PART ONE - LIFE AT GATESHEAD

CHAPTER ONE The Fight

We couldn't go outside at all on that cold, rainy afternoon.The rain was pouring down, and the wind was blowing hard.I didn't care, I was happy to stay indoors.Trying to take long walks in the winter was terrible!

It was supposed to be healthy for our bodies, but I hated coming home in the dark with my feet and hands as cold as ice. And I was always unhappy because Bessie, one of the servants, was always scolding me.

I had always known that I was different from my cousins, John, Eliza, and Georgiana Reed. They were prettier and taller than I, and everyone loved them.

These three children were not very nice to other people or to each other. Usually they spent their time fighting and crying with each other.

However, today they were with their mother in the sitting room, sitting quietly and talking in front of the warm fire. I wanted to join them but Mrs. Reed, my aunt,said I could not. She was angry with me because Bessie had told her I was being troublesome.