Leon Garfield
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Leon Garfield
FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...
(14 July 1921 – 2 June 1996) was a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
writer of fiction. He is best known for children's
historical novels Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...
, though he also wrote for adults. He wrote more than thirty books and scripted '' Shakespeare: The Animated Tales'' for television.


Life

Garfield attended Brighton Grammar School (1932–1938) and went on to study art at
Regent Street Polytechnic The University of Westminster is a public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first polytechnic to open in London. The Polytechnic formally received a Royal charter in Aug ...
, but his studies were interrupted first by lack of funds for fees, then by the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.Copson. He married Lena Leah Davies in April, 1941, at Golders Green Synagogue but they separated after only a few months. For his service in the war he joined the
Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...
. While posted in Belgium he met
Vivien Alcock Vivien Alcock (23 September 1924 – 11 October 2003) was an English writer of children's books. Life and career Alcock was born in Worthing, now in West Sussex, England, and her family moved to Devizes in Wiltshire when she was ten years o ...
, then an ambulance driver, who became his second wife (in 1948) and a well-known children's author. She also greatly influenced Garfield's writing, giving him suggestions, including the original idea for ''Smith''.Natov, 5. After the war Garfield worked as a biochemical laboratory technician at the
Whittington Hospital Whittington Hospital is a district general and teaching hospital of UCL Medical School and Middlesex University School of Health and Social Sciences. Located in Upper Holloway, it is managed by Whittington Health NHS Trust, operating as Whittin ...
in
Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, writing in his spare time until the 1960s, when he was successful enough to write full-time.Carpenter and Prichard, 196–97. In 1964 the Garfields adopted a baby girl whom they called Jane after
Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...
, a favourite writer of both parents. Garfield wrote his first book, the pirate novel ''Jack Holborn'', for adult readers, but an editor at Constable & Co. saw its potential as a children's novel and persuaded Garfield to adapt it for younger readers. In that form it was published by Constable in 1964. His second book, ''Devil-in-the-Fog'' (1966), won the first annual Guardian Prize and was serialised for television, as were several of his later works ( below). ''Devil'' was the first of several
historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
adventure novel Adventure fiction is a type of fiction that usually presents danger, or gives the reader a sense of excitement. Some adventure fiction also satisfies the literary definition of romance fiction. History In the Introduction to the ''Encyclopedi ...
s, typically set late in the eighteenth century and featuring a character of humble origins (in this case a boy from a family of travelling actors) pushed into the midst of a threatening intrigue. Another is ''Smith'' (1967), in which the eponymous hero, a young pickpocket, is accepted into a wealthy household; it won the Phoenix Award in 1987. Yet another is ''Black Jack'' (1968), in which a young apprentice is forced by accident and his conscience to accompany a murderous criminal. In 1970 Garfield's work started to move in new directions with ''
The God Beneath the Sea ''The God Beneath the Sea'' is a children's novel based on Greek mythology, written by Leon Garfield and Edward Blishen, illustrated by Charles Keeping, and published by Longman in 1970. It was awarded the annual Carnegie Medal (Garfield & Blis ...
'', a re-telling of numerous Greek myths in one narrative, co-authored with
Edward Blishen Edward Blishen (29 April 1920 – 13 December 1996) was an English author and broadcaster. He may be known best for the first of two children's novels based on Greek mythology, written with Leon Garfield, illustrated by Charles Keeping, and pub ...
and illustrated by
Charles Keeping Charles William James Keeping (22 September 1924 – 16 May 1988) was an English people, English illustrator, children's book author and lithographer. He made the illustrations for Rosemary Sutcliff's historical novels for children, and he creat ...
. It won the annual Carnegie Medal for the best British children's book. Garfield, Blishen, and Keeping collaborated again on a sequel, ''The Golden Shadow'' (1973). ''The Drummer Boy'' (1970) was another adventure story, but concerned more with a central moral problem, and apparently aimed at somewhat older readers, a trend continued in ''The Prisoners of September'' (1975), republished in 1989 by Lions Tracks under the title ''Revolution!'', ''The Pleasure Garden'' (1976) and ''The Confidence Man'' (1978). ''The Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris'' (1972) is a black comedy in which two boys decide to test the plausibility of the tale of
Romulus and Remus In Roman mythology, Romulus and Remus (, ) are twin brothers whose story tells of the events that led to the founding of the city of Rome and the Roman Kingdom by Romulus, following his fratricide of Remus. The image of a she-wolf suckling the ...
, using the baby sister of one of the boys. Most notable at the time was a series of linked long short stories about apprentices, published separately between 1976 and 1978, and then as a collection, ''The Apprentices''. The more adult-themed books of the mid-1970s met with a mixed reception and Garfield returned to the model of his earlier books with ''John Diamond'', which won a
Whitbread Award The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in UK and Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then ...
in 1980, and ''The December Rose'' (1986). In 1980 he also wrote an ending for ''
The Mystery of Edwin Drood ''The Mystery of Edwin Drood'' is the final novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in 1870. Though the novel is named after the character Edwin Drood, it focuses more on Drood's uncle, John Jasper, a precentor, choirmaster and opium ...
'', unfinished at the death in 1870 of
Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
, an author who had a major influence on Garfield's own style. Garfield was elected a fellow of the
Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...
in 1985. On 2 June 1996 he died of cancer at the Whittington Hospital, where he had once worked.


Themes, influences, style

Garfield's novels for children all have historical settings. The early novels are mostly set in the late eighteenth century, but from ''John Diamond'' on they tend to be set in the nineteenth century. They are not novels about major historical events, which are rarely depicted, or social conditions, which provide only starting points for the personal stories of the characters. In the few novels in which Garfield handles actual events he writes of them from the limited and subjective viewpoints of his characters. The novels owe much to
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
and to
Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...
. The latter's ''
Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...
'' clearly provided a model for ''Jack Holborn'', with its shifting alliances of manipulative characters in pursuit of a treasure. Garfield also acknowledged the brothers in Stevenson's ''
The Master of Ballantrae ''The Master of Ballantrae: A Winter's Tale'' is an 1889 novel by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, focusing upon the conflict between two brothers, Scottish noblemen whose family is torn apart by the Jacobite rising of 1745. He w ...
'' as inspiration for the book. Beyond these specific debts, Garfield shares Stevenson's fondness for binding a relatively conservative hero to a more forceful personality outside the bounds of conventional morality. Another recurring plot line, most evident in ''Smith'' and ''The December Rose'', in which an outcast is integrated into a supporting household, owes more to Dickens. Garfield also shares with Dickens a preference for urban settings, generally in London. Garfield's father broke off contact with him when he divorced his Jewish wife. Roni Natov argues that this may have had an influence on Garfield's work, giving particular significance to fathers and father figures.


Film and television

Many of Garfield's books have been adapted for film or television: ''Devil-in-the-Fog'' was televised in 1968;"The Devil in the Fog (1968– )"
IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
.
''Smith'' in 1970; ''The Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris'' was made into a 6-part
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
serial in 1979; ''Black Jack'' was made into a feature film by
Ken Loach Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a British film director and screenwriter. His socially critical directing style and socialist ideals are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (''Poor Cow'', 1967), homelessne ...
in the same year; ''John Diamond'' was made into a BBC television series in 1981; ''Jack Holborn'' was made into the German Christmas mini-series ''
Jack Holborn Jack Holborn was a 1982 ZDF Adventure TV mini-series. The story is based on the 1964 book by Leon Garfield. It was shown in the United Kingdom by ITV. Plot Jack Holborn is a 13-year-old boy living in an orphanage in late 18th-century Bristol. Jac ...
'' by
ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...
in 1982; ''The Ghost Downstairs'' was televised in 1982; the following year, "The Restless Ghost" was included in the '' Dramarama:Spooky'' series; "Mr Corbett's Ghost" was made into a television film with
Paul Scofield David Paul Scofield (21 January 1922 – 19 March 2008) was a British actor. During a six-decade career, Scofield achieved the US Triple Crown of Acting, winning an Academy Awards, Academy Award, Emmy Award, Emmy, and Tony Award, Tony for his ...
and
John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...
in 1987. In addition Garfield himself wrote the script for the 1986 television serial, ''The December Rose'', afterwards adapting it as a novel, and for '' Shakespeare: The Animated Tales'' (1992 and 1994), a well regarded Russian animation of Shakespeare, commissioned by the Welsh Channel Four, S4C; for this he was awarded the 1995
Sam Wanamaker Award The Sam Wanamaker Award or Sam Wanamaker Prize is an award established in 1994 for pioneering work in Shakespearean theatre, usually given to individuals who have worked closely with Shakespeare's Globe or the Royal Shakespeare Company; the award ...
.


Awards

''Devil-in-the-Fog'' (1966) won the inaugural, 1967
Guardian Children's Fiction Prize The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize or Guardian Award was a literary award that annual recognised one fiction book written for children or young adults (at least age eight) and published in the United Kingdom. It was conferred upon the author ...
. The newspaper-sponsored Prize is judged by a panel of children's writers and it annually recognises one new British children's novel by an author who has not won it. ''The God Beneath the Sea'' (1970) won the annual Carnegie Medal from the
Library Association The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, since 2017 branded CILIP: The library and information association (pronounced ), is a professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge management, knowle ...
, recognising the year's best children's book by a
British subject The term "British subject" has several different meanings depending on the time period. Before 1949, it referred to almost all subjects of the British Empire (including the United Kingdom, Dominions, and colonies, but excluding protectorates ...
that has not previously won the prize. From 1967 to 1970 Garfield was also a Commended runner up for the Carnegie Medal three times, for ''Smith'', ''Black Jack'', and ''Drummer Boy'', the latter in competition with his Medal-winning work. ''John Diamond'' (1980) won the annual Whitbread Literary Award, Children's Novel, a year's best award that considers enjoyable reading for a wide audience, as well as literary merit. ''Smith'' won the 1987
Phoenix Award The Phoenix Award annually recognizes one English-language children's book published twenty years earlier that did not then win a major literary award. It is named for the mythical bird phoenix that is reborn from its own ashes, signifying the ...
(from the mythical phoenix, which is reborn from its ashes) from the
Children's Literature Association The Children's Literature Association (ChLA) is a non-profit association, based in the United States, of scholars, critics, professors, students, librarians, teachers, and institutions dedicated to studying children's literature.Margaret W. Denman- ...
as the best English-language children's book that did not win a major award when originally published. In ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'',
Francis Spufford Francis Spufford FRSL (born 1964) is an English author and teacher of writing whose career has seen him shift gradually from non-fiction to fiction. His first novel ''Golden Hill'' received critical acclaim and numerous prizes including the Costa ...
named ''
The God Beneath the Sea ''The God Beneath the Sea'' is a children's novel based on Greek mythology, written by Leon Garfield and Edward Blishen, illustrated by Charles Keeping, and published by Longman in 1970. It was awarded the annual Carnegie Medal (Garfield & Blis ...
'' one of the greatest children's books, calling it "visceral, overpowering, defiantly undomesticated", adding, "Read this as a child, and ever after you understand why Prometheus and Pandora are down there at the roots of the West's imagination." In the May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture,
Philip Pullman Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. His books include the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ'', a fictionalised biography of Jesus. In 2008, ''The ...
praised Garfield as "someone who put the best of his imagination into everything he wrote", particularly praising ''The Pleasure Garden''.


Selected works

* ''Jack Holborn'' (1964) * ''Devil-in-the-Fog'' (1966) * ''Smith'' (1967) * ''Black Jack'' (1968) * ''Mister Corbett's Ghost and Other Stories (1969) * ''The Drummer Boy'' (1970) * ''
The God Beneath the Sea ''The God Beneath the Sea'' is a children's novel based on Greek mythology, written by Leon Garfield and Edward Blishen, illustrated by Charles Keeping, and published by Longman in 1970. It was awarded the annual Carnegie Medal (Garfield & Blis ...
'' (
Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...
, 1970) ‡ * ''The Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris'' (1971) * ''The Ghost Downstairs'' (1972) * ''The Golden Shadow'' (Longman, 1973) ‡ * ''The Sound of Coaches'' (1974), illus. John Lawrence * ''The Prisoners of September'' (1975) * ''The Pleasure Garden'' (1976) * ''The Confidence Man'' (1978) * ''The Apprentices'' (1978) * ''Bostock and Harris'' (1979); US title, ''The Night of the Comet'' * ''John Diamond'' (Kestrel, 1980); US title, ''Footsteps'' * ''The Mystery of Edwin Drood'' (Deutsch, 1980), by Charles Dickens and Garfield * ''Fair's Fair'' (1981), illus. Margaret Chamberlain, picture book * ''The House of Cards'' (1982) * ''Shakespeare Stories'' (1985), illus. Michael Foreman * ''The Wedding Ghost'' (1985) * ''The December Rose'' (1986) * ''The Empty Sleeve'' (1988) * ''Blewcoat Boy'' (1988) * ''Shakespeare Stories II'' (1994), illus. Michael Foreman ‡ ''The God Beneath the Sea'' (1970) and ''The Golden Shadow'' (1973) were written by Garfield and
Edward Blishen Edward Blishen (29 April 1920 – 13 December 1996) was an English author and broadcaster. He may be known best for the first of two children's novels based on Greek mythology, written with Leon Garfield, illustrated by Charles Keeping, and pub ...
, illustrated by
Charles Keeping Charles William James Keeping (22 September 1924 – 16 May 1988) was an English people, English illustrator, children's book author and lithographer. He made the illustrations for Rosemary Sutcliff's historical novels for children, and he creat ...
, and published by Longman.


See also


Notes


References

;Citations * H. Carpenter and M. Prichard, ''The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature'' (Oxford: OUP, 1984)
official website
* B. Copson, "Garfield, Leon (1921–1996)", ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'' (OUP), September 2004
online edition
January 2007 * R. Natov, ''Leon Garfield'' (New York: Twayne Publishers, 1994) * J. R. Townsend, ''Written for Children: An Outline of English-language Children's Literature'' (London: Penguin, ed. 3, 1987); first edition 1965


Further reading

*


External links


leongarfield.com
* * —immediately, the first edition of Garfield's version * —immediately, the first edition * —immediately, a record for the first edition * {{DEFAULTSORT:Garfield, Leon British Army personnel of World War II British children's writers British historical novelists Deaths from cancer in England Carnegie Medal in Literature winners Costa Book Award winners Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners Royal Army Medical Corps soldiers 1921 births 1996 deaths 20th-century British novelists