Earlier life
She was born in Preston, Lancashire in 1869, during the Victorian era. She was the youngest child of Clarence Brazil, a mill manager, and Angelica McKinnel, the daughter of the owner of a shipping line in Rio de Janeiro, who had a Spanish mother. She was the youngest of four siblings including sister Amy, and two brothers, Clarence and Walter.
Her father Clarence was distant, seldom involved himself in his children's affairs, and saw himself primarily as a provider for the material well being of the family and responsible for ensuring the children was appropriately schooled in religious tradition. She was primarily influenced by her mother, Angelica, who had suffered during her Victorian English schooling, and was determined to bring up her children in a liberated, creative and nurturing manner, encouraging them to be interested in literature, music and botany, a departure from the typical distant attitude towards children adopted by parents in the Victorian era. Angela was treated with great affection by her sister Amy from an early age, and Amy effected an immense, perhaps dominating influence on Angela throughout her life.
The family moved around the mill towns of south-east Lancashire, following her father's work opportunities. They lived in Manchester and Bolton, before settling in Bury.
Schooling
She commenced her education at age four at Miss Knowle's Select Ladies School in Preston, but lasted only a half day. Having been brought up to express herself freely, she shocked the younger Miss Knowles by removing the teacher's hair pins while sitting on her knee, an action little in keeping with the strict disciplinarian ethos of the school. She was enrolled in The Turrets in Wallasey.
She was briefly at Manchester Secondary School and finally at Ellerslie, a fairly exclusive girls' school, where she boarded in her later adolescence.
Her memories of her own schooldays were her most treasured, and she retained aspects of that period of her life into her adult years:
"To be able to write for young people depends, I consider, largely upon whether you are able to retain your early attitude of mind while acquiring a certain facility with your pen. It is a mistake ever to grow up! I am still an absolute schoolgirl in my sympathies"
Her post school education was at Heatherley School of Fine Art in London, where she studied with her sister Amy. It is possible she took a position as a governess, but mostly lived with her family. After her father's death, in 1899, the family moved to the Conwy valley, and she traveled with her mother in Europe.
Commencing writing
She first starting writing at age 10, producing a magazine with her close childhood friend Leila Langdale, which was modelled on
Little Folks, a children's publication of the time she was very fond of. The two girl's 'publication' included riddles, short stories and poems. Both girls wrote a serial within their magazine, Brazil's was called
Prince Azib. Later in life Brazil published in
Little Folks.
She began writing seriously for children in her 30s. Her first school story was
The Fortunes of Phillipa, which was based on the experiences of her mother. It was not published until 1906, and her first published children's novel was
A Terrible Tomboy (1904).
Move to Coventry
She spent most of her time with her mother until her death, and thereafter with her elder sister Amy, and brother Walter. She had only two major friendships outside the family circle, one of which started in her school days and the other in her 30s. Both friends were schoolgirls when the friendships first commenced.
She moved to 1 The Quadrant, Coventry in 1911, with her brother and they were joined by her sister Amy upon their mother's death in 1915 Brazil became a well known figure in the local area.
She was well known in Coventry high society as a hostess and threw parties for adults, with a greater number of female guests, at which children's food and games were featured. She had no children of her own but also hosted many parties for children.
She read widely and collected early children's fiction; her collection is now in Coventry library. She took great interest in local history and antiquities, and also involved herself in charity work. She was an early conservationist, taking an interest in both the preservation of land and monuments, worked for the City of Coventry Cathedral, the Y.W.C.A and was a founding member of the City Guild.
She never married.