Ruth M. Arthur (1905–1979)
Author of A Candle in Her Room
About the Author
Series
Works by Ruth M. Arthur
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Arthur, Ruth M.
- Legal name
- Huggins, Ruth Mabel Arthur (married)
- Birthdate
- 1905-05-26
- Date of death
- 1979-03-06
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Froebel Educational Institute
- Occupations
- teacher
novelist - Relationships
- Huggins, E. N. (husband)
- Short biography
- Ruth M. Arthur was the pen name of Ruth Mabel Arthur Huggins, born in Glasgow, Scotland. She grew up in the countryside outside the city, and was educated at St. Columba's School in Kilmacolm. At age 18, she enrolled in the Froebel Educational Institute, an early education teacher training school (now Froebel College at the University of Roehampton), in a southwest suburb of London. While still a student, she published several short stories. In 1926, she graduated as a certified kindergarten teacher and moved back to Glasgow, where she taught at Laurel Bank School for three years. She then moved to Loughton, England, where she taught at a secondary school there. In 1932, she married Frederick Newey Huggins, a solicitor. The same year, her first collection of stories for children, Friendly Stories, etc., was published. This set of stories sold so well, it was reprinted in 1935, 1938, 1941, 1942 and 1949.
Over the next 20 years, Ruth published more books for young children, making each of them age-appropriate for the six children that she and her husband had in that same time span.
Starting with Dragon Summer in 1962, she switched to writing novels for young adults. These books, which told haunting stories in the intersection between fantasy and gothic romance, became her most popular works. They usually included carefully researched historical backdrops, as well as time slips, ghosts, and supernatural objects.
Among these titles were A Candle in Her Room (1966), Requiem for a Princess (1967), The Autumn People (1973) and The Saracen Lamp (1970).
In these books for adolescents, Ruth often used first-person narrative to draw the reader into the viewpoint of the protagonist, and set events in places she was familiar with. Many of these books were also published in the USA and translated into multiple languages. - Nationality
- UK
Scotland - Birthplace
- Glasgow, Scotland, UK
- Places of residence
- Glasgow, Scotland, UK
London, England, UK
Warwickshire, England, UK
Essex, England, UK
Surrey, England, UK
Dorset, England, UK - Map Location
- UK
Members
Reviews
When Rosemary and Sebastian Lobbins move to the village of Martens in Oxfordshire, they are surprised to discover a 'Lobbins Cottage' near their new home, and become quite interested in its resident. Old Meg Lobbins, whom the children at first mistake for a witch, and who is suspected in the village of being a thief, eventually becomes their friend. When an accident sends the old lady to the hospital, the children are instrumental is discovering the secret of her chimney, solving a local show more mystery involving stolen property, and clearing Mrs. Lobbins' name in the process...
Published in 1960 as part of Harrap's Junior Fireside Series - a collection of simple chapter-books intended for emerging readers - A Cottage for Rosemary is one of Ruth M. Arthur's earlier works, written before she moved on to her more advanced young adult fiction, for which she is primarily remembered today. My favorite, of these earlier Arthur works, it offers a moving depiction of the misunderstandings and prejudice with which the elderly - and more particularly, elderly women - must often contend. The narrative explicitly ties the story of Mrs. Lobbins, and the way she is mistaken for a witch by the children, and unjustly suspected of thievery by the villagers, to longstanding social mistrust of and disdain for older women. The children's father, at one point, observes that "it was once a dangerous thing to call anyone a witch. They used to burn witches in the old days, or duck them in the village pond, and as often as not they were harmless old women, no more witches than I am." One can see here some of the subtlety and nuance that made Arthur's later work so powerful. Recommended (provided one can track down a copy!) to anyone looking for more thoughtful beginning chapter-books, as well as to all Ruth M. Arthur fans. show less
Published in 1960 as part of Harrap's Junior Fireside Series - a collection of simple chapter-books intended for emerging readers - A Cottage for Rosemary is one of Ruth M. Arthur's earlier works, written before she moved on to her more advanced young adult fiction, for which she is primarily remembered today. My favorite, of these earlier Arthur works, it offers a moving depiction of the misunderstandings and prejudice with which the elderly - and more particularly, elderly women - must often contend. The narrative explicitly ties the story of Mrs. Lobbins, and the way she is mistaken for a witch by the children, and unjustly suspected of thievery by the villagers, to longstanding social mistrust of and disdain for older women. The children's father, at one point, observes that "it was once a dangerous thing to call anyone a witch. They used to burn witches in the old days, or duck them in the village pond, and as often as not they were harmless old women, no more witches than I am." One can see here some of the subtlety and nuance that made Arthur's later work so powerful. Recommended (provided one can track down a copy!) to anyone looking for more thoughtful beginning chapter-books, as well as to all Ruth M. Arthur fans. show less
When Hannah Lakin's father dies in 1894, she leaves her emotionally distant mother and twin sister Emily behind in New Hampshire, and journeys to Wales, where she becomes the governess to the Bryant family. It is here, while walking in the hills around Rockport, that Hanni (as she is now known) meets and falls in love with Welsh sheep-farmer David Morgan. After marrying, Hanni goes to live at Morgan's Ground, a farm lying just beneath Carn Gwelli, in "the shadow of the mountain." It is the show more mountain and its eerie magic, as well as the periodic visits of the Locks - a family of Romanies (gypsies) that come to define the three main periods of Hanni's life...
The Romany feature frequently in children's literature - everything from Lloyd Alexander's Gypsy Rizka, Rumer Godden's The Diddakoi, to Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. I am not well enough informed about Romany culture to determine what is and is not an accurate portrayal - but their treatment in An Old Magic felt respectful to me (a real relief - I was not looking forward to having to pan a Ruth Arthur novel). First, they are referred to as "Romany," not gypsies. Second, although Hanni is distrustful at first, her mother-in-law assures her that the Locks are honorable, hard-working people, whatever cultural differences might exist. It is to Arthur's credit that she does not try to gloss over those differences - nor does the narrative always invite you to sympathize with the Locks. Third, Arthur never states or implies that the Romany would be better off if they would only "settle down" somewhere. I mention all of this because of the many portrayals of the Romany in literature as thieving and child-kidnapping villains on the one hand, or overly romantic bohemian wanderers on the other.
In conclusion: well worth reading, especially for Ruth M. Arthur fans. Hanni's story was engaging, and the brooding/looming mountain was reminiscent of the Brenin Llwyd in Susan Cooper's The Grey King. My only quibble was with the inclusion of Northern Irish terrorism in the Dulcie Harris storyline at the end - I felt that this should have either been fleshed out more, or left out altogether. show less
The Romany feature frequently in children's literature - everything from Lloyd Alexander's Gypsy Rizka, Rumer Godden's The Diddakoi, to Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. I am not well enough informed about Romany culture to determine what is and is not an accurate portrayal - but their treatment in An Old Magic felt respectful to me (a real relief - I was not looking forward to having to pan a Ruth Arthur novel). First, they are referred to as "Romany," not gypsies. Second, although Hanni is distrustful at first, her mother-in-law assures her that the Locks are honorable, hard-working people, whatever cultural differences might exist. It is to Arthur's credit that she does not try to gloss over those differences - nor does the narrative always invite you to sympathize with the Locks. Third, Arthur never states or implies that the Romany would be better off if they would only "settle down" somewhere. I mention all of this because of the many portrayals of the Romany in literature as thieving and child-kidnapping villains on the one hand, or overly romantic bohemian wanderers on the other.
In conclusion: well worth reading, especially for Ruth M. Arthur fans. Hanni's story was engaging, and the brooding/looming mountain was reminiscent of the Brenin Llwyd in Susan Cooper's The Grey King. My only quibble was with the inclusion of Northern Irish terrorism in the Dulcie Harris storyline at the end - I felt that this should have either been fleshed out more, or left out altogether. show less
Betony Alison Craig, an orphan living at the Brackenbury Children's Home in Suffolk, keeps her loneliness in check and the world at bay by withdrawing further and further into a world of fantasy and dreams in this later Ruth M. Arthur title. Betony's feelings of recognition when she first sees the Wasteland - a desolate territory by the salt marshes - her sense of connection to the land and its history, create a place of refuge to which she withdraws at every opportunity. As Betony begins to show more witness ghostly echoes of the past, first seeing a Viking long-ship, then hearing the actual voices of those long-ago invaders, she becomes more and more enmeshed in the past...
In On the Wasteland, Arthur delivers an interesting variation on her usual theme of a heroine whose entanglement with the past allows her to grapple with her present-day problems, in that she seems to be putting forward the idea that too deep a connection to the past can be more dangerous than helpful. The story has a neat symmetry to it, with the echoes of the past saving Betony from her early isolation and her growing friendships saving her from the past. show less
In On the Wasteland, Arthur delivers an interesting variation on her usual theme of a heroine whose entanglement with the past allows her to grapple with her present-day problems, in that she seems to be putting forward the idea that too deep a connection to the past can be more dangerous than helpful. The story has a neat symmetry to it, with the echoes of the past saving Betony from her early isolation and her growing friendships saving her from the past. show less
The daughter of a sheep-farmer and his wife, Willow Forrester’s biggest problem was trying to convince her prosaic parents that her beloved music and piano playing would provide an adequate career - until, that is, she accidentally discovers that she was adopted. Unwilling to question her parents, but unable to forget her new-found knowledge, Willow worries away at the notion of her own identity, making herself ill in the process. When the family doctor suggests a holiday, Willow and her show more mother go to stay at Penliss, a lovely old house in Cornwall, where Willow immediately forms a bond of friendship with the owner, Rosamund Tresilian.
Although Willow feels a strange connection to the portrait of Isabel de Calverados, an orphaned Spanish girl adopted by the Tresilian family in Elizabethan times, it is not until her mother leaves her at Penliss for an extended visit and she discovers Isabel’s strange medallion buried in the garden, that she begins to dream of this other adopted daughter. The story of Isabel gradually unfolds, as Willow learns that the young Spanish girl was orphaned when her family were killed by pirates, that she herself was rescued by a British sailor named Anthony Tresilian, who brought her to his home in Cornwall to be cared for, and that she was raised and well-loved by Anthony’s father, Cornelius. Hated by the local people because of her Spanish blood, Isabel nevertheless found friendship, in the form of her Breton nurse, Celestine, and the playful dolphin that liked to visit the local bay; as well as the love of a young man named Richard. But after the death of Cornelius Tresilian, the local people’s enmity grew, and when she was accused of witchcraft, Isabel was forced to flee Cornwall with Richard. Believed lost at sea during a terrible storm, Isabel’s tombstone in the local chapel reads: “In memory of Issable de Calverados aged 17 years, dear adopted daughter of Cornelius Tresilian Esquire, supposed drowned 1602."
Arthur’s narrative is absorbing, her prose deeply evocative but never melodramatic, and the elements of the supernatural are handled with her own inimitable style. Willow’s dreams are clearly some sort of connection to the past, but it is left up to the reader to decide upon the exact nature of that connection. Are they some sort of haunting, or a psychic remnant? Could Willow’s “sleep-walking” episode, in which she wakes up with sand on her feet after having dreamed of being at the bay, be evidence of real time travel? Any or all of these could be the answer, but the notion of dreams as connection to the past also appears in Philippa Pearce’s Tom’s Midnight Garden. show less
Although Willow feels a strange connection to the portrait of Isabel de Calverados, an orphaned Spanish girl adopted by the Tresilian family in Elizabethan times, it is not until her mother leaves her at Penliss for an extended visit and she discovers Isabel’s strange medallion buried in the garden, that she begins to dream of this other adopted daughter. The story of Isabel gradually unfolds, as Willow learns that the young Spanish girl was orphaned when her family were killed by pirates, that she herself was rescued by a British sailor named Anthony Tresilian, who brought her to his home in Cornwall to be cared for, and that she was raised and well-loved by Anthony’s father, Cornelius. Hated by the local people because of her Spanish blood, Isabel nevertheless found friendship, in the form of her Breton nurse, Celestine, and the playful dolphin that liked to visit the local bay; as well as the love of a young man named Richard. But after the death of Cornelius Tresilian, the local people’s enmity grew, and when she was accused of witchcraft, Isabel was forced to flee Cornwall with Richard. Believed lost at sea during a terrible storm, Isabel’s tombstone in the local chapel reads: “In memory of Issable de Calverados aged 17 years, dear adopted daughter of Cornelius Tresilian Esquire, supposed drowned 1602."
Arthur’s narrative is absorbing, her prose deeply evocative but never melodramatic, and the elements of the supernatural are handled with her own inimitable style. Willow’s dreams are clearly some sort of connection to the past, but it is left up to the reader to decide upon the exact nature of that connection. Are they some sort of haunting, or a psychic remnant? Could Willow’s “sleep-walking” episode, in which she wakes up with sand on her feet after having dreamed of being at the bay, be evidence of real time travel? Any or all of these could be the answer, but the notion of dreams as connection to the past also appears in Philippa Pearce’s Tom’s Midnight Garden. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 27
- Members
- 492
- Popularity
- #50,225
- Rating
- 4.1
- Reviews
- 60
- ISBNs
- 34
- Favorited
- 3