He also changed the way people thought about childhood. Shucks, even if you remember what it was like not to understand why adults on TV tongue-kissed (eeeeew, cooties), you'll feel for little Maisie.īut by writing Maisie, James didn't just hold up a mirror to readers young and old. If you've ever found more protection and solace in a teacher's, babysitter's, or Girl Scout leader's company than in your own family, you'll feel for her. If you've ever learned an early-age life lesson about whom to trust, you'll feel for her. If you've ever been dependent, felt deserted, or had to fend for yourself in the absence of adults who act like adults, you'll feel for her. We've all been there, even if we haven't been there quite like Maisie. What Maisie Knew will matter to anyone who's ever been a child. What is What Maisie Knew About and Why Should I Care? There's lots to be learned-about life as well as lit-in her school of hard knocks. Memorable Maisie's not just a damsel in distress she's one of a kind and as sharp as they come. From beginning to end, James gives readers a real sense of what it feels like to be in poor, unfortunate Maisie's shoes.īut even though the story is sad, the shoes are big ones to fill. But it's how he does this that makes his novel stand out, and stand the test of time. True to his nickname, 'The Master' James masterfully and movingly charts this young girl's struggles and her final triumph. We'll spare you the spoilers for now and simply say that Maisie's more than worth a read. Eventually, Aurora-like, Maisie finds family… but she doesn't find it where you'd expect her to. Right Parent.Īfter a nasty custody battle, Maisie's selfish parents fight over her, then desert her, leaving her to figure out the world almost on her own and to decide which adult figure can really offer her the true parental love that she has never had. Except What Maisie Knew is about a six-year-old girl and her quest for Mr. In that way, it's a little bit like every classic rom-com where our hero ditches their loser bf or gf and finds Mr. It's about feeling-no, make that being-abandoned by the people who are supposed to love and protect you, getting over it, and finding people who do love and protect you. Maisie's story, first published in 1897, is all about overcoming awful adversity. It's why readers keep returning to Henry James's classic and learning from its young heroine.

But that's what makes her story so compelling. It's a hard-knock life for little Maisie.

Who wrote what maisie knew