Picture History of Mr. and Mrs. Grenville of Rosedale House : An Album by Mary Yelloly, Nine Years Old

In this exquisite gift book, Mary Yelloly's watercolors depict life in the English countryside, where the imaginary Grenville family, invented by Mary, spends its days playing games, taking walks, and enjoying carriage rides. Assisted by her "Nanna" and her sisters, Mary painted the elegant and fashionable Rosedale House, Gloucestershire, surrounded by parkland. The story is told through the child's eyes both in a series of interiors-drawing rooms, libraries, and opulent bedrooms-and a sequence of beautiful landscapes. The book offers a delightfully innocent view of life in 19th-century England, but it also tells the intriguing tale of school-age Mary Yelloly, whose brief life appears to have been as charmingly domestic as those she depicts on the pages. Gatefolds, marbleized paper, and beautifully reproduced illustrations make this book an irresistible gift and the exceptionally accomplished watercolors will be of special interest to art lovers.