The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft

Description of book

First published in 1903 and hugely popular at the time, ‘The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft’ by George Gissing is structured as a series of diary entries. The diary keeper is the fictional former writer Henry Ryecroft, now in his fifties. An unexpected inheritance has allowed him to enjoy a slow, solitary life in Devon, where he muses about art, nature, and society through his diary. Although this is a work of fiction, there are clear parallels between the narrator's life and Gissing's own life, which has led many commenters to view it as semi-autobiographical.

George Gissing (1857-1903) was a British author from Wakefield, Yorkshire. A studious child, his love of fiction was sparked when he first read Charles Dickens, who would prove to be a lifelong inspiration for Gissing. He would go on to write ‘Charles Dickens: A Critical study’ in 1898. At the age of just fifteen Gissing was awarded a scholarship to Owen’s College University, where he won a number of prizes for his writing. His university education was cut short however when Gissing was found guilty of stealing from fellow students. Following his expulsion and punishment of a month’s hard labour, Gissing travelled to America where he worked as a writer, teacher, and travelling salesman before returning to Britain. His first novels, ‘Workers in the Dawn’ and ‘Mrs Grundy’s Enemies’ were self-published, and Gissing had to supplement his income through teaching. He wrote over twenty novels during the course of his literary career, which all drew on his own experiences of near-poverty, hardship, and his deeply unhappy personal life. His most famous works include, ‘The Nether World’, ‘New Grub Street’ and ‘The Odd Women’. He died in France in 1903.