6 h 32 minAudiobook11 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if a child's defiance calls for understanding, not just correction?
In Hoodie, Mrs. Molesworth follows a spirited young child through a story of temper, tenderness and growing up. A strong will can look like a fault to be mended. Here, the child's feelings invite a closer look, making room for understanding alongside the expectations of Victorian childhood.
This children's classic opens a window on the Victorian nursery, where manners and ideas about discipline shape the experience of growing up. Mary Louisa Molesworth writes for young readers, but the questions reach adults too: how do we understand a difficult temper, and how does a child find a sense of belonging?
What you’ll discover
- A spirited central child Follow a strong-willed child whose defiance brings feelings and expectations into focus.
- Temper met with understanding Look beyond difficult behaviour to the feelings that make growing up so complicated.
- Tenderness beside defiance Explore a story that places a child's strong will alongside the need to belong.
- A Victorian view of childhood Encounter manners and ideas about discipline that offer a window into an earlier world.
- A gentle reading pace Settle into a childhood story that gives temper and tenderness room to matter.
Who will love it
Readers who enjoy gentle family stories, spirited child heroines, fairy tales told inside a story, and old-fashioned country nurseries full of pets, games and warm-hearted grown-ups.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A nursery storm on Sunday morning
- Martin's story sends Hoodie searching
- A little girl alone on the road
- Tea with little baby's mother
- Cousin Magdalen wins a doubtful ally
- The chintz curtains and the brownies
- Stories, truths and a fallen bird
- What a pet teaches Hoodie
- Disobedience, illness and the power of being loved
Who’s who
- Hoodie (Julian Caryll)A five-year-old with a ferocious temper and a vivid imagination, she longs to be loved lots and is sure nobody does.
- Maudie (Magdalen)Hoodie's older sister, a good and careful child who tries to keep the peace and sometimes speaks too sharply.
- Hec and DukeHoodie's twin little brothers, easygoing and affectionate, who love stories and adore their sisters.
- MartinThe faithful nurse who loves the children but is worn out by Hoodie's moods and tries to manage her.
- Cousin Magdalen KingMaudie's godmother, a wise young woman who wins Hoodie's trust with stories, patience and fairness.
- Mrs. CaryllThe children's mother, who is gentle and anxious, and wants to understand her strange youngest daughter.
- Lizzie, little baby's motherA kind young cottager who gives Hoodie tea and lets her hold her baby.
- LucyA tender-hearted housemaid who looks after Hoodie in her sad days and in her illness.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 6 h 32 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 11 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Read and hear Hoodie in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Hoodie
by Mrs. Molesworth · 1882
Five-year-old Hoodie screams at the world, then sets out alone with a basket to find a grandmother.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
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In short
Hoodie is a children's story by Mrs. Molesworth, who wrote many tales for young readers in the Victorian age.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A nursery storm on Sunday morning
The story opens in a bright nursery where three children sit by the fire. Maudie, who is eight, reads aloud to her small twin brothers, Hec and Duke. Then Hoodie rushes in, shuts both doors with care, and begins to scream. She is not crying. She is furious, and she shouts that she loves nobody and wants nothing.
The trigger is small. Hoodie has saved her biscuits as a Sunday treat for the dog, Prince, but a servant whistled and Prince ran away from her. The others react the way they always do. Maudie sighs, the boys say Hoodie spoils everything, and Duke wishes she could live alone in a huge house where nobody could hear her.
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What is Hoodie by Mrs. Molesworth about?
It tells of a five-year-old girl called Hoodie, whose terrible temper puzzles her family. Through a runaway walk, a visiting cousin and a pet bird, she begins to learn what love can be.
Why is the girl called Hoodie?
Her real name is Julian. She loved a little pink hood like Red Riding Hood's so much that she screamed when it was taken away and wore it for days, so the family began to call her Hoodie.
Who is Cousin Magdalen in Hoodie?
She is Maudie's godmother and Mrs. Caryll's cousin, who comes to stay. She tells the children stories, teaches Hoodie to tame a bird, and treats her with fairness, which makes Hoodie trust her.
The author
Mrs. Molesworth
1839–1921 · English children's writer
Mrs. Molesworth was the pen name of Mary Louisa Molesworth (1839–1921), an English writer of children's stories. She was born in Rotterdam, grew up in Manchester, and later lived in London. Her books include Carrots (1876), The Cuckoo Clock (1877), Grandmother Dear, Hoodie, and Robin Redbreast.
More by Mrs. Molesworth
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