The History of Photogen and Nycteris, also referred to as The Day Boy and the Night Girl or The Romance of Photogen and Nycteris, is an 1882 fairy tale novel by George MacDonald. A version of this story appeared in Harper's Young People as a series beginning on 2 December 1879 and completing on 6 January 1880.
The History of Photogen and Nycteris begins by telling of a witch named Watho who, in her pursuit of complete knowledge, undertook an experiment to mould two people from birth by strictly controlling their environments.
(Source: Wikipedia)
“But the flowers! ah, the flowers! she was friends with them from the very first. What wonderful creatures they were! — and so kind and beautiful — always sending out such colors and such scents — red scent, and white scent, and yellow scent — for the other creatures! The one that was invisible and everywhere took such a quantity of their scents, and carried it away! Yet they did not seem to mind. It was their talk, to show they were alive, and not painted like those on the walls of her rooms, and on the carpets.”
Recommended Editions and Adaptations
The Day Boy and the Night Girl: The History of Photogen and Nycteris, illustrated by Lyn Teeple, introduction by Michael Phillips (paperback, kindle, and audiobook editions)
The Day Boy and The Night Girl: The Musical, Composer: James Rubio and Lyricist/bookwriter: Katie Baldwin Eng
"My collaborator Katie and I were scouring several sources in the public domain to adapt into a musical, and we found The Day Boy and The Night Girl in an anthology of Victorian fairy tales..."
Articles about The History of Photogen and Nycteris
Various Sources
The Conquering Powers of Love in Chosen Fantasies of George MacDonald and Nathaniel Hawthorne, by Krista Kallavus
NORTH WIND ARCHIVE
The home page of the North Wind Archive can be accessed here.
Bridge over the River Why: The Imagination as a Way to Meaning, by Kerry Dearborn
Language, Ideology, and Fairy Tales: George MacDonald’s Fairy Tales as a Social Critique of Victorian Norms of Sexuality and Sex Roles, by Osama Jarrar
A “TESOL” Application of Three George MacDonald Fairy Tales, by F. Hal Broome
“Travelling Beastward”: An Ecocritical Reading of George MacDonald’s Fairy Tales, by Björn Sundmark