The Enid Blyton Society

Fascinating stuff, thanks very much Duncan. I'm looking forward to reading further instalments. As Katharine said, it's heart-warming to see Enid portrayed as a good mother for once! And we all know what a crepon is now!

Wonderful, duncan.
Learnt a lot from this lovely piece.

Thanks for the positive comments, much appreciated.

I've slightly rejigged the Malory Towers material on my site. And I've added a piece on Third Year at Malory Towers. That's here: http://www.enidblyton.me.uk/styled-14/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

duncan

A very interesting piece. Thank you for that. I look forward to your next article.

Wow! That was a really nice article!

I really enjoyed those articles Duncan, and look forward to more!

I enjoyed reading this. Those comments about weight etc, well they read exactly like my own comments in my teenage diary. Also not being attractive enough, etc, etc. Am sure that many teenage girls confide similar secret insecurities to their diaries - it's a rite of passage for many. It's only when we are much older we read back with a wry smile and think 'there was absolutely nothing wrong with us, ah to be that slim and pretty'!

Just to add I love the idea of Enid reaching out to her children through her books. I would be sorely tempted to do the same in her shoes, and would even pepper them with family in jokes that only my children could spot! To show them how important they were to me and how much they were loved.

I think that's dead right and it's certainly a nice sentiment.

Here's the fourth book in Malory Towers, full of Enid reaching out to her daughters: http://www.enidblyton.me.uk/styled-19/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

All best,
Duncan (the Hugh=Goon man)

Thank you for that Duncan; I enjoyed it. Upper Fourth is one of my favourite Malory Towers, but I have always found it almost painful to read in places with all the misunderstandings as June gains influence over Felicity, and Darrell is demoted.It's interesting to see how Enid's life feeds into this, and how closely the mother/daughter/sister relationships of Enid, Gillian and Imogen are played out. I could really relate to Enid here, in having a child who is easy to get along with and who makes you feel as though you've really got this mothering business cracked; only to have another who just seems to be able to press all your buttons and who you really have to work to get along with. The picture of Enid visiting Imogen in hospital and letting her name the horses in Six Cousins - and then Imogen's comment that their relationship didn't improve, said it all. What a wonderful escape her writing must have been for her, as much as for us - the escape into a world where order would prevail, the good would prosper, and there would always be a fair and happy ending.

Shame there's no more of these; they were good!

Yes, I loved reading Gillian's diary--- very nostalgic. The pictures are excellent.

A few years on and I'm adding to this thread again.

I didn't think I had much to say about In the Fifth at Malory Towers because Gillian's diary was not kept at the relevant time and she left school and went to uni. (Where she would have no need for any more manuals to being a successful schoolgirl!) But as I read MT5 again, I realised that Enid was drawing heavily on an important part of her own school history. Anyway, see what you think:

http://www.enidblyton.me.uk/styled-26/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for the update, Duncan. Most interesting.

A quick trip to Seven Stories to have a look at the typescript of Last Term at Malory Towers has allowed me to finish a series of pieces on the MT books.

So it took me as long to write them as it did Enid to write the books themselves. Funny the way time passes.

Anyway: http://www.enidblyton.me.uk/styled-27/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;