The Princess and the Suffragette by Holly Webb

I love how the Coronation March is what introduced Lottie, and that she struggled on, trying to get more and more information about it, despite being in the boarding school, which she couldn't leave. For that alone, this book might get youth interested in the history of the movement. I do love the historical events that are covered in this book. I am grateful to the author for a review copy.įirst, before I get all nitpicky, about what I didn't like about this book, I do have to say I loved the idea of this, that a girl from this time, from Miss Minchin’s, would get involved in the Suffragist movement. This isn't a book which attempts to appropriate Sara, with all the goodwill of the original book, and repurpose her narrative for some forced, farcical reasons, but rather a book that seeks to understand the charged social atmosphere that the young ladies of that time were being asked to exist within. And that's what Webb achieves here Lottie questions her assumptions and decisions, and Sara, thankfully, is mostly in the background. Books provide answers, sure, but they should never be pat or glib, and sometimes presenting an answer as another question is the truest thing that a story can deserve.

They never feel definite either, edged with more questions than answers, and that's another credit to Webb. Lottie's slow political awakening, and the parallels to A Little Princess, never feel forced. Where Webb shines is in how accessible and genuine she make all this feel. Not much of children's literature does (oof, there's a sweeping statement forgive me, we'll explore this more at a later date.!). I don't know about you but (spoilers!) when Sara left, I left as well. It's an interesting angle to take what with Lottie being, to be fair, a bit of a moppett in the original books and locating the subsequent story within the confines of the school. I say 'of sorts' because this is both a sequel and yet also a sort of spin-off, taking the character of Lottie and exploring the circumstances that bought her to Miss Minchin's Seminary. Webb turned towards the rich grounds of The Secret Garden with the sequel: Return To The Secret Garden and in The Princess And The Suffragette delivers a sequel, of sorts, to Sara Crewe, Or What Happened At Miss Minchin's (also known as A Little Princess). She's not alone in this of course, Jacqueline Wilson delivered the delightful Four Children And It, whilst Kate Saunders wrote the powerful Five Children On The Western Front. I've been really interested in Webb's recent turn towards some of the classics of children's literature.

The Princess and the Suffragette by Holly Webb