Suggested reading from Chicago Review Press
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The Life of Beatrix Potter and the World of Peter Rabbit
By Amy M. O'Quinn
JUVENILE NONFICTION
176 Pages, 5.5 x 8.5
Formats: Cloth, PDF, EPUB
Cloth, $18.99 (US $18.99) (CA $24.99)
ISBN 9781641604406
Rights: WOR
Chicago Review Press (Mar 2022)
Overview
Beatrix Potter forged her own creative path to independence, fame, and financial success. Peter Rabbit, Hunca Munca, Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, Squirrel Nutkin, Jemima Puddle-Duck—many readers are familiar with the animal characters created by British author and illustrator Beatrix Potter. But she was so much more than a painter of watercolor bunnies in little blue jackets or ducks waddling about in bonnets and shawls. She was a natural scientist, mycologist, environmentalist, preservationist, farmer, and expert sheep breeder. Beatrix Potter was a woman ahead of her time, making her own decisions and handling her own business affairs despite living in a Victorian society that was unaccustomed to unmarried women doing so. Becoming Beatrix covers Potter's early life and influences, artistic work, fascination with animals and the natural sciences, and interest and research in fungi, as well as her writing and illustration journey and her later years as a wife, farmer, businesswoman, and conservationist. This is the story of Beatrix beyond the bunnies.Reviews
"Becoming Beatrix is a meticulously researched and engaging window into the life of Beatrix Potter that highlights an important theme for young readers: you don't have to be just one thing. Beatrix bucked the norms of her Victorian-era upbringing to succeed in not only art and publishing but also science, conservation, and agriculture, among other pursuits. This book covers the full breadth of her joys and heartbreaks, from her privileged childhood through the humbler lifestyle she adopts near the end of her life. Becoming Beatrix is an empowering must-read for Potter enthusiasts and dynamic young naturalists alike." —Lindsay H. Metcalf, author of Beatrix Potter, ScientistAuthor Biography