What Katy Did?

What Katy Did is an 1872 children's book written by Sarah Chauncey Woolsey under her pen name Susan Coolidge. It follows the adventures of a twelve-year-old American girl, Katy Carr, and her family who lived in the fictional lakeside Ohio town of Burnet in the 1860s. Katy is a tall, untidy tomboy, forever getting into scrapes but wishing to be beautiful and beloved. When a terrible accident makes her an invalid, her illness and four-year recovery gradually teach her to be as good and kind as she has always wanted to be. Two sequels follow Katy as she grows: What Katy Did at School and What Katy Did Next. Two further sequels relating the adventures of Katy's younger siblings were also published—Clover and In the High Valley. The books were frequently reprinted, and all are available online. Coolidge modeled Katy on her own childhood self, and the other 'Little Carrs' on her brothers and sisters. The title is a play on the katydid, a species of cricket — which explains the insects on the first edition book cover.