Arthur Ransome (1884-1967)
Welcome to the Internet School Library Media Center Arthur Ransome page. You will find biography, bibliography, e-texts and lesson plans here. The ISLMC is a preview site for teachers, librarians, parents and students. You can search this site, use an index or sitemap. 1/20/03.

[Biographical Sketch] [Biography Links] [Bibliography] [Related Links] [Lesson Plans - The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship] [Other Lesson Plans] [E-texts] ]

Arthur Ransome Biographical Sketch

Arthur Ransome was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, England on January 18, 1884. His father Cyric was a history professor and a great lover of nature. As a child, Arthur spent much of his vacation in sailing, camping and exploring the countryside in England's Lake Country near Lake Coniston and Lake Windermere. You'll find some wonderful pictures at Arthur Ransome Picture File. This beautiful countryside influenced many other famous English writers, such as William Wordsworth. Arthur and his father shared a great love of fishing. He later used these wonderful settings from nature in his children's books. You can read more about this aspect of his life at Arthur Ransome. Like many upper class English children, Arthur was educated at Rugby where he actually lived in Lewis Carroll's study room (1). His poor vision, lack of athletic skills and poor academic performance left him with some unhappy memories of his school experiences (2).

As a young man, Arthur Ransome began his career working at a newspaper and had a distinguished career as a journalist. In 1913 he visited Russia where he developed sympathy for the cause of Leon Trotsky and the Russian Revolution. Upon his return to England, he published Old Peter's Russian Tales, a collection of 21 folktales from Russia. He worked as a journalist and returned to Russia to cover stories for his newspaper. He also went as a reporter to other countries. At the age of 45 he wrote the Swallows and Amazons series which were based on holiday adventures for boys and girls. These books were among his best known and most popular books with young people.

His interest in nature can be seen in books such as The Coot Club, published by D. R. Godine in 1990. Here Dorothy and Dick have an adventure in the English countryside and attempt with their friends to protect nesting birds from boaters.

Probably his best known work in the United States is The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship, a Russian folktale. Uri Shulevitz, illustrator of this book, received the Caldecott Award for his illustrations.

Arthur Ransome received many awards during his lifetime. He received the first Carnegie Medal in England in 1936 for his book, Pigeon Post, published by Lippincott. (3)

Adults interested in literary analysis of Ransome's work should visit Arthur Ransome Literary Pages.

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Biography

Arthur Ransome
Important works; education and background; from the BBC
Arthur Ransome
Biography from The Sail Loft. Pin Mill
Arthur Ransome
Biography, pictures; from Visit Cumbria

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Bibliography

Bibliography
Guide to Swallows and Amazons Series of Novels
Includes list of titles, character analyses, analysis
of "inconsistencies, mysteries, etc." in the novels;
compiled by Bill Wright

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Related Links

Arthur Ransome bookcovers
Scans of some of the covers / dustjackets found on
different editions of Arthur Ransome "Swallows and Amazons"
book series. Page by Art Mulder
The Nancy Blackett Trust
Ransome's favorite cruising yachts; page is from the Society
Lake District Photographs
From England's Lake District Villages
The Norfolk Broads
Information on the Broads, England's largest protected
wetlands; from Broads Authority
Literary Suffolk
Children's writers who lived in Suffolk include Jane Taylor,
Enid Blyton, Arthur Ransome, and Kathleen Hale

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Lesson Plans - The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship

Related pages: Uri Shulevitz Teacher Resource File, Folktales

The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship

pdf file; character education; cooperation, diligence,
kindness; from Georgia Humanities Council
Learning about Caldecott Books
Grade 2; Library information skills; features Caldecott
Medal awardees; by Jan Ross, Dixie Elementary Magnet School
Soupy Second Graders
doc file; social living; geography, economics, social
studies; by Erin O'Carroll et al, Prien Lake Elementary

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References

Other Lesson Plans

Baba Yaga
Grades 2 to 4; language arts, social studies, folklore;
Russian folklore, Baba Yaga; from School Library Media Activities
Monthly; AskEric
Russia Resources for Teachers
Related resources for Russian folktales
Junior Great Books Reading Series
Great Books Series #3 includes The Little Daughter of
the Snow also in Conversacions (Spanish Language)
Series 3
Your Stories - My Stories
Unit plan for grade 9 English ESL; See Activity 1: Never
Ending Stories, Folk and Fairy Tales; includes
Russian folktale, "Little Daughter of the Snow"

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E-texts

The Crisis in Russia

"Crisis in Russia" book; from Project Gutenberg
Russia in 1919
"Russia in 1919" book; from Project Gutenberg
Russian Fairy Tales and Stories
E-texts of a collection of Russian fairy tales and
stories; Russian folktales; from Russian Sunbirds

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