Johanna Spyri

Johanna Louise Heusser

One of Johanna Spyri most common known portraits.
Born:	June 12, 1827 Hirzel, Switzerland
Died:	July 07 1901 (aged 73) Zürich, Switzerland
Occupation:	short story writer, Novelist
Genres:	Children's Literature, Adult Literature
Literary movement:	Children's Literature
Spouse:	Bernhard Spyri

Johanna Spyri (IPA: [johana ʃpi:rɪ]) (June 12, 1827 - July 7, 1901) was an author of children's stories, and is best known for Heidi. Born Johanna Louise Heusser in the rural area of Hirzel, Switzerland, as a child she spent several summers in the area around Chur in Graubünden, the setting she later would use in her novels.

Biography

In 1852, Johanna Heusser married Bernhard Spyri, a lawyer. While living in the city of Zürich she began to write about life in the country. Her first book titled A Leaf on Vrony's Grave, was published in 1871 and the following year further stories for both adults and children appeared, among them the tale of Heidi that became an instant and enduring success. Heidi, the story of an orphan girl who lives with her grandfather in the Alps, is not only famous for its vivid portrayal of the landscape but also for its understanding of how children see life and their feelings.

Her husband and her only child, a son named Bernhard, both died in 1884. Alone, she devoted herself to charitable causes and wrote over fifty more stories before her death in 1901. She was interred in the family plot at the Sihlfeld-A Cemetery in Zürich, Switzerland. An icon in Switzerland, Johanna Spyri's portrait was placed on a postage stamp in 1951 and on a 20 CHF commemorative coin in 2001.

External link

Wikisource has original works written by or about:

Johanna Spyri

• Works by Johanna Spyri at Project Gutenberg
• Works by Johanna Spyri at Classicreader.com

• Wilkommen im Heidi-Dorf. "- Johanna Spyri's Life and Works". 

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