I've narrowed my initial list of public domain stories to just two which I am torn between: Emily of New Moon and The Magic City.
Emily of New Moon by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Similar to her earlier and more famous Anne of Green Gables series. Young orphan girl, Emily Starr, raised by her relatives after her father dies of tuberculosis. Montgomery considered Emily to be a character much closer to her own personality than Anne, and some of the events which occur in the Emily series happened to Montgomery herself.
Emily is a heroine with a love for the beauty in nature and art, loyalty to her friends, a thirst for knowledge, and a passionate dedication to her writing.
Themes/Content: Powerful female heroine / the beauty of nature / a passion for writing
Rationale:
To celebrate the lesser-known works of Montgomery
Focus on Montgomery's life and relationship to her character Emily
Emily reminds me of 'Midnight' by Jacqueline Wilson
Potential to draw natural scenery/forests/woods
Character development and research into the time era/fashion/design
Cosmic/space/lunar imagery
Feminine, classic, beautiful book
The Magic City by Edith Nesbit
After Philip's older sister and sole family member Helen marries, he goes off to live with his new step sister Lucy. He has trouble adjusting at first, thrown into a world different from his previous life and abandoned by his sister while she is on her honeymoon. To entertain himself he builds a giant model city from things around the house: game pieces, books, blocks, bowls, etc. Then through some magic he finds himself inside the city, and it is alive with the people he has populated it with.
Themes/Content: Magic, fantasy, recycling, creating, imagination, play
Rationale:
Another lesser known title from Nesbit/Underrated book
The importance of imaginative play
The message - don't grow up/lose that sense of play
Make your own fun - relevant to a modern audience saturated by games/screens
Scope to use atypical/unexpected media (literally build the city and photograph it to illustrate)
More gender neutral than Emily of New Moon
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