Anxious Audrey

by Mabel Quiller-Couch, Helen Jacobs (Illustrator)

Florence Mabel Quiller-Couch (17 June 1865 - November 1924) was an English editor, compiler and children's writer. Mabel Quiller-Couch was born in Bodmin, Cornwall to physician Thomas Quiller-Couch and his wife, Mary (née Ford). She was the second child and eldest daughter of five children. Her elder brother was the critic Arthur Quiller-Couch. After a disappointment in love, she lived with her younger sister Lilian Mary, also a writer, in Hampstead. Of her 26 publications, one was jointly written and one jointly edited with her sister. Quiller-Couch was the author of a number of novels and the compiler of an anthology of writings about the University of Oxford up to 1850.

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1915

About the author

1866-1924

Mabel Quiller-Couch was a Cornish author of children's fiction and verse. She was the younger sister of Arthur Quiller-Couch.

Reviews

[Bryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had this on my kindle forever and finally read it last fall! It is a pretty typical late 19th/early 20th century children's book, with strong moral lessons about doing the work that comes to your hands, reminiscent of one of my favourite Alcott novels (Jack and Jill). Audrey is 'anxious' because she's grown up with her grandmother and is used to a high standard of living as the only child of a rich household, and when she has to go back home to her own family she is horrified by the mess and noise and discomfort. The arc of the book is her learning to quit judging everyone, and instead to adjust her expectations to what's actually possible in a house full of children with a sick mother. Audrey gradually learns to step in to help instead of just making everyone miserable by sulking and complaining, and of course is rewarded with the love and trust of her siblings and new friends. It's the sort of thing I enjoy in small doses when the weather's getting colder, so a great fall read for me!