Philippa Pearce (1920–2006)
Author of Tom's Midnight Garden
About the Author
Ann Philippa Pearce was born in Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire, England on January 23, 1920. She studied English and history at Girton College at Cambridge University. After graduating, she worked for the Board of Trade, then the Ministry of Information, before moving to the BBC to write scripts show more for the Schools Broadcasting Department. In 1958, she left the BBC to work as an editor for the Clarendon Press before becoming a children's book editor at Andre Deutsch two years later. She became a full-time author in the mid-1960s. She wrote more than 30 books including Minnow on the Say, A Dog So Small, The Children of the House, The Elm Street Lot, The Squirrel Wife, The Way to Sattin Shore, Emily's Own Elephant, Freddy, Old Belle's Summer Holiday, Here Comes Tod, and The Little Gentleman. She received the Carnegie Medal for Tom's Midnight Garden in 1958 and the Whitbread Prize for Bubble and Squeak in 1978. Tom's Midnight Garden was adapted for radio, theater, television, and film. She was appointed to the Order of the British Empire in 1997 for her service to children's literature. She died after suffering a stroke on December 21, 2006 at the age of 86. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: credit Helen Craig
Works by Philippa Pearce
A Century of Children's Ghost Stories: Tales of Dread and Delight (1995) — Editor; Contributor — 27 copies
Wings of Courage 1 copy
UNA PIU' DEL DIAVOLO 1 copy
Stories from Hans Christian Andersen (Classics for today) — Editor — 1 copy
Wirbel um Krümel und Quiek 1 copy
Minnow on the Say 1 copy
CHIHUAHUA 1 copy
Associated Works
The Further Adventures of Gobbolino and the Little Wooden Horse (1984) — Foreword, some editions — 64 copies
Cricket Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 11, July 1977 — Contributor — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Pearce, Ann Philippa
- Birthdate
- 1920-01-23
- Date of death
- 2006-12-21
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
- Place of death
- Durham, England, UK
- Places of residence
- Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire, England, UK (Birth)
London, England, UK
Durham, England, UK (Death) - Education
- The Perse School, Cambridge, England, UK
University of Cambridge (Girton College) - Occupations
- author
scriptwriter
editor (children's books)
writer (freelance) - Awards and honors
- Order of the British Empire (Officer ∙ 1997)
Philippa Pearce memorial lecture
Members
Reviews
A Finder's Magic by Philippa Pearce
A wonderful quick read, which I picked up to read the blurb and ended up reading the whole way through one morning. A little gem indeed!
Sid gets a pair of gerbils. His mum does not want gerbils in the house. His step father is more sympathetic, remembering the white mice of his childhood. This slim volume is an interesting story on what we put up with for the sake of our family, and how we change our mind
Fanciful...timey-wimey...too gentle and charming to be called sci-fi, but you get the idea.
In this book, written in the 50s, young Tom Long must go stay with his uncle and aunt to be quarantined in case he caught the measles from his brother.
While there, late at night, he hears the grandfather clock chime thirteen times. He discovers that at this mysterious signal, he is able to walk out the door into a beautiful garden that's not there during the day.
To begin with, he just enjoys playing and exploring. But eventually he makes friends with a girl named Hatty.
Who is she? When is she? And will Tom ever understand the enigma that is his Midnight Garden?
It's a really very touching story by the end, with a surprise twist that will give you all the feels. I suppose it was written for children, but it surprised me and I enjoyed it a lot. Think "The Secret Garden," but with the laws of physics bending. :D
I read this because of a discussion on the lovely Tea or Books podcast.… (more)
In this book, written in the 50s, young Tom Long must go stay with his uncle and aunt to be quarantined in case he caught the measles from his brother.
While there, late at night, he hears the grandfather clock chime thirteen times. He discovers that at this mysterious signal, he is able to walk out the door into a beautiful garden that's not there during the day.
To begin with, he just enjoys playing and exploring. But eventually he makes friends with a girl named Hatty.
Who is she? When is she? And will Tom ever understand the enigma that is his Midnight Garden?
It's a really very touching story by the end, with a surprise twist that will give you all the feels. I suppose it was written for children, but it surprised me and I enjoyed it a lot. Think "The Secret Garden," but with the laws of physics bending. :D
I read this because of a discussion on the lovely Tea or Books podcast.… (more)
It's a real shame that I didn't know of this book's existence until I reached adulthood - it would have had a profoundly positive effect on me as a child. A true masterpiece.
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Statistics
- Works
- 41
- Also by
- 19
- Members
- 4,021
- Popularity
- #6,272
- Rating
- 4.0
- Reviews
- 78
- ISBNs
- 280
- Languages
- 15
- Favorited
- 5