Harding’s Luck, published in 1909, is the sequel to The House of Arden by E. Nesbit. Rather darker and more serious in tone than the previous book, this novel is set in England’s Edwardian era, when there was no government-supported welfare and the poor still sometimes starved to death. It centers on young Dickie Harding, a poor, lame orphan boy who is enticed to run away with a disreputable tramp, Mr. Beale. Beale intends to use him to help carry out burglaries (a plot device not dissimilar to that of Oliver Twist). Nevertheless Beale becomes a substitute father-figure to Dickie and a strong mutual affection develops. The story then introduces a magical device which sends Dickie back in time to the early reign of King James I, where he inhabits the body of the son of the lord of a castle. Despite this new, very comfortable existence, where he is a member of a rich, respected family and no longer lame, Dickie selflessly forces himself to return to his present day because of a promise he had made to Beale and a desire to help Beale lead a more honest life. Nesbit was a member of the socially-progressive Fabian Society and a friend of H. G. Wells, and it shows in her stories. While Harding’s Luck is primarily a children’s novel, it touches on many deeper themes and comments seriously on the social conditions of the author’s time.

Harding’s Luck, published in 1909, is the sequel to The House of Arden by E. Nesbit. Rather darker and more serious in tone than the previous book, this novel is set in England’s Edwardian era, when there was no government-supported welfare and the poor still sometimes starved to death. It centers on young Dickie Harding, a poor, lame orphan boy who is enticed to run away with a disreputable tramp, Mr. Beale. Beale intends to use him to help carry out burglaries (a plot device not dissimilar to that of Oliver Twist). Nevertheless Beale becomes a substitute father-figure to Dickie and a strong mutual affection develops. The story then introduces a magical device which sends Dickie back in time to the early reign of King James I, where he inhabits the body of the son of the lord of a castle. Despite this new, very comfortable existence, where he is a member of a rich, respected family and no longer lame, Dickie selflessly forces himself to return to his present day because of a promise he had made to Beale and a desire to help Beale lead a more honest life. Nesbit was a member of the socially-progressive Fabian Society and a friend of H. G. Wells, and it shows in her stories. While Harding’s Luck is primarily a children’s novel, it touches on many deeper themes and comments seriously on the social conditions of the author’s time. This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Harding's luck" by E. Nesbit. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

“The House of Arden” is a 1908 children's novel written by English poet and author Edith Nesbit. The story revolves around Edred and Elfrida Arden, two children from a poor background who inherit an old, run-down castle and attempt to track down their lost family fortunes which would enable them to restore it to its former glory. Edith Nesbit (1858 – 1924) was an English poet and author. She is perhaps best remembered for her children's literature, publishing more than 60 such books under the name E. Nesbit. She was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, which had a significant influence on the Labour Party and British politics in general. Other notable works by this author include: “The Prophet's Mantle” (1885), “Something Wrong” (1886), and “The Marden Mystery” (1896). Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. It is with this in mind that we are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially-commissioned new biography of the author.

Hardings luckBy E. Nesbit

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. ...