Teachers World Letters, Jan 1930 - July 1934

[Tony Summerfield]

The cruise is coming up in the letters as we get into October, Poppy, but it isn't The Ship of Adventure that came from it, it formed the basis of The Pole Star Family.

[Poppy]

Ooh, I look forward to that! Thanks Tony.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I thought memories of the cruise were used in The Pole Star Family and The Ship of Adventure - even though both were published in 1950, twenty years after Enid's voyage!

I recall reading the letters about the cruise before, when they were published in the Journal a while ago, but they're fascinating and it will be good to see them "in context", together with the letters leading up to the cruise and the letters that come after. Thanks very much for making all this material available, Tony!

[John Pickup]

I shall have to look out for a copy of The Pole Star Family, another book by Enid I've never read.

[Poppy]

It is part of an enjoyable series of short novels, John, and they are all beautiful reads. You can get all of the stories in one Omnibus now, but the original editions are even better, complete with their gorgeous illustrations. There isn't much action in these books, but they are wonderful, relaxing, summertime reads.

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/book ... van+Family" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[John Pickup]

I do have some similar books, Poppy. The Four Cousins and The Boy Who Wanted A Dog which are also short novellas but this series I seem to have missed out on. I'm certain I saw a copy of the Caravan Family at a book fair recently. Thank you for the link.

[Anita Bensoussane]

A link to this week's letters:

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/blyt ... &perid=716" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I'd seen the photo of Bobs and the thrush before, but it's lovely to hear the story behind it.

Enid Blyton is lucky to have a kingfisher in her garden - even if it does eat her goldfish!

Fancy Dion having an adventure of his own!

[Kate Mary]

If I had a kingfisher in my garden I think I would be inclined to keep restocking with fish to keep it coming back and regard the pond as a sort of aquatic bird table. Another lovely picture of Bobs too.

[Poppy]

Thanks for the link, Anita. Enid was lucky to have a Kingfisher in her garden, but her poor fish! And poor Dion! He must have been so confused and frightened, being away from his master all night. I'm glad they were reunited the next day, though, safe and sound. Bobs' picture and letter was lovely! I'm sure Dino wouldn't have been so careful with the poor little thrush, but I think it's lovely how Bobs took it to his mistress and wanted it to be his little playmate! I think I've seen the picture before too - perhaps in Enid's autobiography?

Ah yes: under Chapter 6: Pets I Have Had

[Moonraker]

Thanks for that, Poppy. I have seen it before, too; maybe that is where!

[John Pickup]

I hadn't seen the picture of Bobs before but it's a very good one. It must be amazing to have a kingfisher in your garden, I can only remember two occasions where I have seen one. Enid's fish must have wished it had found a pond somewhere else.

[Courtenay]

What beautiful letters this week, again, from both Enid and Bobs. I would love to see a kingfisher too! (We have several sorts in Australia, but none of them are common where I come from except for the Laughing Kookaburra, which is in the same family but quite different from a British kingfisher! ) Not so nice for the poor fish, though - but at least when they were fully grown they would be too big for the kingfisher to catch.

A friend of mine has a pond in her garden where the big enemy of the fish is not the kingfisher, but the heron! I'd be torn there if I had a fishpond too - I wouldn't like all my fish to be eaten, but I would love to see the beautiful heron and his own expert fishing skills.

Poor Dion! I'm glad he was quickly found. Was it not a legal requirement to register one's dog with the local authorities in those days? Of course, we now have microchipping!

And how sweet of Bobs to pick up the baby thrush so gently without hurting it and take it straight to "Mistress" - I'm not sure all dogs would have been able to resist eating it! He must have been very well trained and obedient. It's a lovely photo of him and the thrush, too.

[Anita Bensoussane]

A link to this week's letters:

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/blyt ... &perid=721" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Lovely news about the kitten, which seems to have come as a surprise.

Like Enid Blyton back in 1930, we too have been experiencing "heavy dews" and grass looking "like a silver sheet spread out in the sun". I love the swirling mists and huge, dew-spangled cobwebs we get in the mornings in the late summer and early autumn. They give the garden a magical feel.

What a fabulous picture of Mary O'Shea and Bobs on the well. The letters from Enid and Bobs, and Enid Blyton's stories, must have touched the hearts of many thousands of children.

[Courtenay]

What lovely letters, and what a surprise from Patabang - I thought she wasn't much more than a kitten herself! But then, cats can breed from quite a young age, about 7 or 8 months old.

It seems quite unusual for a cat to have only one kitten - does anyone know how common that is? I love Patabang's song, anyway. Very sweet to hear how she and Bobs looked after the kitten - it sounds like Bobs thinks he's the daddy!

[Anita Bensoussane]

I wonder how often young readers came calling on Enid Blyton, asking to see Bobs and the other pets. It could have been awkward later on, as Bobs' letters carried on for some years after his death!