Arnaud Berquin

Arnaud Berquin (September 1747—21 December 1791) was a French children's author.

His most famous work was "L'Ami des Enfans" (1782-3) which was first translated into English, albeit bowdlerised, by Mary Stockdale and published in London in 1783-4 by Mary's father John Stockdale. [ cite book | title='Tis Treason, My Good Man! Four Revolutionary Presidents and a Piccadilly Bookshop | author=Stockdale, E. | id=ISBN 0712306994 | year=2005 | publisher=The British Library | location=London | pages="pp"213-214 ]

The work remained popular until the middle of the nineteenth century. Berquin's stories consisted of events that might happen to children in their everyday lives—they did not contain fairy tales or other imaginative literature. His books envision childhood reading as a familial exercise; for example, some of his "stories" are actually plays with parts for every member of the family. Berquin's books helped solidify the creation of the nuclear family, for "if Berquin's work has a theme, it is that parents and children live in a perfect symbiosis, the parents looking after their children's interests and the children, if behaving properly, filling their parents with joy." [http://www.cts.dmu.ac.uk/AnaServer?hockliffe+11242+hoccview.anv Introductory essay to "L'Ami des Enfans"] . Retrieved on 8 June 2007.]

References

External links

* [http://www.cts.dmu.ac.uk/AnaServer?hockliffe+11297+imageset.anv "L'Ami des Enfans" (1782)]
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Persondata
NAME=Berquin, Arnaud
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=French children's author
DATE OF BIRTH=September 1747
PLACE OF BIRTH=France
DATE OF DEATH=21 December 1791
PLACE OF DEATH=France