.
Her first collection of poems, Fairies and Chimneys (1918), was a huge success. It was reprinted over twenty times in the next ten years! During the 1920s and early 1930s, Rose Fyleman published many poetry books. She also wrote plays for children. For two years, she even edited a children's magazine called Merry-Go-Round. Rose was also good at languages. She translated books from German, French, and Italian, including the "Bibi" stories by Danish writer Karin Michaëlis.
Rose Fyleman became one of the most successful children's writers of her time. Many of her early poems became very famous. She passed away in St Albans, Hertfordshire, on August 1, 1957.
Poem About Winnipeg
In December 1929, Rose Fyleman visited Winnipeg, Canada. She was invited to speak at some women's clubs. She stayed at the Fort Garry Hotel, which was close to the Manitoba Parliament Building.
One evening, Rose and a friend decided to walk to the parliament building. Rose wanted to see the statue of Queen Victoria on the front lawn.
It was such a lovely winter night that when they returned to the hotel, Rose felt inspired. She wrote a poem called "Winnipeg at Christmas." This poem was published soon after, on New Year's Day, 1930, in the British magazine Punch.
Many people in Winnipeg know this poem well. They often learned it in school and still talk about it during the Christmas season. Fred Penner, a children's entertainer from Winnipeg, included it on his 1990 Christmas album. In 2018, The Winnipeg Singers choir asked a composer to create music for the poem. They performed it at their Christmas concert that year.
Published Works
Rose Fyleman wrote many books for children. These included collections of stories, poems, and plays. She also translated books from other languages. Some of her popular works include:
- Fairies and Chimneys (1918) - A very popular book of poems.
- The Fairy Green (1919) - Another collection of fairy poems.
- The Rainbow Cat and Other Stories (1922) - A book of stories.
- Eight Little Plays for Children (1924) - A collection of short plays.
- Forty Good-Night Tales (1923) - Stories to read before bed.
- Widdy-Widdy-Wurkey: Nursery Rhymes from Many Lands (1934) - A book of translated nursery rhymes.
See also
- Clerk of the Weather
