Customer Reviews

Little Lord Fauntleroy (Puffin Classics)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Little Lord Fauntleroy stirred my emotions. Would I have let my seven-year-old live with his ill-tempered grandfather who despised me? Probably not! Yet as the story unfolded, I admired the wise words and kind ways of Fauntleroy's mother, Dearest. I empathized with the mother's caring for her only child and her concern for the poor and less fortunate. This book renewed my faith in goodness and kindness. It made me reflect on all that I have.

When the Earl of Fauntleroy decides to bring his favourite son's son to England from America, young Cedric's life is dramatically changed forever. With an ever-innocent and trusting perspective on life he manages to turn his bitter grandfather into a loving, generous man while also endearing himself to every other person he comes in contact with.

When I was little, two of my favorite books were A Little Princess and The Secret Garden (HarperClassics) by Frances Hodgson Burnett. When I grew up, they were still favorites. So a year ago when I was buying them for my little cousin, and I noticed "Little Lord Fauntleroy", I was astounded. How did I miss such a gem?

The story of little Cedric who warms his old grandfather's heart is beautifully written and quite touching. There is also a lesson to be learned, as we watch what Cedric does with his newfound wealth. What would you do if you were suddenly gifted with such a fortune? This story is perfect for anyone who enjoyed "A Little Princess" or "The Secret Garden"!

This delightful story has a reputation for being very sentimental, and it is, but it is also filled with humour. Cedric Errol, an all-American boy, discovers to his dismay that he is the heir to an English earldom, and has to go to England to live with his stern old grandfather, who despises Americans (he must have been reading the Guardian, I suppose). Gradually they learn to like each other, and the grandfather even comes around to liking Cedric's American mother. There is a melodromatic sub-plot involving a false heir, but the story is really interesting enough without it. The best character in the book is Cedric's friend Mr. Hobbs, a staunchly Republican grocer who despises earls "I'd like to catch one of em inside here; that's all!" he tells Cedric, before he knows Cedric is one of them "I'll have no graspin tyrants sittin round on my buiscuit barrels!" By the end of the book though, he has become so attached to Cedric that he sells his grocery business and settles in England, where he becomes an avid follower of aristocratic doings. He says he'll never return to America "It's a good enough country for them that's young and stirrin - but there's faults in it. there's not an aunt-sister among em - nor an earl!" Which pretty much sums up how I feel about America too.

I wanted to read this book because the idea of Little Lord Fauntleroy is such a part of our culture, but I knew nothing about the original. The child is sympathetically drawn (except for the fact of calling his mother "dearest" which I found odd) and charms all he comes in contact with. He is just an ordinary boy in the US when news comes to him that he will inherit his grandfather's title and is to go to England to learn to be a lord. The grandfather is wonderfully curmudgeonly, the mother is too good to be true, and of course there is a happy ending. There was gentle humour and I liked seeing the change in the old man. A pleasant read.

The company's service was good, but the book itself was full of printing errors. A large speech was absent at the end, and I caught that only because I'd looked it up; the ending made no sense without it. There was also computer code on the pages here and there in the middle of text. I definitely don't recommend this publisher's version of the book.

This is an example of the difficulties of shopping online.
I had read the book several years ago and wanted to give a volume as a gift. This printing is unacceptable - unpleasant font, cramped pages and flimsy binding. You will do better with the purchase of a used hardcover volume

I found this book in my school library a year ago...and i think it was indeed,a very pleasant heartwarming story.So nice was that i even managed to catch Burnett's other titles!

Basically,this novel is about a boy living in America who realises that his long dead father was actually a lord's son back in old England.The story goes back when the lord's (youngest and favourite) son fell for a young maiden in America.So madly in love with her that he even dare to forsake his home,his title and his father to be with her.Despite they being poor,the trio led a fulfilling and wonderful life,that was,when the son was contracted with some incurable disease and died.

Back in England,the old sire (the lord,of course) never forgave his youngest son for his action.He never liked the maiden,either.Coincidence as it may be,the Lord's two oldest sons either died or ran away(sorry,but i can't remeber this part).Knowing that his time was up,and he needed a heir,the Lord called for his long-lost grandson to come stay with him in England.

For a boy who was born and bred in America,and had friends like the baker,the apple seller,the barber and roams round the street during his leisure time,moving in with a stern and grouchy old man in a cold castle was a far cry from his life in America.

The old Lord found children a nuisance,but had it not been a fact that he needs a heir,he'd have probably wished his grandson to continue rotting away in America.Cedric Roy (the protagonist and grandson)was nevertheless,the sweet and innocent 7-year-old.He never questions why his grandfather was old and bitter,or why the servants were extremely afraid of their master,or why the castle was cold and dark and empty,or why his mother could not come and live with him (the Lord refused the maided to be within his castle grounds).

Overtime,as Cedric Roy discovered more of his grandpa's self,the latter too,was amused by his grandson.A boy of 7,compassionate and caring for others,the old man began to open up...and change his perspection of life...

It was amazing indeed,that this lovely bond between a boy of 7 and an old elderly man could get along easily.Burnett's novel was extremely well-written...depicting the childishness and innocence of a child,as well as the black-hearted old Lord.I give this book two thumbs up!

This is an excellent book. The man who wrote the book is called F.H.Burnett (Francis Hodgson Burnett).
I read this book because my sister was telling me all day long to read it. Now I have to say thanks to her, because it's a great book, what's more, is one of the best books I've ever read.
It is about a boy called Cedric Errol. He's not only intelligent but also kind and beautiful. He used to live with his father and his mother, but his father died, so he started trying to make his mother happier.
One day, he was in the corner with her close friend Hobbs (he is a man, not a boy), when the woman that works in his house, Mary, went to the corner to tell to Cedric that he have to return to his house. There he saw a man... This man was called Mr.Havisham, he was the lawyer of Cedric's grandfather. This man was there to go with Cedric and his mother to Dorincourt (that was the castle of his grandfather). Cedric would become a Lord, Lord Fauntleroy. At first, he doesn't like that but then...all the things change.
The lawyer of his grandfather gave him a lot of money to do what he wanted. The surprise was that Cedric, instead of buying things for himself, decided to help other people. For example: he helped the old woman that sold apples in the street to buy a shop.
When Cedric met his granfather, he thinks that his grandfather is the kindest man in all the world, but this opinion is not the same that the poor people that lives there have.
Cedric and the countess become very close. But suddenly, a woman appeared telling to all the people that her son was the real Lord Fauntleroy. This new Lord was very stupid and he was not what we can call "beautiful". Obviouslly, the countess doesn't accept that this stupid boy was the son of his son, and he starts investigating.
Here I have to stop, if not I will tell you all the book, no?. Well, I recommend this book, it is really amazing!!!
Andre (=_0)

Cedric Errol is a seven-year old boy who lives with his mother in the mid-1880s on a "New York side street" that is described as "shabby." His father, also named Cedric Errol had died when the boy was a toddler. It turns out that Captain Cedric Errol was the third son of the very wealthy English Earl of Dorincourt who, when his son went to America and married, cut him off. But the Earl's two older sons have died childless, and now little Cedric is his only male heir, known as Lord Fauntleroy, so he sends his lawyer, Mr. Havisham, to America to bring Cedric and his mother back. Cedric is to live with his grandfather in his castle-like manor house to be trained as an aristocrat, while Mrs. Errol, whom Cedric calls "Dearest," is to live in another house on the estate. Cedric can visit her whenever he wishes, but she is not to come to the manor house.
During this time, Cedric writes his friends in New York, Mr. Hobbs the grocer and Dick Tipton the bootblack. Then a woman comes, claiming that she was the wife of Bevis, the Earl's oldest son, and had a boy by him who is the real Lord Fauntleroy. What kind of influence will young Cedric have on his crusty old grandfather? How can Dick the bootblack help to determine if the boy of the woman who claims to be the mother of Bevis's son is whom he's claimed to be? And will the Earl ever become reconciled to his daughter-in-law? We have read and enjoyed author Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Little Princess and The Secret Garden. However, Little Lord Fauntleroy was her first children's novel and perhaps best-known title. It was originally published as a serial in the St. Nicholas Magazine between November, 1885, and October, 1886. The accompanying illustrations by Reginald Birch set fashion trends. Also the book set a precedent in copyright law in 1888 when the author won a lawsuit against E. V. Seebohm over the rights to theatrical adaptations of the work.
The story is perhaps best known today from a 1936 film starring Freddy Bartholomew as Cedric and featuring Mickey Rooney as Dick Tipton, the Brooklyn bootblack. Like Pollyana and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Little Lord Fauntleroy has been misunderstood, and the term is now sometimes used in derision to describe a pompous spoiled brat, usually a young male, who takes his wealth and privilege for granted. However, this is not consistent with the original character, whose personality could be described as naturally and innocently generous, kind, and friendly. I enjoyed reading the book. There are a few minor references to drinking wine, smoking a pipe, and dancing, but there is also emphasis placed on going to church services and praying. Some people today might think the book hopelessly outdated and completely irrelevant to modern life. However, I believe that children need to read books with characters who exemplify good behavior. The fact is that young people don't have to grow up spoiled and bratty as they're often pictured in many books nowadays. They can be raised to be polite and kind, and Little Lord Fauntleroy is certainly a role model of that kind of deportment toward which we can aim.