Mistress Masham's Repose

Mistress Masham's Repose, T.H. White, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1946

Maria is a pigtailed, bespectacled 10-year-old living on a huge estate in rural England. Her parents are dead, so she is looked after by Miss Brown, her mean governess, and their cook, Cook. The mansion, with hundreds of rooms, is in great disrepair, so they live in a couple of rooms in one wing. Miss Brown and the local vicar are convinced that there is some sort of treasure or other riches on the grounds, and that Maria knows the location.

One day, Maria rows out to an island in the middle of a lake on the estate. Amid the thorns and brambles, she finds an entire town full of people, but they are all only 6 inches tall. Exiles from a place called Lilliput (yes, that Lilliput), they tell a harrowing story of mistreatment, including being forced into circuses and other spectacles for the financial benefit of others. Maria agrees to keep their secret, but almost destroys her relationship with the Lilliputians.

Miss Brown and the vicar know that something is up, so after leads them on a wild goose chase for several nights, they lock her in her room without supper until she cooperates. After a number of days of no contact with Maria, the Lilliputians mount a full-fledged rescue operation, which almost ends in disaster. Spurred on by dollar signs in their eyes (selling the Lilliputians to a circus), Miss Brown and the vicar resort to drastic measures, locking Maria in the dungeon until she starts talking. Assisted by the Professor, an eccentric elderly gentleman who lives in a book-lined cottage on the grounds, the Lilliputians find Maria again, but know that time, and the patience of Miss Brown and the vicar, is getting very short.

I really enjoyed this story, which, I guess, is a sequel to "Gulliver's Travels". It is good for readers of any age, and is well worth the reader's time.