The Life Of Frances Hodgson Burnett

Join the Penzance Literary Festival at Penzance Library at 6pm on Wednesday 27th July for a talk on the life of Frances Hodgson Burnett given by Maureen Twose.
Find out about her childhood in 1850's America, and discover what inspired her to write The Secret Garden.
Have you read any biographical accounts of Burnett? What did you discover?

So ... what did you think?

It's been very nearly a month since the official launch of the Secret Garden Big Read. Many people have borrowed, or been given copies of the Secret Garden. So what did you think about the book? Who was your favourite character? Did you think the story was believable? Has it inspired you to get out in the garden and grow something? We would like to hear your comments, so just click below and let us know.

The Generous Benefactor on Tour

Here is the man himself at Bodmin Library. Thanks to Jesse Foot for the photo.

Passmore Edwards is on tour

Come and meet the Generous Benefactor. Thanks to Mark Harandon Mr John Passmore Edwards is on tour around Cornwall.

Meet him while you can. Find out about his amazing life, and why he decided to spend so much of his money building libraries in Cornwall and across the country. Contact your local library for more information. 0300 1234 111

The books are here!

And don't they look beautiful! Thanks once again to the lovely folk at Puffin. Look very closely and you can see the Passmore Edwards Centennial logo and the words " A Cornwall Libraries Big Read Book"

We are getting geared up for the Big Read Launch on 12th April at the Reader's Day at Tremough Campus.

Tickets for this event are available from your local library at a cost of £10.

Secrets of the Garden ~
A Cornwall Libraries day for readers & writers 12th April

University College Falmouth, Tremough Campus
Treliever Road
Penryn

10.00 – 16.00 (registration from 9.30) Tickets £10

We invite you to join us on our latest Readers’ Day for conversation with authors & archivists on books with a strong sense of place and the environment. The day includes the launch of our Big Read for 2011: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This 1911 bestseller has been chosen to commemorate the great public library benefactor John Passmore Edwards who died 100 years ago. His legacy continues.

Our guest speakers include:

Juliet Barker, author of The Brontes and Wordsworth, a life in letters

Phil Cope, author & photographer of Holy Wells: Cornwall

Sarah C. Jane & Jane Darke, speaking about the archive of Cornish playwright & film maker Nick Darke

Sue Minter, recent horticultural director at Eden; author of The Well Connected Gardener and The Healing Garden

Nicola Upson, crime writer & researcher. Books include Angel with Two Faces (crime & skulduggery at Loe Bar in the 1930’s) and Two for Sorrow. They feature crime novelist & National Trust supporter Josephine Tey.

Chairman Andrew McInnes

There will also be exhibitions, a bookstall from Falmouth Bookseller, the opportunity to tour the university library and readers’ bags to take home.

Tea, coffee & biscuits are provided. Lunch is available to buy in the university refectory or you can bring your own.

For bookings or further information, please contact your local library or Maureen Twose, mtwose@cornwall.gov.uk, tel. 07967 340907

Books Ordered

This week is exciting, as we have approved both the cover changes and internal page explaining about the project, so now the Cornwall Big Read Secret Garden books are being printed by the lovely people at Puffin. They should be with us in a few weeks; giving us time to get the library stationery stuck in, the jackets on, and the books to the libraries, before the April launch.

John Passmore Edwards

The Secret Garden is Cornwall Libraries choice of a Big Read celebrating the life of library benefactor John Passmore Edwards. The book was a bestseller in 1911, the year John Passmore Edwards died, and it has been in print ever since. During his tumultuous economic lifetime in jounalism, John Passmore Edwards founded and funded many public buildings for the benefit of everyone. He was particularly generous to Cornwall, the county of his birth. Cornish buildings include institutes, schools, hospitals and 8 free public libraries. 7 are still in use today: Bodmin, Camborne, Falmouth, Liskeard, Redruth, St. Ives and Truro. the original Launceston Library has been replaced and Penzance Library benefited from a generous bequest of books from him. Why did he do it?
In his autobiography, A Few Footprints, this is what he said:
“Public libraries are, in my opinion, entitled to public support because they are educative, recreative, and useful; because they bring the products of research and information, and the stored wisdom of ages and nations, within easy reach of the poorest citizens. (…) All may not use them, but all may do so if they like; and as they are means of instructing and improving some, all are directly or indirectly benefitted by them.”

Frances Hodgson Burnett was also interested in the welfare of everyone and appreciated the importance of environment. In The Secret Garden she shows us how a love of gardens and nature can enhance our lives and improve our health. Respect for others and care of the environment are strong themes in this magical book. We hope you enjoy it.