Any reader of classic English literature will (1) have heard of the Brontë sisters: Charlotte (1816-55), Emily (1818-48), and Anne (1820-49). (2) What they may not know, however, is that there were originally (3) two other sisters, Maria and Elizabeth, as well as a brother called Branwell. Sadly, these two sisters became seriously ill when they were away at boarding school and died in 1825 soon after (4) returning home. At the same time, Charlotte and Emily were also removed from the school, despite (5) having attended for only a year. The pair spent the next six years of their childhood at home with Branwell, who, unlike the girls, was tutored by their father, and their younger sister Anne. The four children had a fondness (6) for storytelling, inspired by twelve wooden soldiers given to Branwell by his father on his ninth birthday. The children spent a (7) great deal of time together inventing adventures in imaginary kingdoms for the soldiers, and at an early age, they began writing them down. The influences of these early stories (8) can be seen in the Brontës' later works. Not until two decades later, nevertheless, (9) did the sisters attempt to get any of their writing published. Their first publication in 1845 was a book of poems, which appeared under the pseudonyms Currer (Charlotte), Ellis (Emily), and Acton (Anne) Bell - no respectable woman (10) would have dared to try and publish a book under her own name at the time. Two years later, three novels were published, one by each sister: Jane Eyre by Charlotte, Wuthering Heights by Emily, and Agnes Grey by Anne. Since then, these novels have gained worldwide acclaim, earning the authors a place alongside Shakespeare and Dickens as some of the greatest British authors.
