Heidi

About the book

Heidi's life with her grandfather in the Swiss mountains gives her a strong attachment to open air, familiar paths, and the people around her. When she is taken to Frankfurt to become a companion to Clara, comfort and opportunity cannot simply replace that sense of home. The story follows friendships across differences of age, health, and circumstance, while allowing adults to misunderstand what a child needs. Religious consolation and practical care are both important to its moral world. This English text is a translation of Spyri's novel, not a modern retelling; its historical introduction should be distinguished from the story itself. Readers can follow the changing meaning of help as characters learn that kindness requires attention to another person's actual situation.

• Home and belonging
• Care and friendship
• Childhood and freedom

Why read it

For an emotionally direct story about the difference between arranging someone's life and understanding their needs.

English translation · Whitman edition text, 1916