author
Mary (Mary Botham) Howitt
1799–1888
Best known for the much-loved poem "The Spider and the Fly," this prolific English writer also helped bring Scandinavian literature, including stories by Hans Christian Andersen, to English readers. Her long career ranged across poetry, children's books, translation, and editing.
4 Audiobooks
A popular history of the United States of America, Vol. 2 (of 2) : from the discovery of the American continent to the present time
by Mary (Mary Botham) Howitt
A popular history of the United States of America, Vol. 1 (of 2) : from the discovery of the American continent to the present time
by Mary (Mary Botham) Howitt
Birds and their nests
by Mary (Mary Botham) Howitt
The poems of Mary Howitt
by Mary (Mary Botham) Howitt
About the author
Born Mary Botham in 1799, she was raised in a Quaker family and became one of the most versatile literary figures of the 19th century. She married fellow writer William Howitt in 1821, and the two built a busy literary life together, publishing widely for both children and adults.
Her most famous work is the poem The Spider and the Fly, but her writing life went far beyond that single piece. She produced poems, stories, and books for young readers, worked as an editor, and became especially important as a translator, introducing English-speaking readers to Scandinavian authors such as Hans Christian Andersen and Frederika Bremer.
Howitt spent parts of her later life in Europe and died in Rome in 1888. Today she is remembered not only for a classic poem that has endured for generations, but also for the breadth of her work and her role in connecting readers across languages and cultures.