Orphaned siblings Henry, Jessie, Benny, and Violet are determined not to be separated after the deaths of their parents. Fearing being sent away to live with their cruel, frightening grandfather, they run away and discover an abandoned boxcar in the woods. They convert the boxcar into a safe, comfortable home and learn to take care of themselves. But when Violet becomes deathly ill, the children are forced to seek out help at the risk of their newfound freedom.
This original 1924 edition contains a few small difference from the revised 1942 edition most readers are familiar with, but the basic story beloved by children remains essentially untouched.
Gertrude Chandler Warner was an American author, mainly of children's stories. She was most famous for writing the original book of The Boxcar Children and for the next eighteen books in the series.
Warner once said that she did much of her writing while convalescing from illnesses or accidents, and that she conceived the idea of The Boxcar Children while sick at home. Of this, she said, "I had to stay at home from school because of an attack of bronchitis. Having written a series of eight books to order for a religious organization, I decided to write a book just to suit myself. What would I like to do? Well, I would like to live in a freight car, or a caboose. I would hang my wash out on the little back piazza and cook my stew on the little rusty stove found in the caboose."
