''A Flat Iron for a Farthing'' (1872) is a book by

Juliana Horatia Ewing Juliana Horatia Ewing (née Gatty, 3 August 1841 – 13 May 1885) was an English writer of children's stories. Her writings display a sympathetic insight into children's lives, an admiration for things military, and a strong religious faith. L ...

(1842–1885) and consists of childhood reminiscences of the

only child An only child is a person with no siblings, Birth, by birth or adoption. Children who have half-siblings, step-siblings, or have never met their siblings, either living at the same house or at a different house—especially those who were born con ...

of a

widowed A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can so ...

father. It was one of the author's most popular books.

References

Humphrey Carpenter Humphrey William Bouverie Carpenter (29 April 1946 – 4 January 2005) was an English biographer, writer, and radio broadcaster. He is known especially for his biographies of J. R. R. Tolkien and other members of the literary society the Inkli ...

and Mari Prichard. ''Oxford Companion to Children's Literature''. Oxford University Press, 1997. *

Jack Zipes Jack David Zipes (born June 7, 1937) is a professor emeritus of German, comparative literature, and cultural studies, who has published and lectured on German literature, critical theory, German Jewish culture, children's literature, and folklore. ...

(ed) et al. ''The Norton Anthology of Children's Literature: The Traditions in English.'' W. W. Norton, 2005. * Jack Zipes (ed.). ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature. Volumes 1-4''. Oxford University Press, 2006. * Victor Watson, ''The Cambridge Guide to Children's Books in English''. Cambridge University Press, 2001. 1872 British novels 19th-century British children's literature British children's novels 1870s children's books {{1870s-child-novel-stub