
audiobook
by Mrs. Newton Crosland, Mary Martha Sherwood
Transcribed from the 1849-1850 Darton and Co. edition by David Price, ccx074@pglaf.org
In a sun‑dappled Devonshire cottage, a mother and her son grapple with the meaning of honesty and generosity. When a lost bracelet is returned by a modest village boy, Charles Sidney scoffs at the idea of reward, seeing the gesture as a threat to his own possessions. His mother, Mrs. Sidney, gently pushes him to recognize that true worth lies not in hoarded treasures but in the quiet kindness of others.
The narrative then widens its lens, recalling the memory of Charles’s late brother Frank, whose selfless acts once cost him dearly. Through tender recollections, the story contrasts Frank’s open‑handedness with Charles’s reluctant stinginess, inviting listeners to reflect on the balance between personal comfort and charitable duty. As the children’s lives intertwine, the tale offers a warm, moral portrait of Victorian family life and the small, everyday choices that shape character.
Language
en
Duration
~2 hours (154K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
Jan 22, 2008
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1812–1895
A prolific Victorian writer who published as Mrs. Newton Crosland, she worked across poetry, fiction, essays, sketches, and translation. Her life and writing reflect both literary ambition and the practical struggle of making a career from the pen in 19th-century London.
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1775–1851
A hugely popular 19th-century writer, she shaped generations of children's reading with stories that mixed family life, moral struggle, and vivid religious feeling. Best known today for The Fairchild Family and Little Henry and his Bearer, she wrote with unusual energy and influence.
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