author
E. A. Gillie
Remembered today for warmly written fiction for younger readers, this elusive late-Victorian author left behind stories of girls’ friendships, duty, and adventure. Even though biographical details are scarce, the surviving books suggest a writer with a clear affection for family life and spirited heroines.
1 Audiobook
Barbara in Brittany
by E. A. Gillie
About the author
Very little confirmed biographical information about E. A. Gillie seems to survive. A Victorian fiction reference source lists the author’s birth and death dates as unknown, which makes Gillie one of those writers whose work has outlasted the record of the person behind it.
What can be confirmed is the bibliography. At the Circulating Library: A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901 records A Girl Among Girls (London: J. F. Shaw, 1899) and A Comrade’s Troth (London: J. F. Shaw, 1900). Project Gutenberg also preserves Barbara in Brittany, showing that Gillie wrote fiction that continued to attract readers well beyond its original publication era.
Taken together, these titles point to an author associated with wholesome, character-centered stories for young readers, especially girls. Because so little personal history is firmly documented, E. A. Gillie is best approached through the books themselves: lively period fiction with a gentle, companionable feel.