Author Gives Junior Trip a Literary Head Start
For the past three years, the junior class has participated in an eye-opening journey to New Hampshire and Massachusetts, tracing the life of Mary Baker Eddy and the early development of the Christian Science movement. Hosted by the knowledgeable staff of the Longyear Foundation, the students visit Mrs. Eddy’s homes as well as First Church in Concord, New Hampshire, and The Mother Church.
This year, even before students board the airplane, the New England trip is shaping up to be memorable! For the first time, students have access to a “trip textbook” of sorts that introduces them to Eddy’s life and the social and economic environment in which she lived and worked. Even better, they have had the opportunity to hear directly from Heather Vogel Frederick (C ’79), co-author of A World More Bright—The Life of Mary Baker Eddy (The Christian Science Publishing Society, 2013).
On a recent visit to campus, Frederick shared fascinating insights about the process of putting together this thorough and readable biography. The book was initiated by Christian Science practitioner Isabel Ferguson, whom Frederick, a commercially successful author of youth and young-adult fiction, worked with on this project. “Clear, correct, compelling were our by-words,” Frederick said about their approach to the subject matter. With Ferguson’s passing, Frederick moved from “co-pilot” to pilot, taking over the research and writing, and assisting with the design and content coordination.
“You really can’t fully understand Science and Health without understanding Mrs. Eddy’s life,” Frederick said. In fact, a key aspect of Mrs. Eddy’s character highlighted in this biography is “. . . what a deeply Christian woman she was, how earnestly she strove to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, and how much she loved her Bible,” Frederick notes. “This is important, because a lot of people still think we’re not a ‘Christian’ religion.”
Other aspects of Eddy’s character that resonated with Frederick during her research include the former’s perseverance and determination; her deep love of family, including her son and grandchildren; a wry sense of humor, even in trying times; and her gentle but resolute exercise of authority. Plus, after reviewing photos of Eddy’s desk piled high with books, papers, and a precariously balanced cup of what was likely cocoa, a favorite hot drink, Frederick said she doesn’t feel too bad about her own love of hot chocolate or her messy desk when she’s working on drafts of her popular Mother-Daughter Book Club series or another of her novels.
One of the sweetest times working on the biography was the moment when the title came to Frederick, who had been deeply considering Eddy’s patient listening for the eventual title of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. The biography’s title is a line from “Christ My Refuge,” a well-known poem by Eddy. What sealed the deal for Frederick was her discovery that Eddy had used the same phrase —“a world more bright”—in another poem she wrote after initial contact with her long-lost son, George.
Frederick also shared insights about the research and writing process, from uncovering new sources through the lengthy process of editing, rewriting, and proofing. The author and her editors worked through over a dozen drafts and galley proofs, leading her to remark to students, “So, you shouldn’t complain if your teachers ask you to revise!”
Upper School teacher Sheila Hobson, who is one of the upcoming trip leaders, explains how the class has used the book so far. Since the students will travel and work in smaller “chaperone groups,” Principia purchased two books per group. “We divided the chapters among the chaperone groups and asked each one to read three chapters and present what they learned to the entire class,” Hobson says. “This book is amazing. The students [have] found it very insightful and helpful.”
Note: Heather Vogel Frederick will be giving a talk about A World More Bright during the College Reunion Weekend this summer.