Beatrix Potter: the extraordinary life of a Victorian genius

Linda Lear (author)

Penguin Books, UK: 2007; 580pp

ISBN: 9780141003108

Genre: autobiography

Issues: environment, gifted, identity, science,

 Winner of the Lakeland Book of the Year. This is an authoritative work, one that answers all the questions raised by the ‘biopic' starring Renee Zellweiger, as well as many others that most people wouldn't know to ask.

Most of us - adults and children alike - know Beatrix Potter as the author and illustrator of the much-loved Peter Rabbit tales. Apparently the creation of such famous characters as Mrs Tiggy-winkle, Squirrel Nutkin and Jeremy Fisher was simply one stage of a truly remarkable life. Before finding a publisher for her animal tales, Beatrix spent many years refining her artistic skills, becoming an accomplished botanical artist. Her fascination with fungi resulted in many paintings of such detail and accuracy that they are still used today for scientific identification purposes. Although she was unable to completely prove her thesis, Beatrix Potter was one of the first to recognise that fungi germinate from spores and that lichens are a symbiotic hybrid of a fungus and an algae. Such revolutionary - and unpopular - proposals by an amateur scientist (and a woman at that!) demonstrated Beatrix's remarkable intelligence.

Linda Lear's award-winning biography is impeccably researched and takes an objective approach to the life and work of a woman who has been highly romanticized and somewhat idealized in earlier profiles. Using Beatrix's prolific correspondence, translated extracts from her encoded journal and carefully collected oral history, Lear builds a detailed portrait of an unusual woman who was notable for a unique combination of stubborn independence, moral and social conservatism, and a vision for environmental conservation that was far ahead of her time - all stuck together with a dry sense of humour.

What makes Lear's work so successful is its readability. The prose is enthusiastic without idolatry. Although there is considerable and meticulously observed analysis of her work as an author/illustrator, Lear recognises that, in reality, this was only a small part of Potter's life. Beatrix's tremendous commitment to traditional fell farming and involvement in the National Trust is given just as much emphasis.

This is an authoritative work, one that answers all the questions raised by the recent ‘biopic' starring Renee Zellweiger, as well as many others that most people wouldn't know to ask. Botanical artist, highly skilled amateur mycologist and palaeontologist, author, illustrator, farmer, loyal friend (especially to children), environmentalist and conservationist - Beatrix Potter was all these and more. A profoundly gifted child who continued to explore and extend her abilities throughout her life, Beatrix Potter is an inspirational figure of the Victorian age. An absolutely outstanding read.