The Story of Heidi is a most tender and touching one. When Heidi is orphaned, she is sent to live with her uncle in his simple home high up in the mountains. Heidi loves the life and her grandfather; she loves the outdoors and the fresh air and he is determined that she should be free to enjoy it all without the burden of convention or study. But Heidi’s life is turned upside down again when she is sent off to live in the city by her strict aunt. Here Heidi finds a different kind of happiness. How can she bring together the two parts of her life. (9+)
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. When orphan Heidi is sent to live with her grandfather in the mountains, the two grow to love each other dearly. Heidi charms everyone she meets - but then her strict aunt sends her away again to live in the town. Despite a wonderful new friendship there, Heidi longs to return to her happy life in the mountains. Is there any way she can have both?
Johanna Louise Heusser, the fourth of six children of Meta Schweizer (1797-1876) and Johan Jakob Heusser (1783-1859), physician, was born on 12 June 1827 in the village of Herzil, nestled in the Alps of Switzerland. She went to school and was tutored at home, then studied languages and piano in Zürich. In 1852 she married lawyer Bernhard Spyri (1821-1884) with whom she'd have a son, Bernard Diethelm (1855-1884). The couple moved to Zürich to a home overlooking the lake where she wrote her first novel, A Leaf on Vrony's Grave, which was published in 1871.
