Hesba Stretton was the pseudonym of Sarah Smith (27 July 1832 - 8 October 1911), an Evangelical English author of religious books for children.
Altogether she wrote more than 40 novels..
Smith was one of the most popular Evangelical writers of the 19th century, who used her "Christian principles as a protest against specific social evils in her children\'s books." Her moral tales and semi-religious stories, chiefly for the young, were printed in huge numbers and often chosen as school and Sunday-school prizes.
She concocted " Hesba Stretton " from the initials of herself and four surviving siblings, along with the name of a Shropshire village she visited, All Stretton.
By the late 19th century Jessica\'s First Prayer had sold a million and a half copies - ten times more than Alice in Wonderland.
These were highly popular.
Hesba Stretton was the pseudonym of Sarah Smith (27 July 1832 - 8 October 1911), an Evangelical English author of religious books for children
