Christmas Eve at Romney Hall

Jessie Macgregor (1847-1919)

1900

Title page

Source: Macgregor

Fairy children are gathered round the spinnet shown on the binding and in the frontispiece. [Commentary continues below. Mouse over the text to find links.]

Image download, text and formatting by Jacqueline Banerjee.

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One boy-fairy sits at the keyboard playing the instrument; another, with a taper, lights one of the candles on it; a third, apparently in a nightdress, sits on the far edge. This one watches a couple more of the little beings, who are whispering beneath it. One of the latter looks more like an elf than a fairy, and grins mischievously. It is all very fey, and reminiscent of a time when fairy painting and literary fantasy were both popular. The clear message here is that some children's entertainment is about to begin!

Bibliography

Macgregor, Jessie. Christmas Eve at Romney Hall. London: Elkin Mathews, 1900. Digital Archive — Toronto Public Library. Web. 13 March 2022.

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Created 23 March 2022