Novel
Heidi
Johanna Spyri · 1881
Synopsis
Heidi, a five-year-old orphan, is taken by her aunt Dete to her grandfather, the Alm-Uncle, an old man who lives alone in a chalet above the village and whom everyone avoids. She becomes attached to him, minds the goats with Peter, befriends his blind grandmother, and learns the mountain and its hours. Three years later, Dete comes back for her to keep company in Frankfurt with Clara Sesemann, a rich child who cannot walk; under the rule of Miss Rottenmeier, the house in the big city makes her ill with longing for what she has left.
Context
The book was published in two volumes by Perthes, in Gotha, in 1880 and 1881, under a subtitle that also addresses it to adults who are friends of childhood. It contrasts the simple life of the alpine pasture, tied to nature, health and cheerfulness, with the town of illness and stiff manners. It has fed the myth of a Swiss people living innocently in the healthy air of the mountains, and Maienfeld, which claims to be the model for the village, now makes the most of it. Thirteen English translations appeared between 1882 and 1959, and several authors wrote sequels to it.
Who it is for
A children's book in the strict sense, short and simple, often read in an abridged version; the original is in two parts.
Prizes and reception
Translated into more than fifty languages, it ranks among the best-selling books in the world and among the most famous in Swiss literature.