Beatrix Potter

Have you read The Tale of Peter Rabbit? It’s a very famous children’s book, written by Beatrix Potter.

Beatrix was born in 1866. She and her brother kept many small animals as pets–rabbits, hedgehogs, guinea pigs, mice, frogs and even bats! They both liked to draw their pets, but Beatrix liked drawing animals from her own imagination most. She also loved exploring and drawing nature when they visited beautiful places like Scotland and the Lake District.

Beatrix was very smart, and studied archaeological artefacts, fossils and insects, but she was especially interested in mycology – the study of mushrooms! She even wrote a scientific paper about it, but women at that time couldn’t be scientists.

To earn some money, Beatrix started drawing cards with animals. She liked writing and illustrating letters too. One day, she wrote a letter to her friend’s son, and told the story of Peter Rabbit.

She decided to make the story into a book. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published in 1902 – and it was a great success! She wrote, illustrated and published many more books. She also created dolls, painting books, games and other items based on her characters.

In 1905, Beatrix bought a farm in the Lake District. She learned about farming and bought more farms and land to help preserve the landscape. She enjoyed country life very much, and was very active in protecting the environment.

When Beatrix died, she left almost all her farms and land to the National Trust, a charity which protects historic places and landscapes. You can even visit Hill Top Farm today, which is exactly like it was when Beatrix lived there!

So if you haven’t read The Tale of Peter Rabbit, or other Beatrix Potter books, why not visit your local library or bookshop today!

Discussion

Have you ever read any Beatrix Potter books? Did you enjoy them? Have you got a favourite writer? Write a comment and tell us about it!