The Complete Adventures of the Borrowers

by Mary Norton, Joe & Beth Krush (Illustrator), Joe Krush (Illustrator)

Overview

A BIG box for three tiny heroes . . .

Mary Norton’s beloved, best-selling books about the tiny, stouthearted Borrowers are now available together in one gorgeous package, perfect for gift giving. Put this boxed set into the hands of little people—or of any reader who delights in classic adventure. Includes paperback editions of The Borrowers, The Borrowers Afield, The Borrowers Afloat, The Borrowers Aloft, and The Borrowers Avenged.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780152049157
Publisher:	Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication date:	09/13/2011
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	1152
Sales rank:	33,288
Product dimensions:	7.74(w) x 5.26(h) x 2.99(d)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

MARY NORTON (1903-1992) lived in England, where she was an actress, playwright, and award-winning author of books for young readers, including Bed-Knob and Broomstick, the basis for the classic Disney film, and Are All the Giants Dead?

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the Borrowers books:

"A book that begs to be shared."--The Horn Book

"The magic and charm of the writing convince children and grown-ups, too, that Borrowers really do exist."--School Library Journal

"It is not mere extravagance that has prompted comparisons of these books with The Wind in the Willows and Alice in Wonderland, for like the truly great writers of fantasy, Mary Norton is truly original."--The New York Times Book Review

From the Publisher

The delightful books about the miniature people, who live in an old country house by borrowing things from the humans have recently been reissued in one package. Pod and Homily and their daughter Arriety are the Clock family, so named because they live under the grandfather clock that has stood in the hall for 200 years. In the first book they are forced to emigrate from their home under the clock and a friendship blossoms between the grandnephew of the bedridden mistress of the house and Arrietty. In The Borrowers Afield (the second in the series) after a traumatic incident involving a cat, Pod and Homily and their daughter Arrietty flee the house and are left to fend for themselves outdoors. This is a great shock and most unwelcome, and their only hope is to find friends, but that is complicated by the fact that they are tiny and that the field they have to cross is very large. It is their good fortune to find an old boot right away, and that becomes a home for them. After a dramatic rescue, they end up with Tom Goodenough safe and sound. Third in the series, The Borrowers Afloat follows Pod, Homily and Arriety on their further adventures. The Borrowers join the self-sufficient boy Spiller to find a better place to live. They journey down the cottage drain in a soap dish and live in a teakettle by a river, hiding from the human Mild Eye and trying to survive famine and floods. The Borrowers Aloft brings readers to two model villages, one called Little Fordham, created by Mr. Pott and another created by Mr. Platter, called Ballyhoggin. The Borrowers discover Little Fordham and move in. Everything goes along fine until Mr. Pott's tiny people are discovered by Mr. Platter. At this point the competition between the two men to have the best village becomes tense. Mr. Platter has to have the little people for his village. He and his wife kidnap Pod, Homily and Little Arrietty and hide them in the attic of their home. After overcoming shock and fright they plan an escape to return to their dream home. They succeed but the next decision they make about their dream home to protect their future is heart wrenching. The Borrowers Avenged is the final installment in the saga. The Borrowers escape from the attic where they had been held captive over the long, dark winter and set up house in an old rectory. Unlike other fantasy stories in which humans instantaneously had shrunk bodily to keyhole-sized proportions, the Borrowers, once humans themselves in ages past, gradually shrank in their spirits first and then in their bodies: their downsizing an outward testimony to the shrunken "good" that once flourished in all humans. By the curious nature of her main character, Arietty, author Norton weaves into this snail-paced, survival-adventure, experiences that most children at some point will meet—traveling to unknown places; handling personal relationships; leaning values such as manners and hygiene; and adjusting geographically to where one lives. Dappled with sketches throughout, this book in the "Borrowers" series will delight the appetites of those who enjoy a story with generous helpings of details, and a slow simmer to a pleasing denouement. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot, Kristin Harris, Deborah Palgon, Leila Toledo, Patricia Timbrook

Children's Literature - Patricia Timbrook