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Julia Redfern #5
The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern
Julia's fifteenth year is filled with jealousy, forgiveness, first love, and artistic satisfaction, all against a background of loving support from her adored uncle, adopted grandmother, and other family members.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1988
44 people want to read
About the author
Eleanor Cameron
34 books52 followersEleanor Frances Butler Cameron (1912 - 1996) was a Canadian children's author who spent most of her life in California. Born in Winnipeg, Canada in 1912, her family then moved to South Charleston, Ohio when she was 3 years old. Her father farmed and her mother ran a hotel. After three years, they moved to Berkeley, California. Her parents divorced a few years later. At 16, she moved with her mother and stepfather to Los Angeles. She credits her English mother's love of story telling for her inspiration to write and make up stories.
She attended UCLA and the Art Center School of Los Angeles. In 1930, she started working at the Los Angeles Public Library and later worked as a research librarian for the Los Angeles Board of Education and two different advertising companies. She married Ian Cameron, a printmaker and publisher, in 1934 and the couple had a son, David, in 1944.
Her first book came out in 1950, based on her experience as a librarian. It was well received by critics, but didn't sell well. She did not start writing children's books until her son asked him to write one starring him as a character. this resulted in her popular series The Mushroom Planet.
With the success of the Mushroom Planet books, Cameron focused on writing for children. Between 1959 and 1988 she produced 12 additional children's novels, including The Court of the Stone Children (1973) and the semi-autobiographical five book Julia Redfern series (1971–1988). She won the National Book Award for Court of the Stone Children in 1973, and was a runner up for To The Green Mountains in 1979.
In addition to her fiction work, Cameron wrote two books of criticism and reflection on children's literature. The first, The Green and Burning Tree, was released in 1969 and led an increased profile for Cameron in the world of children's literature. Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s Cameron worked as a traveling speaker and contributor to publications such as The Horn Book Magazine, Wilson Library Bulletin, and Children's Literature in Education. She was also a member of the founding editorial board for the children's magazine Cricket, which debuted in 1973. In 1972 she and Roald Dahl exchanged barbs across three issues of The Horn Book, a magazine devoted to critical discussions of children's and young adult fiction. Her second book of essays, The Seed and the Vision: On the Writing and Appreciation of Children's Books, came out in 1993. It is her final published book.
From late 1967 until her death Cameron made her home in Pebble Beach, California. She died in hospice in Monterey, California on October 11, 1996 at the age of 84.[
She attended UCLA and the Art Center School of Los Angeles. In 1930, she started working at the Los Angeles Public Library and later worked as a research librarian for the Los Angeles Board of Education and two different advertising companies. She married Ian Cameron, a printmaker and publisher, in 1934 and the couple had a son, David, in 1944.
Her first book came out in 1950, based on her experience as a librarian. It was well received by critics, but didn't sell well. She did not start writing children's books until her son asked him to write one starring him as a character. this resulted in her popular series The Mushroom Planet.
With the success of the Mushroom Planet books, Cameron focused on writing for children. Between 1959 and 1988 she produced 12 additional children's novels, including The Court of the Stone Children (1973) and the semi-autobiographical five book Julia Redfern series (1971–1988). She won the National Book Award for Court of the Stone Children in 1973, and was a runner up for To The Green Mountains in 1979.
In addition to her fiction work, Cameron wrote two books of criticism and reflection on children's literature. The first, The Green and Burning Tree, was released in 1969 and led an increased profile for Cameron in the world of children's literature. Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s Cameron worked as a traveling speaker and contributor to publications such as The Horn Book Magazine, Wilson Library Bulletin, and Children's Literature in Education. She was also a member of the founding editorial board for the children's magazine Cricket, which debuted in 1973. In 1972 she and Roald Dahl exchanged barbs across three issues of The Horn Book, a magazine devoted to critical discussions of children's and young adult fiction. Her second book of essays, The Seed and the Vision: On the Writing and Appreciation of Children's Books, came out in 1993. It is her final published book.
From late 1967 until her death Cameron made her home in Pebble Beach, California. She died in hospice in Monterey, California on October 11, 1996 at the age of 84.[
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 17, 2022
The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern
by Eleanor Cameron
The protagonist we first meet in A Room Made of Windows comes of age in this sequel about her life. Julia, now 15, is still a compassionate observer of events and a precise recorder of her experiences.
As she matures, she begins to see and accept things as they are, and begins to understand that even those with whom she enjoys the closest relationships are flawed human beings who will occasionally disappoint her due to preoccupation with their own affairs and desires. Julia also realizes that people who seem to be caricatures of negative qualities do actually exist in real life, and are not confined to works of fiction. Anyone with some life experience will probably relate to difficulties in trying to deal with selfish and superficial people, those who possess what many would probably now refer to as 'toxic' personalities.
In fact, in each of the private worlds created by her relationships with the people closest to her, there is, as the author points out, a "yes, but" element - and in the course of the novel Julia experiences some of the setbacks, sorrows and losses that seem to accompany every joy, and which her mother warned her about in the first book as being a necessary part of life.
Julia is a remarkably sensitive, thoughtful, and reflective main character, and this novel exemplifies those qualities more forcefully than A Room Made with Windows. Despite Julia's first romantic relationship being perhaps a little too idealistically portrayed, The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern is nevertheless a superbly executed exploration of the turmoil and excitement of one girl’s youthful formative years and of the challenges, catharsis, and rewards of creative endeavor.
by Eleanor Cameron
The protagonist we first meet in A Room Made of Windows comes of age in this sequel about her life. Julia, now 15, is still a compassionate observer of events and a precise recorder of her experiences.
As she matures, she begins to see and accept things as they are, and begins to understand that even those with whom she enjoys the closest relationships are flawed human beings who will occasionally disappoint her due to preoccupation with their own affairs and desires. Julia also realizes that people who seem to be caricatures of negative qualities do actually exist in real life, and are not confined to works of fiction. Anyone with some life experience will probably relate to difficulties in trying to deal with selfish and superficial people, those who possess what many would probably now refer to as 'toxic' personalities.
In fact, in each of the private worlds created by her relationships with the people closest to her, there is, as the author points out, a "yes, but" element - and in the course of the novel Julia experiences some of the setbacks, sorrows and losses that seem to accompany every joy, and which her mother warned her about in the first book as being a necessary part of life.
Julia is a remarkably sensitive, thoughtful, and reflective main character, and this novel exemplifies those qualities more forcefully than A Room Made with Windows. Despite Julia's first romantic relationship being perhaps a little too idealistically portrayed, The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern is nevertheless a superbly executed exploration of the turmoil and excitement of one girl’s youthful formative years and of the challenges, catharsis, and rewards of creative endeavor.
February 10, 2022
Very good. I definitely think readers should be 16 years old and up before reading this. I first read it when I was a kid, after reading the other books in the series that take place when Julia is younger, and there was a lot that I didn't understand. Reading it as an adult it all makes sense. The emotions and behaviors are pretty realistic for teenagers, and several different types of teenagers are demonstrated, though mostly the book focuses on Julia as usual. I don't understand why Eleanor Cameron's books have fallen out of popularity. To me this seems a pretty timeless book, with only a few minor historical details that have changed compared to today.
To read the Julia Redfern books chronologically, the order is:
Julia's Magic
That Julia Redfern
Julia and the Hand of G-d
A Room Made of Windows
The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern
To read the Julia Redfern books chronologically, the order is:
Julia's Magic
That Julia Redfern
Julia and the Hand of G-d
A Room Made of Windows
The Private Worlds of Julia Redfern
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April 4, 2022If you want to re-encounter children's books (especially if you were born in the mid-1950s) Eleanor Cameron is a must read. My son Gary liked "The Incredible Flight to the Mushroom Planet" (what she thought of as a book for boys), as I did.
August 25, 2016
I have forgotten the details again. But, it's been awhile. I may re-read, but it might be problematic.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews