Jefferies, Richard (1848-1887), was an English naturalist and novelist. He wrote several well-known books about the English countryside, including The Gamekeeper at Home (1878) and Wild Life in a Southern County (1879). He wrote a highly praised book for boys called Bevis: The Story of a Boy (1882). His autobiography, The Story of My Heart, was published in 1883. His sympathetic essays about nature were collected in The Life of the Fields (1884), The Open Air (1885), and Field and Hedgerow (1889). His novels include Green Ferne Farm (1880), Dewy Morn (1884), and Amaryllis at the Fair (1887).
John Richard Jefferies was born on Nov. 6, 1848, near Swindon, in Wiltshire, England. He started his career as a journalist in Wiltshire in 1866. He based Hodge and His Masters (1880) on his experiences as a reporter. The book is considered a classic portrayal of Victorian country life. Jefferies was in poor health much of his life and died on Aug. 14, 1887.
