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Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 10 Sep 2017, 17:59
by John Pickup
Another smashing review, Rob. Some of the books Enid published after 1957, such as Strange Ruby and Good Old Secret Seven, I like but they definitely weren't up to the standard of her earlier novels.
My wife's sister is called Freida, spelt as it is in Germany, which isn't surprising as my late father-in-law came from there.

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 10 Sep 2017, 18:48
by Rob Houghton
I agree, John. there aren't very many of Enid's later books (after 1957) that I really love - if any - although as you say, there is still much to enjoy - they just aren't 'the best'.

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 11 Sep 2017, 16:25
by Courtenay
I've just had time to sit down and read the latest feast from '57, if you like. :wink: Many thanks, as always, to Rob for the reviews and Tony for the scanning.

I really enjoyed all the uncollected short stories in this one. A Dreadful Mistake was a bit different, I agree, with the television theme, but it does show Enid keeping up with the times. As Rob said, it could be considered unfair that Freda got no marks at all when at least the work she did was correct, just not the right homework for that day — but I guess the point of the story is to show that Freda wasn't being very honest or nice, determined as she was to get the highest marks just to show up Hilda, who she thought wouldn't be able to hand in anything at all. It's a pretty standard Blyton theme, really — underhanded behaviour never pays off.

The Noddy story, I thought, was pretty typical but actually quite a lot of fun — Big-Ears plays more of a central role than usual AND turns out unexpectedly to be quite handy with his fists!! :shock: The hammer story I thought was going to be a bit of a boring drag, but I ended up laughing out loud at the silliness of it. A good haul of stories all round. :D

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 11 Sep 2017, 16:29
by Rob Houghton
Thanks, Courtenay! Yes - I must admit the hammer story made me chuckle - and I enjoyed all the stories this week - even the Noddy one...though I did think that the basic story line had been used way too often! Good to see Big ears taking centre stage though - although I can't imagine him easily being mistaken for Noddy in the dark!! :lol:

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 08:33
by Anita Bensoussane
Thanks as always to Rob and Tony for the write-up and scans. Another interesting issue. Young readers must have been most concerned to hear of Enid Blyton's illness and it's lovely that she takes pains to reassure them that she's now much better.

Her comment about the cinema serialisation of Five on a Treasure Island - "I do hope you will be able to see all the parts, because it is tiresome to miss one or two, and so lose the thread of the story!" - reminds me of the frustration of missing an episode of a TV serial in the days before video recorders, catch-up services, etc.

In her Thank-You Corner I notice that Enid thanks Chew Kwong Sen for sending her a badge - yet more evidence that she welcomed readers of all races and nationalities.

I like 'A Dreadful Mistake' very much. The characters are interesting, the story provides food for thought and I enjoy the sound of old-fashioned expressions like "they couldn't do their homework because they hadn't their notes" and "She doesn't swank."
Rob Houghton wrote:I enjoyed it ['A Dreadful Mistake'] but it did throw up a few questions - (SPOILERS!) such as why Freda got into trouble, as she might have done the wrong homework, but as she'd been away the month before, she had never done it...so surely she should have been marked, rather than not having any marks at all? :?
Yes, and it actually makes the teacher (the ubiquitous Miss Brown!) look bad because it was surely her job to ensure that Freda caught up with work she'd missed when she returned to school. Incidentally, the children seem to be given an inordinate amount of homework considering that they're probably supposed to be of junior school age. Except for having to learn weekly spellings, we didn't get any homework at all until we started senior school at the age of eleven.
Rob Houghton wrote:It's an interesting story - but the thing I found most interesting was Enid's mention, several times, of television. I know she did sometimes mention television, but it actually centres around a character who likes to watch television very much indeed.
It appears that Enid was taking the opportunity to express her disapproval of children being allowed to sit in front of the box every evening instead of concentrating on their schoolwork and other tasks. I've no doubt that Enid agreed with Freda's mother: "She says she can do her work and watch television - but nobody can, of course."
Rob Houghton wrote:...we have Our Letter Page - and a letter from a boy called Geoffrey Holding, whose cat has had 23 kittens! (not all at once obviously!!) and gave birth to them in 'a trunk' without anyone realising - the trunk lid got shut, separating the kittens from their mother...and the mother 'gnawed the corner of the trunk' into a hole, attempting to reach her kittens!
That sounds horribly distressing. I hope the kittens didn't suffer any ill effects.

All the stories are attractively illustrated and it's good to see that artist Susan Carruthers signed her drawings for 'Lost - My Good Hammer'. What a pity that relatively few illustrators signed or initialled their work!

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 08:52
by pete9012S
Anita Bensoussane wrote: In her Thank-You Corner I notice that Enid thanks Chew Kwong Sen for sending her a badge - yet more evidence that she welcomed readers of all races and nationalities.
Yes,that caught my attention too.I tried to see if there was any online evidence that Chew was still a fan of Enid's but drew a blank.

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 10:20
by Rob Houghton
Anita Bensoussane wrote:In her Thank-You Corner I notice that Enid thanks Chew Kwong Sen for sending her a badge - yet more evidence that she welcomed readers of all races and nationalities.


Yes, and it actually makes the teacher (the ubiquitous Miss Brown!) look bad because it was surely her job to ensure that Freda caught up with work she'd missed when she returned to school. Incidentally, the children seem to be given an inordinate amount of homework considering that they're probably supposed to be of junior school age. Except for having to learn weekly spellings, we didn't get any homework at all until we started senior school at the age of eleven.


It appears that Enid was taking the opportunity to express her disapproval of children being allowed to sit in front of the box every evening instead of concentrating on their schoolwork and other tasks. I've no doubt that Enid agreed with Freda's mother: "She says she can do her work and watch television - but nobody can, of course."
Thanks Anita! Yes - I missed the thank you to Chew Kwong Sen - but it does indeed prove that Enid treated all children fairly and as equals. Each time I read EB's Magazine I realise more and more just how inclusive Enid was, long before the word took on its present meaning regards race and religion etc!

We were the same regards homework. The children in Miss Brown's class (that teacher certainly got around, didn't she? Maybe she was sacked for being such a tyrant, lol!!) :wink: had a lot of homework. Like you, we only had weekly spellings to learn at that age. It was quite a shock suddenly having homework at Secondary school!

I found Enid's attitude to TV quite revealing. Obviously she couldn't write stories or letters etc herself if the television was on, judging by what she says. I'm not sure its really true though - we are all different. I wrote a good 60% of my latest serial while the TV was on, and often write my Journal articles or other pieces of writing, while the TV is blasting away in the background! :lol:

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 20:22
by o'malley
I'd just like to add, if I may, how fantastic it is to read these (new to myself) reviews and scans of both Sunny Stories and Enid's own magazine, terrific stuff and thank you very much both, Rob and Tony for doing this amazing work for us - deeply appreciated and enjoyed!

PS I'd also like to say how marvellous the Cave of books is. What a fantastic place to visit with scans of the odd whole book too. Sublime.

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 21:57
by Eddie Muir
I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying the goodies on this site, Nicholas. Rob's fortnightly post is superb and the work that Tony has done to create the Cave of books is indeed marvellous. :D

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 12 Sep 2017, 22:51
by Rob Houghton
Thank you, o'malley, and Eddie - I'm very pleased people enjoy my reviews, and its always good to hear what people think of the stories and Enid's letter etc, each fortnight. :-)

the Cave of books is amazing, I agree...except maybe that it encourages me to spend too much money on eBay! :lol:

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 23 Sep 2017, 19:01
by Rob Houghton
It's time for another Enid Blyton Magazine - the weeks fly by!

Image

Another great issue - with plenty of uncollected stories to read - follow the link to The Cave, where Tony has kindly scanned them for us. :-)

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/maga ... ?magid=920

In her letter this week, Enid tells us of a bird visitor to her garden, and also all about a new competition, with a £5 prize. One thing I found interesting was the fact that children could choose either the £5 or their own pet - and Enid says 'now is the chance to get that puppy you always wanted!' - which seems perhaps a little irresponsible to modern sensibilities. Was it wise to offer pets as prizes?

The cover story this week is 'I'm Not going to School' - a title I would have loved as a child, as school was definitely not my favourite place to be! I always had much more exciting things to do at home! I found it quite odd that the main character, Jamie, is 'nearly five' and is only going to school for a week, while his mother is away looking after Granny who is ill. Surely he should have been going to school full time at that age? Or was the starting age later? I know I was 'almost five' when I started school. Again, the illustrator isn't credited, which is a shame as they are lovely illustrations.

The next uncollected story is 'Where Is My Walking Stick' - which can be read by following the link. Another short story which could quite easily be a Mr twiddle story. Very entertaining, but nothing exceptional. :-) The illustrations for this are quite lively, but slightly strange. Not the best illustrations I've ever seen. Everyone looks rather cross, except for the little boy, Jinks - who sounds more like a pixie than a child with a name like that!

The last uncollected story is another Brer Rabbit story - amazing that so many are still uncollected! Enid must have written hundreds of Brer Rabbit stories! (I'm sure Tony knows exactly how many!) :lol: This one is 'Old Brer Snowman' - a bit of a strange theme for September! :lol:

Another great issue, with of course the next instalments of 'Five Get Into A Fix' - now on chapter 6 - and 'The Birthday Kitten, chapter 11. puzzle page, letters, and news for club members.

Follow the link above to read the short stories. :-)

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 23 Sep 2017, 19:05
by Eddie Muir
Another one to enjoy during the next day or two. Thanks, Rob. :D

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 24 Sep 2017, 06:44
by Kate Mary
'I'm Not Going to School' is a super story, undeservedly forgotten but resurrected thanks to Tony and Rob. It is easy to see where it's going but it's very amusing. It does seem odd to have a Brer Rabbit story set in winter in a September issue and odder still that it is completely unillustrated. I don't remember another story in the EB Mag having no pictures. Another thing I noticed was the crossword clue for 12 down, the total of the sum is wrong, perhaps it was a joke by the artist who drew the pictures for the clues. A great issue, thank you.

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 24 Sep 2017, 11:18
by Rob Houghton
Kate Mary wrote:Another thing I noticed was the crossword clue for 12 down, the total of the sum is wrong, perhaps it was a joke by the artist who drew the pictures for the clues. A great issue, thank you.
:lol: I never noticed that - I wonder if it was a mistake or done on purpose as you say?!

Re: 60 Years Ago This Week - Enid Blyton's Magazine 1957 -

Posted: 24 Sep 2017, 19:19
by John Pickup
I enjoyed the story, I'm Not Going To School, but I was faintly surprised upon reading that Jamie's mother gave him a bag with his slippers in to take to school. I can't remember anyone wearing slippers when I was at school.
Thanks for the review, Rob, and Tony for the links to the stories.