bobquasit | Daily Book Recommendation: Heidi (1881) by Johanna Spyri

Long ago I read a passage in "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" (1952) that made a big impression on me. Lucy was looking through a mysterious book of spells:

On the next page she came to a spell "for the refreshment of the spirit". The pictures were fewer here but very beautiful. And what Lucy found herself reading was more like a story than a spell. It went on for three pages and before she had read to the bottom of the page she had forgotten that she was reading at all. She was living in the story as if it were real, and all the pictures were real too. When she had got to the third page and come to the end, she said, "That is the loveliest story I've ever read or ever shall read in my whole life. Oh, I wish I could have gone on reading it for ten years. At least I'll read it over again."

At the time I wished that I could read a book like that. It wasn't until many years later that I realized that not only WAS there such a book (at least for me), but that I'd already read it and I owned a copy! It was, in fact, Heidi.

And it truly is the most refreshing book I know. Have you read it? I suspect that a lot of younger readers (younger than me, I mean) haven't; it's a classic, but most people have been taught that "classic" is just another word for "incredibly dull and boring" these days. If Amazon can't make big money off it, it's not going to be promoted to readers. At least it's still available in bookstores, albeit under the deadly "CLASSIC" warning sign. But it deserves much better treatment than that!

Heidi is a five-year-old orphan girl sent to live with her grandfather (called the "Alm-Uncle" by locals) who lives in a cabin high in the Swiss Alps. He lives a solitary and bitter life since the death of his son and daughter-in-law, Heidi's parents, broke his heart. Nonetheless he takes Heidi in.

Her life in the Alps is simply enrapturing. In fact, the description of her bed of a sheet over straw in the attic, foaming fresh goat's milk, and toasted goat's cheese made an enormous impression all over the world - particularly in Japan! There are references to Heidi in quite a few manga and anime, and many Japanese are entranced by the story.

The grandfather filled the bowl with milk, and pushed it in front of Heidi. Then he brought her a large slice of bread and a piece of the golden cheese, and told her to eat. Heidi lifted the bowl with both hands and drank without pause till it was empty, for the thirst of all her long, hot journey had returned upon her. Then she drew a deep breath—in the eagerness of her thirst she had not stopped to breathe—and put down the bowl.

"Was the milk nice?" he asked.

"I never drank any so good before," answered Heidi.

"Then you must have some more,"

More than that, the story is incredibly powerful emotionally. Spyri captured the intensity of a young child's feelings magnificently. Heidi's removal to the house of a rich girl in the city will grip your heart, and her return to the Alps will lift it again. There's humor, pathos, excitement and joy. It's simply a lovely book, and I re-read it at least once a year.

For the refreshment of the spirit.

It's in the public domain. You can buy physical copies new (often at a fairly low price), and copies are often available in used book shops too. Ebook versions are free, of course; I'd recommend either of these versions, which include some beautiful illustrations.

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46409

https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/johanna-spyri/heidi/elisabeth-p-stork

Happy reading! 🤓📖

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