She's All The World To Me
| Author | Hall Caine |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Published | 1885 |
| Publisher | Harper & Brothers |
| Media type | Print (paperback) |
| Pages | 136 pp |
She's All The World To Me is a short early novel by Hall Caine published in 1885 by Harper & Brothers. The novel was the first of Caine's works to be set on the Isle of Man and it centered on themes that would become integral to his later novels: a love triangle, secret mounting sins and eventual redemption. It was published only in America due to copyright problems, but Caine was subsequently able to reuse a great deal of its material in later novels, notably in The Deemster.
Danny Fayle, a young fisherman in Peel, is too shy to make much of his love for Mona Cregeen, a skilled machinist at the town's net factory. Mona lives with her mother and apparent young sister, Ruby, having moved to Peel from elsewhere on the island not long before. Mona has had a secret relationship with Christian Mylrea, the son of the well-respected MHK, Harbour Commissioner and magistrate, Evan Mylrea "Balladhoo". Mona and Christian keep their connection a secret as he tries to keep the debt incurred during his lax life in England from becoming known to his father. In order to try and pay off the debt, Christian falls in with the crew of Danny Fayle's boat who, independently of Danny, plan to wreck a boat on the rocks off Peel Castle. The plot is thwarted by the police but, for the sake of Christian's freedom, Mona enables the men to escape arrest. However, their boat becomes stuck on rocks during a storm and Danny Fayle eventually risks his life in order to save Christian and deliver him to Mona.
In around 1883, whilst earning a living writing theatre reviews for the Liverpool Mercury, Hall Caine had a story entitled Danny Fayle published as a weekly serial in the newspaper. Caine and the Mercury's editor had planned to publish the story as a book but no willing publisher could be found. This story has now been lost, but it is likely that this was what came to be published as She's all the World to Me.
In 1885 Caine was short of money and wanted to gain exposure in America and so submitted She's all the World to Me to be published in New York by Harper & Brothers. It was published in paperback as number thirteen of Harper's Handy Series. Caine had intended to publish the book also in England, but under the poor copyright laws of America at that time, Caine had forfeited the book’s copyright to Harper & Brothers. Because of this, Caine was forced to wipe his hands of the book entirely.
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