
A little girl sits in a sun‑dappled garden, half‑crying and half‑sewing, her hair tangled by the breeze as she wrestles with a tangled mess of toys, tiny elephants, a missing guinea‑pig and even a miniature Noah’s Ark. She confides her frustrations to a kindly village doctor, who drops his scholarly airs to join her in a whimsical debate about lost continents of playthings and the absurdity of a world where a rocking‑horse’s nose can disappear. Their banter turns the ordinary chore of tidying into a fantastical adventure, filled with playful exaggeration and gentle humor.
The tale captures the delight of childhood imagination, where everyday chores become epic quests and every missing toy is a mystery waiting to be solved. Its light, conversational style invites listeners into a world where patience, friendship, and a touch of silliness turn chaos into a charming, relatable story about growing up and learning to keep one’s things in order.
Language
en
Duration
~4 hours (262K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Erika Q. Stokes and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2005-06-13
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1841–1885
Known for warm, observant stories that took children’s feelings seriously, this Victorian writer brought everyday life, faith, and quiet bravery vividly onto the page. Her best-loved works include A Flat Iron for a Farthing, Jackanapes, and Six to Sixteen.
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