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    The Water Babies
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    The Water Babies
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    The Water Babies
    Ebook238 pages5 hours

    The Water Babies

    By Charles Kingsley

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Tom, a mistreated young chimney sweep finds himself transported into a fantastic underwater world where he becomes a water baby. A vivid and exciting story that created serious issues about children's working hours in Victorian Britain.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThe Gresham Library
    Release dateJun 30, 2015
    ISBN9781849343572
    Author

    Charles Kingsley

    Charles Kingsley was born in Holne, Devon, in 1819. He was educated at Bristol Grammar School and Helston Grammar School, before moving on to King's College London and the University of Cambridge. After graduating in 1842, he pursued a career in the clergy and in 1859 was appointed chaplain to Queen Victoria. The following year he was appointed Regius Professor of Modern History at Cambridge, and became private tutor to the Prince of Wales in 1861. Kingsley resigned from Cambridge in 1869 and between 1870 and 1873 was canon of Chester cathedral. He was appointed canon of Westminster cathedral in 1873 and remained there until his death in 1875. Sympathetic to the ideas of evolution, Kingsley was one of the first supporters of Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859), and his concern for social reform was reflected in The Water-Babies (1863). Kingsley also wrote Westward Ho! (1855), for which the English town is named, a children's book about Greek mythology, The Heroes (1856), and several other historical novels.

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    Reviews for The Water Babies

    3.5/5

    315 ratings22 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Here's something that's been on my TBR shelf literally since before I was born. My mother kept her own copy, an award from a 1925 school essay contest in Ottawa, at the cabin we went to in Quebec every summer. I don't recall her ever reading it to me, but since her death it's been on my own shelves and I finally decided I couldn't let another 70 years go by without reading it. 10-year-old Tom, a poorly treated chimney sweep, completely uneducated and social untrained, loses himself in a complex chimney system and comes down in the bedroom of a family's young daughter. He's assumed to be a thief and is chased hither and yon by a crowd, finally escaping them only to drown not too far away. He's taken in hand by fairies and turned into a water baby, promptly forgetting his past and having numerous adventures with all sorts of real and (to us) unreal creatures. Along the way he's taught good behavior in ways some educators might find useful. Two of his teachers are Mrs. Bedonebyasyoudid and her sister, Mrs. Doasyouwouldbedoneby. It's a charming book, with but a few phrases that are now politically incorrect. I was actually surprised it wasn't worse, to be honest. The content that I found most jarring was the occasional veiled reference to a holy child, which seemed completely out of place in the middle of a fairy tale. I went back and read the book's description in "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die", which pointed out that this was written only a couple of years after publication of "On The Origin of Species" and was very much concerned with evolutionary progression and regression. At any rate, it's a charming tale and it was a pleasure to finally read it.
    • 3/5
      Tom, a young chimney-sweep in Victoria England, escapes the abuse of Mr.Grimes, his boss, and quickly finds himself in an adventure saga under the sea. This adventure is for Tom an exploration of the big world and its inhabitants, as well as a teaching of how to be good in the world. I appreciate the little nuggets of wisdom.This novel may not be accessible for today's youth. The language is dense and unfamiliar in places, and the plot rambles on. I stuck with it, but novice readers may not have the stamina.
    • 1/5
      I had the hardest time reading this book. The wording is so off and the plot makes such little sense to me. I do not like it.
    • 1/5
      This book was read to me when I was five years old, horrifying me then and ever since. As the story goes, chimneys were difficult to clean so they sent a small boy up inside it to do the cleaning. Why? It was his job. Why wasn't he in school? School was only for fortunate children. What did his parents do about it? No mention. Who looked after him? No one. Did the boys die up the chimney? Sometimes. Then it goes on to describe babies in a weedy pond, the illustrations showing them peering out of their watery prison that is like a giant green goldfish bowl. I never found out why. Just how bad do you have to be to live in this world? I have since found out the story was part of his "scientific theory" over human origins. Oh, perfect for a child's entertainment! Kingsley was a priest of the Church of England and evidently believed that horror stories would keep his congregation into line. He was the worst kind of Victorian patriarch.My grade one teacher has a lot to answer for by giving me this lifelong nightmare.
    • 2/5
      After having slogged through The Water Babies once again I have come to the conclusion that that had it not been for the glorious illustrations of Jessie Wilcox Smith I might never return to this moralistic fairy tale. What I once found clever in my youth I now find repellent.
    • 1/5
      So dated I can't picture any kid i know reading it today. I asked my mother if she read this as a child. She didn't remember this specifically, but gave me a lecture on how they didn't have aliens and star wars in her day (she was born in 1916), and they enjoyed fairy tales like Grimm's and Anderson. So I guess I would recommend this for a grandmother, and not a child.
    • 5/5
      I never tire of this charming story, the magic has been with me since I first read it at a very early age, and continues now as I read it to my own eight year old... Some stories will live forever.
    • 5/5
      Not really a children's book , more early SF / modern morality tale/ social commentary . Firmly grounded in evolution and biology as known at the time, Tom the chimney sweep's boy is transformed into a miniature aquatic baby complete with external gills. He learns and develops in his new environment and evolves into a decent human being.
    • 3/5
      Delightful story of a chimney sweep swept into an underwater world.
    • 4/5
      I remember my mother reading this book to me as a child, and now that I am 21 I have found a beautiful version. It's illustrated by Zena Holloway with underwater photographs and is breathtaking in its beauty and detail. It compresses the storyline nicely, leaving out a lot of the Victorian Era discourses (theological and scientific) that seem to make the book difficult for younger readers.I remember that I loved this book, and Ellie was my favourite character apart from Tom. I still remember the part where Tom steals the treats, and what I felt for him when he confessed. I don't really remember the rest (I was probably 10 when we stopped reading it - it got lost), and I don't know if my mother skipped over the philosophy sections, but I don't remember them being particularly arduous.4 stars for the original, and 5 for the Picture Book version that I currently have.
    • 4/5
      Little Tom, the chimney sweep, is turned into a water baby when he jumps into a stream to clean himself.A children's classic from 1863, of course full of Victorian morale (Mrs. Doasyouwouldbedoneby, e.g.), but nevertheless a very likeable and adventurous story.
    • 4/5
      I read this through DailyLit, which sends bitesize bits of books to your email address everyday. I don't work for them but it really effects what I can read especially if the book was written an age ago and would just frustrate me into putting it down if I read it on the sofa.I loved this and am so glad I put the effort in to get through it. I wish we lived in a world where this was a real children's book and kids could read this stuff. I mean, how different is this from modern fantasy? Not that much in my opinion, not very cool and trendy though I am sure...!A fantastic moral tale, with so much information about some real and some imaginary creatures you get so mixed up it's delightful. Fairies and undersea creatures. Brilliant.
    • 3/5
      The Water Babies is touted as a fairy tale for a "land baby." Supposedly, the book was written by Kingsley for his then infant son. Even considering an adult reading this aloud to a child, it's difficult to see this book being intended for a terribly young audience. The overall story is whimsical and cute and could be entertaining for a child. But the frequent interjections by the narrator exploring philosophical, scientific, and theological themes are most definitely going to be over the head of any child reader and many/most adult readers. A child would potentially enjoy an abridged version of the story (which is likely what was used for the cartoon versions of the story). And yet, Kingsley definitely intended the book to carry his agenda.Putting aside the question of intended audience (assuming that "intending" it for children is mostly a ploy to get this book out there and more readily promote his agenda), this book is a very interesting read.Written amid the hotbed of many scientific pamphlets, essays, and books on evolution, this book attempts to explore many of these theories in an accessible and often satiric way. The story itself involves a young boy, Tom, who is transformed from a human boy into a "water baby" and then needs to "evolve" back into human form. The "evolution" process isn't overt or complex (he doesn't become an ape, as is often the anticipated evolutionary ancestor of humans). Rather, he exists as a water baby in order to be "out of his own world" and undergo a sort of "moral evolution" from a "bad boy" into a civilized, selfless, kind, human boy. The story was intriguing and had many fairy tale elements not only in that it involved fairies and magic, but also that it posed many morals. It presented core values that people should live by. Two of the main fairies are named "Bedonebyasyouhavedone" and "Doasyouwouldbedoneby" and as such they teach Tom about consequences, the ideas of justice and mercy, and the motivations for being selfless and altruistic in helping your fellow creatures.Many of the philosophical and scientific ideas are also very interesting to read. There are numerous passages poking fun at evolutionary theorists...both at the arguments for evolution and those against...showing some of the ridiculous holes in each side of the argument. Where this book was interesting to me is that it showed a way that "evolution" can exist side-by-side with "religion." Even in our modern day, that's at the heart of many arguments. Kingsley essentially presents evolution as a natural adaptive process that creatures undergo. And yet, he identifies it not as some random thing that "just happens", but as the effect of a divine creator...a creator all the more divine for having been able to not only "make creatures" but to "make creatures that can make themselves." Just as God set the planets in motion and doesn't have to actively maneuver them around the universe...God has also put life in motion and doesn't have to actively maneuver the adaptations that life undergoes in order to better survive in different situations. There is one lengthy example given in the book which could give both theologists and evolutionists pause...in this segment, a group of lazy humans essentially move back out into the jungle and become hairy (so as to weather the elements) and their arms, legs, hands & feet modify so as to be better adapted to climbing trees and their laziness causes them to actually lose language over time...the humans essentially become apes. It doesn't seem that Kingsley is suggesting that humans evolved from apes, but this segment in the story opens itself to contradiction despite its satirical nature.And...back on topic...I don't want to write a diatribe about evolution, even though that is a large underlying theme of this book.This novel was widely successful and actually became a staple in England's education system for many years. The language is fun and the story is humorous. The digs he takes at the scientific community are funny but often too obscure (fortunately my copy had endnotes to explain a lot of them). It's not something I'd read over and over. It's also not something I'm going to throw in front of my kids to read as I'm not sure they'd really enjoy it or "get it"...in fact, they'd probably get bored too soon. Maybe once they hit their teens.***3 stars
    • 3/5
      This book is a mixed bag, one I enjoyed reading for its wonderful turns of phrase and flights of fancy (to quote a couple of worthy cliches). It's not real strong on plot and being of another age I don't buy a lot of the author's views on things -- which since this is a moralizing tale it is not easy to overlook. But still, lots to mine here, and a soothing read at a difficult time.
    • 4/5
      This children's classic reflects the culture of the time in which it was written. The writing describes the fanciful journey of an abused chimney sweep who finds refuge with the fairies. Many quote worthy passages mixed with some racial stereotyping make for an interesting read.
    • 4/5
      Discovered this treasure when I was a teenager. It still holds up for me today.
    • 3/5
      A moral fable written in the 1800's. Written by a reverend. I appreciated some of his efforts at morality but didn't like the feminism of the God like characters.
    • 4/5
      What a wonderful story! It is full of the most fabulous wordplay and I enjoyed it immensely. While not "politically correct" (part of the fun of it), you have to remember it was first published in 1863. In fact, since it's in the public domain, you can get it free on an eReader at feedbooks.com.
    • 5/5
      This isn't one of my all-time favorite children's books – far from it, and I'm not at all an admirer of Kingsley personally – and I'd ordinarily give it 3*** or, perhaps generously, 3½***; but this particular edition rates 5***** for the illustrations by Jessie Willcox Smith, who in fact rates 5***** or at least near to it for just about every work of illustration she ever did!
    • 5/5
      Don't remember much about this now, but I read this several times in childhood. Reckon the last time would’ve been when I was eight or nine, circa 1983-4.A must for all youngsters!
    • 5/5
      One of my childhood favorites. A lovely fable and fairy tale from the 1860s. Beautiful illustrations by Goble, adorable illos by Atwell & Willcox (yes, I have more than one edition :-)! A hardworking boy, transformation into a water baby, good fairies, an entire undersea world - pure magic! A treat of a story that makes one WANT to be honest, trustworthy, courageous, determined, considerate, kind, caring, and good! The beauty and benefits of this story far outweigh its few flaws from a dated past. Somewhat passé today in our politically correct society due to the complacent English prejudices (hopefully only from the era in which it was written) mentioned in it. Racial stereotyping was completely acceptable in children's books (and society as a whole) not just in England but everywhere and not that long ago. The one bit that stuck with me was something to the effect ... If you ask Paddy (as a symbol for the entire Irish population!) a question and he lies in answer, don't get angry at him as he doesn't know any better. Egads. Hard to believe but sadly too believable. I'm Irish therefore I lie?? OMG!! But in fairness, in the beginning chapters of the book, the author did have the fairy godmother type take the form of a wholly admirable and beautiful Irish peasant woman to look out for and talk to our hero, Tom :-)As an Irish-American who has never experienced any anti-Irish prejudice, I thoroughly enjoyed this book both as a child and still love it as an adult. So don't let my prejudice comment stop you from reading the book. It's old, from another era, and the author had a well-meaning, kindly but unthinking and sometimes ridiculous victorian paternalistic attitude towards the Irish that I found at worst irksome but easily ignored. It snuck in here and there but was not the focus of the book. And he certainly was not rabidly anti-Irish as some from his era were. Actually, I got the feeling that the author was probably a bit forward thinking and more kindly inclined to the Irish for his time though still a product of his own upbringing and times.I know that "politically correct" is often made fun of nowadays. I'm all for it in modern lit simply because - to our children- kindness, fairness, and equality will simply be taken for granted one day. And that would be a wonderful thing! But at the same time I would hate for any lit from the past to be white-washed or cleaned up simply to meet today's standards. It is part of a historical record. One day, racial stereotyping will simply be a ridiculous primitive practice from the past. Both kids and adults will enjoy wondering innocently how people could ever have been so silly! Re-writing classics or the past serves no one. Overall, this is a sweet, wholesome, moral and very appealing book which I would be happy to gift to any child or adult! It still has much to offer the modern reader.
    • 5/5
      This is a very old book but it was read to me as a child and I wanted to rediscover it. What a wonderful world Kingsley takes us to. I love the story of Tom the chimney sweep and remember wanting to be just like Ellie. While there are some editions that have illustrations and they are unbelievably beautiful, nothing can compare to the images I created in my imagination when this book was read to me. I had a wonderful experience of remembering many of them as I reread the book this last month. I don't hear of many people who know of this book anymore. It is an absolute classic and I implore you to read it and share it.