Eileen Soper or Betty Maxey?

[Rob Houghton]

Growing up in the 1970's I must admit that the Betty Maxey versions of the characters were the ones I identified with. Also the illustrations in the Famous Five Annuals, which I read more often than the novels, which belonged to my older sister. I also identified strongly with the 1970's TV characters, although now I like the 1990's ones better.

To me, the characters as depicted in the annuals WERE the famous five. I used to draw them like that, and to me that was how they looked.

The same goes for the illustrations in The Secret Seven paper backs of the 1970's and 1980's. (i still like these better than the originals).

Wow! My first post for ages. Won't stay away so long next time!!

[Keith Robinson]

The same goes for the illustrations in The Secret Seven paper backs of the 1970's and 1980's. (i still like these better than the originals).

Me too! Derek Lucas' illustrations are consistently good and, despite the 70s setting, they somehow seem "authentic" to me. I really don't like the illustrations in the original series by George Brook, Bruno Kay and Burgess Sharrocks -- there are occasional nice ones in there, but most are average and some are downright awful!

The worst, I think, are those in Go Ahead Secret Seven, Bruno Kay's first innings. Ugh! The brush strokes are way too thick. Have you ever tried drawing detailed images with a thick marker pen? Well, these illustrations are like that. I get the impression he thought they were going to be reduced down to a smaller size, where the thick strokes would have become nice fine strokes... Yeesh.

[pete9012S]

Hi All!
Am I the only person who loves both these illustrators equally?
It could be my age (42 with a strong determined chin!),but I feel that it is great to have BOTH sets of illustrations.
As a child I used to spend hours finding the same illustrated scenes by the two ladies and compare them,looking for minute differences and indeed similarities.
I do feel its eventually an 'age thing' and that my generation is possibly the only one that could even consider Betty on equal terms with good old Eileen!
I would love to see more scans of Bettys work on this site,as I feel history will look at the whole picture of Enids work in total long after we are gone!

ps.does anyone else admit to carefully 'colouring in' their famous five illustrations VERY carefully to try and bring the books even more 'to life'!?

[Fiona1986]

Absolutely not!! I always treated every book with respect because my mum would have got me into so much trouble if I'd dared do anything more than neatly write my name inside the front of any book. Never mind the fact that she and her brothers and sisters defaced lots of their books as children (colouring in pages, using any blank pages as space to doodle etc).

[Julie2owlsdene]

For me I love the Eileen Soper illustrations. For me, Eileen Soper and Enid Blyton go together like strawberries and cream

And of course a lot of my collection of books are originals, even though they may not be first additions.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I like the Betty Maxey illustrations almost as much as the Eileen Soper ones, though the Soper ones capture the period so well and have more of a shadowy, atmospheric feel to them. The backgrounds in Betty Maxey's pictures are sketchy but she draws characters' facial expressions beautifully, as well as certain other details such as hair, clothes and castles. It was only quite recently that I realised Betty Maxey was responsible for the cover pictures of the 1960s-70s Knight paperbacks as well as the internal illustrations. Some of the covers are very evocative, with lovely colours. In particular I like the striking picture of George and Timmy for Go off to Camp and the covers of On a Treasure Island, Billycock Hill and Finniston Farm.

Betty Maxey's drawings are very distinctive - she also illustrated Noel Streatfeild's Gemma series for Armada in the late 1960s and her style is instantly recognisable. I wonder if she is still alive and illustrating today?

I admit to colouring in the illustrations in a lot of my books as a young child, as did my sister. It wasn't something we did secretly - our Mum knew we did it but I suppose she thought it was all part of enjoying books which she assumed we would eventually grow out of. Later on we regretted having defaced the books, but at the time we honestly thought we were enhancing them! I've always discouraged my own children from colouring in the pictures in their books (or mine, when they borrow them!) I'm glad I did that, as my son is currently reading my rather nice copy of Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It's only a paperback but it's a quality paperback with attractive illustrations by Sidney Paget.

Anita

[Katharine]

I'm sorry to say I never like the Betty Maxey illustrations even though they were in most of the paperbacks I had as a child. Even at that age I felt the pictures were too modern for the books. I always preferred the drawings in the two hardback FF books my Mother let me borrow (if I was very careful) which were by Eileen Soper.

I don't recall colouring in any of my books, however my brother and I had a very pleasant afternoon once at my Grandmother's. We coloured in, and then cut up, one or two of the Noddy little books I can't to this day imagine why my mother let us do it, as we had always been brought up to treat books with great respect. I suppose they thought they were little paperback books, and only cheap so it didn't matter. Oh for a time machine

[Kitty]

Betty Maxey's drawings are very distinctive - she also illustrated Noel Streatfeild's Gemma series for Armada in the late 1960s and her style is instantly recognisable. I wonder if she is still alive and illustrating today?

Oh, of course - to my shame, I didn't make the connection between the FF and the Gemma books! So much nicer than those strange Gemma photo covers. And of course, now you've mentioned Gemma, I instantly want to go off and re-read the series.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I re-read the Gemma books about eighteen months ago, Kitty, and was interested not only in the characters (and the illustrations!) but in some of the observations on things like education, fashion and television. There's always a strong sense of period in Noel Streatfeild's books.

[Rob Houghton]

I like Betty Maxey almost as much as Eileen Soper (probably is an age thing). I always felt, as a child with an older sister, that the Famous Five books were very 'adult' in content, and this was due mainly to the Betty Maxey illustrations I think, which to me at the age of seven or eight seemed very grown up. I still like them both, and I also love the illustrations in the Famous Five annuals, which I grew up with.

The annuals were the first way I actually personally encountered the Five (not being allowed to read my sisters collection of paperbacks in case I spoiled them!!) So for me, the illustrations in the annuals (particularly Smuggler's Top and Mystery Moor) WERE the Famous Five. It took me a long time to get used to the Eileen Soper illustrations, which I only saw from about the age of twenty onwards.


Colouring in, I'm afraid I was very guilty of. At the time I really did think I was enhancing the books. they were usually the old Dean editions: Amelia Jane, Binkle and Flip, The Wishing Chair, Faraway Tree. All my childhood books have some felt0tip colouring in them, which usually has soaked through the page! Luckily I have clean copies and original hardbacks now, but I still keep my coloured in versions for old times sake!

In one I have even written proudly, 'Now in full colour!'

[Tony Summerfield]

I think this is the familiar ground that we have trodden before, where people are understandably generally happier with the editions that they were brought up with. It is much the same as with the TV series, those brought up with the 70s series prefer that and as yet we don't have too many forumites who were brought up with the 90s series. As a 'neutral' who wasn't brought up with either series I would have said that the 90s series was better in almost every way, with one or two exceptions.

As far as the illustrators go, I would agree with Anita that Betty Maxey did some good covers and her faces were also well drawn. What does amuse me is that people tend to go up in arms when there is any slight text modernisation (like currency), but these same people happily except the modernisation (jeans etc.) in both the Maxey illustrations and the 70s TV series. To me it makes a nonsense of it when a child is wearing shorts in the text, but appears in jeans in the illustration of the same scene.

On the subject of Famous Five illustrations, I think that those by Jolyne Knox, who followed Betty Maxey, are absolutely awful.

[Rob Houghton]

On the subject of Famous Five illustrations, I think that those by Jolyne Knox, who followed Betty Maxey, are absolutely awful.

I think that Jolyne Knox would win the award for 'worst illustrator of an Enid Blyton book', even in front of a certain J Abbey (in my opinion )

[Fiona1986]

In one I have even written proudly, 'Now in full colour!'

Thats just too cute for words!!

as yet we don't have too many forumites who were brought up with the 90s series

I wouldn't say I was 'brought up with' the 90s version, (it was, as far as I remember, shown the once on citv and I wasn't aware of any repeats or merchandise) but I was 9 or 10 when it was on, and I certainly watched every episode I could after school. I definitely prefer the 90s version, but I think it is more because its a 'period piece' as it were it fits so much more nicely with the stories and Eileen Soper's illustration.

I had a mixture of original hardbacks, 70s knight paperbacks and some 90s paperbacks growing up and I always prefered Soper's work although I liked some of the 70s covers ) I remember I had Get into Trouble, Finniston Farm and Billycock Hill from the Knight lot and their covers are the ones I think of for those books.

[Anita Bensoussane]

Colouring in, I'm afraid I was very guilty of. At the time I really did think I was enhancing the books. they were usually the old Dean editions: Amelia Jane, Binkle and Flip, The Wishing Chair, Faraway Tree. All my childhood books have some felt0tip colouring in them, which usually has soaked through the page!

I don't know why, but the illustrations in those Dean & Son books seemed to be crying out to be coloured in. My sister and I used felt-tip pens too. We appear to have been particularly fond of a salmony pink and a bright, gaudy pink - ugh! Colouring the pictures was sanctioned by Bimbo the cat (Bimbo and Topsy), who says in his letter to readers at the start of the book: "I think I look very nice in the pictures. If you colour me with your crayons, don't forget to give me blue eyes, not green."

In one I have even written proudly, 'Now in full colour!'

I think that Jolyne Knox would win the award for 'worst illustrator of an Enid Blyton book', even in front of a certain J Abbey (in my opinion )

I can't hear the name "Jolyne Knox" without recalling Kirrin's comment that she sounds like a Country & Western singer (or something like that, anyway!)

Anita

[Lucky Star]

I can't hear the name "Jolyne Knox" without recalling Kirrin's comment that she sounds like a Country & Western singer (or something like that, anyway!)

Anita

Probably comes from the famous Country & Western song Jolene by Dolly Parton and about a zillion others. Its quite a good song actually even though country is not my favourite music.

I grew up with the 1970's Knight paperbacks which had a mixture of Soper and Maxey illustrations. Even as a child I preferred the Soper pics; they seemed more real to me somehow. Today they are really the only ones I like. I have a nostalgic fondness for some of the Maxey pics but probably only because they remind me of childhood. As Tony has said the editions we grew up with exert a pull on our emotions.

I dont think I have even seen the Knox illustrations.