From the Bookshelf of Never too Late to Read Classics…

The Children of the New Forest

Frederick Marryat

Start date: July 1, 2017

Finish date: July 31, 2017

Discussion: Children's Classics Buddy Reads

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of -8 topics — 635 comments total

Children's Classics Buddy Reads

* Which children's classics are you reading now?
By Rosemarie , Northern Roaming Scholar · 216 posts · 244 views

last updated Sep 12, 2025 01:50PM

Recommended Children's Books to Read
By Rosemarie , Northern Roaming Scholar · 105 posts · 202 views

last updated Sep 06, 2025 03:53PM

showing 10 of 10 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Mar 08, 2022 Manybooks rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens-literature, historical-fiction, book-reviews, history

So yes, I have found Frederick Marryat's 1847 historical fiction novel The Children of the New Forest interesting, surprisingly readable and generally also imbued with ample textual excitement for a piece of writing penned in the mid 19th century. And most certainly and on an academic level, I thus do consider The Children of the New Forest as primarily being a book which I would label as being historical fiction on multiple different levels (as Marryat's featured text for The Children of the Ne So yes, I have found Frederick Marryat's 1847 historical fiction novel The Children of the New Forest interesting, surprisingly readable and generally also imbued with ample textual excitement for a piece of writing penned in the mid 19th century. And most certainly and on an academic level, I thus do consider The Children of the New Forest as primarily being a book which I would label as being historical fiction on multiple different levels (as Marryat's featured text for The Children of the New Forest is not just presenting the author's take on England during the time of King Charles I and how his royalist child protagonists escape the hue and cry and must live and survive as fugitives in the New Forest, but that his 19th century writing and penmanship would generally also tend to feel historical and as such equally rather dated on many different levels for modern children, for young readers from the 20th and the 21st centuries).

But while my adult reading self has actually and in fact quite enjoyed The Children of the New Forest and has found the double edged datedness intriguing, intellectually stimulating and that I do on a descriptive and historical accuracy level also much applaud Frederick Marryat for managing to retain a very authentic and realistic feeling of textual time and place (and indeed, that The Children of the New Forest does therefore feel like I am emerging myself in King Charles I's time and the horrors and uncertainties of said era, even though I do have to admit that author writing style and attitudes are equally very much and obviously mid 19th century in scope and attitude and especially so with regard to gender and social stratification and class issues), considering that Frederick Marryat did originally pen The Children of the New Forest for children, for younger readers, my so-called inner child does feel as though textually speaking, Frederick Marryat's narrative tends to drag a bit and become just too tediously descriptive and with occasional preachiness.

And indeed, the gender stratifications and Frederick Marryat's social class musings as they are often textually encountered in The Children of the New Forest (and which would of course and in my humble opinion have made perfect sense to and for nineteenth century children and also have made total historical sense to and for me as an adult reader), these would definitely have made me not all that much enjoy The Children of the New Forest had I encountered and tried to read this book as a child or even as a teenager (and while I do understand why some consider The Children of the New Forest as being a classic of mid 19th century British children's literature, I would definitely tend to recommend this book more for adults than for children and more for academics than for actual reading pleasure). ...more

10 likes · Like · see review

Aug 22, 2017 Nancy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: children, orphans, 1800s, british

This book was recommended to me, and I'm happy that it was recommended to me.

This book really didn't seem like a children's book, even though it was about four children, whose home was burned down, and they had to learn to work hard to survive, with the help of the man, who warned them of the plan to burn down their home. These children had been getting into mischief, before they were left homeless. They learned to love living in the country, and working hard to support themselves, and others. ...more

1 like · Like · see review