Violet for Bonaparte

by Geoffrey Trease

Set in Italy in 1814. Ben is valet to an eccentric man. They visit Elba where Napoleon is imprisoned.

Genres: Historical Fiction

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Robert Geoffrey Trease (1909-1998) was a prolific writer, publishing 113 books between 1934 (Bows Against the Barons) and 1997 (Cloak for a Spy). His work has been translated into 20 languages. His grandfather was a historian, and was one of the main influences towards Trease's work.

He is best known for writing children's historical novels, whose content reflects his insistence on historically correct backgrounds, which he meticulously researched. However, with his ground-breaking study Tales Out of School (1949), he was also a pioneer of the idea that children's literature should be a serious subject for study and debate. When he began his career, his radical viewpoint was a change from the conventional and often jingoistic tone of most children's literature of the time, and he was one of the first authors who deliberately set out to appeal to both boys and girls and to feature strong leading characters of both sexes.

Reviews

[Kate Forsyth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been collecting Geoffrey Trease’s novels since I was a kid, and it’s always a pleasure to find a new one. He is definitely one of the great children’s historical writers and should be more widely known. Violet for Bonaparte was written in 1976, and tells the story of an English boy Ben, who travels to Europe in 1814 during a lull in the Napoleonic Wars, with Napoleon himself having been confined to the island of Elba. Curious, Ben and his employer travel to Elba to see Boney with their own eyes, and there Ben meets a pretty and spirited American girl who hero-worships the deposed French emperor. Before they know it, Ben and Fanny are caught up in a dangerous situation as Napoleon escapes Elba and gathers together his army once more. This is not Geoffrey Trease’s best book, but any book by Geoffrey Trease is very readable and he always manages his plot and the historical period with enviable lightness.