a biography of the day-jean ingelow (poet, writer)

[niyad]

Jean Ingelow

. . . .
Jean learned to read when three years old, and at an early age began to write poetry. Her first efforts were scribbled on the backs of the folding shutters of her bedroom. She was educated at home by private teachers, superintended by her mother, who was a clever woman of poetic nature.
"We had many pleasures and advantages," says Miss Ingelow. "There was no dullness or gloom about our home, and everything seemed to give occasion for mirth. We had many trips abroad, too; indeed, we spent most winters on the Continent. I made an excursion with a brother, who is an ecclesiastical architect, and in this way I visited every cathedral in France."

Her first work, "A Rhyming Chronicle of Incidents and Feelings," appeared in her thirtieth year, and anonymously. It was praised by Tennyson. Then followed "Allerton and Dreux," a story, in 1851. In l8ä3 she published her first volume of "Poems," which ran through several editions and established her popularity. This book had a large sale in the United States. It was followed by "The Story of Doom and Other Poems" in 1867.


Then, for a time, she turned her attention to fiction. A story for children, entitled "Mopsa the Fairy," appeared in 1869, and was succeeded by a novel, "Off the Skelligs" (three rocky islands on the West coast of Ireland), which, published in 1872, attracted attention for its descriptions of scenery. Its sequel, "Fated to Be Free," came out in the next year. "Sarah de Bergener" followed in 1880, and "John Jerome" in 1886.

Her third volume of "Poems," published in 1885, found a waiting audience. In 1898 a complete collection of her verses was published. "When Sparrows Build" (from "Supper at the Mill&quot , "Sailing Beyond the Seas," "High Tide on the Coast of Lincolnshire," "Songs of Seven," "Divided," "Winstanley," and "Like a Laverock in the Lift" reveal the poetess at her best. She possessed the quality and temperament of the ballad singer rather than that of the professional author.
. . . .

http://womenshistory.about.com/library/etext/bl_ingelow_mentor.htm