"Het onderwijzeresje" by Felicie Jehu is a novel written in the early 20th century. It follows Thea van Welderen, a newly certified young teacher from a financially strained Dutch family, who accepts a post as a live‑in governess in Brussels. The story centers on her homesickness, sense of duty, and moral growth as she navigates class differences and delicate family dynamics in a wealthy household.The opening of the novel introduces Thea’s home: her disabled, once‑promising father, her practical mother, and four lively siblings, all buoyed when Thea passes another teaching exam. When tutoring her little brother falters, a letter arrives offering her a well‑paid governess position in Brussels; after an emotional struggle, she resolves to go to help her family. Her farewell is tender—her father counsels pride without jealousy—then the train journey shows her loneliness, eased briefly by a kind fellow traveler. In Brussels she meets the imposing Mrs. van Gendringen, discovers the household’s hierarchy, and is introduced to two charges: Armand, the spoiled, adored son, and Constance, the neglected stepdaughter who bristles yet quietly aches; that first day ends with Thea’s tears and Constance shyly seeking comfort, hinting at the bonds—and trials—ahead. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
These books are free to read. Each is in the public domain in the United States; check your own country's rules before you copy or share one.
