Dickens, Monica (1915–1992)
Dickens, Monica (1915–1992)
British novelist. Born May 10, 1915, in London, England; died Dec 24, 1992, in Reading, England; dau. of Henry Charles Dickens and Fanny Runge Dickens; great-granddau. of Charles Dickens (novelist); m. Roy Stratton (retired US naval officer and writer), 1951 (died 1985).
Worked as nurse during World War II and as reporter after war; was a columnist for Women's Own for 2 decades; moved to US with husband and founded American branch of Samaritans to counsel suicidally depressed; returned to England after husband's death; wrote the autobiographical works, One Pair of Hands (1939), One Pair of Feet (1942), and My Turn to Make the Tea (1951); other writings include Thursday Afternoons (1945), Flowers on the Grass (1949), Man Overboard (1958), The Heart of London (1961), about alcoholism, Kate and Emma (1964), about child abuse, The House at World's End (1970), Enchantment (1989), Scarred (1991), and Befriending (1996); her series, Follyfoot (1971), Follyfoot Farm (1973), Stranger at Follyfoot (1976), was serialized for children's tv.