Andrew Maunder - Enid Blyton: A Literary Life

[Lucky Star]

Another silly article by someone who doesn't give any indication that she herself has read any of Enid's books nor indeed offer much insight of her own despite critiscising Andrew Maunder for just that! The "racist" comment is as usual based on the single story in which the Golliwogs do something bad by hijacking Noddy's car and the single story of the little black doll who wanted to be white. Two short stories out of that enormous output is all this writer cites. Sadly nothing in it surprises me. It's more a sign of the times than a true analysis of Blyton's work. Unfortunately it is the cross that Blytonians have to bear. We can take comfort from the fact that despite articles like this Enid's books continue to sell in huge numbers to people of every shade, colour and description.

[John Pickup]

Marianne Levy, who wrote the article, is the author of the Ellie May children's books. She is obviously extremely jealous that someone who died in 1968 is still selling many more books than she is.
I'm sick and tired of these articles which appear periodically, for the purpose of labelling Enid a racist. Her work reflects the feelings of the time. She's not here to defend herself but there's plenty of us on here who will.

[Katharine]

Apart from the obvious tired old comments about Enid's (supposed) racism, what really bugs me is the comment about Enid's daughters. For a start, I was under the impression that Gillian had quite a good relationship with her mother, it was Imogen who wasn't so happy, so that should be daughter in the singular, and secondly, what about the relationship that Enid had with her own parents?

While not excusing any hurt that Enid may have caused either of her daughters why don't these people look into how Enid was treated as a child? I know it was 'the norm' back then, but I really feel sorry for Enid being expected to conform to the domestic role that her mother wanted for her, and goodness knows what it must have done to Enid mentally to have to hide the departure of her father, at a time when divorce was considered so scandalous. Is it any wonder that at times she possibly got it wrong as a mother when her own childhood at been so unhappy at times?

I'm sure that nowadays there would have been counselling or parenting classes available to help her, but back then things were so different. I get so fed up when people try and apply today's expectations on previous generations. I'm sure I've said this before, but who knows how people will view our society in 100 years time - will they all be horrified that we ate animals, or polluted the air with petrol cars etc etc?

[Boatbuilder]

Marianne Levy, who wrote the article, is the author of the Ellie May children's books. She is obviously extremely jealous that someone who died in 1968 is still selling many more books than she is.
I'm sick and tired of these articles which appear periodically, for the purpose of labelling Enid a racist. Her work reflects the feelings of the time. She's not here to defend herself but there's plenty of us on here who will.

I think that sums it up nicely, John.

[Aussie Sue]

Apart from the obvious tired old comments about Enid's (supposed) racism, what really bugs me is the comment about Enid's daughters. For a start, I was under the impression that Gillian had quite a good relationship with her mother, it was Imogen who wasn't so happy, so that should be daughter in the singular, and secondly, what about the relationship that Enid had with her own parents?

While not excusing any hurt that Enid may have caused either of her daughters why don't these people look into how Enid was treated as a child? I know it was 'the norm' back then, but I really feel sorry for Enid being expected to conform to the domestic role that her mother wanted for her, and goodness knows what it must have done to Enid mentally to have to hide the departure of her father, at a time when divorce was considered so scandalous. Is it any wonder that at times she possibly got it wrong as a mother when her own childhood at been so unhappy at times?

I'm sure that nowadays there would have been counselling or parenting classes available to help her, but back then things were so different. I get so fed up when people try and apply today's expectations on previous generations. I'm sure I've said this before, but who knows how people will view our society in 100 years time - will they all be horrified that we ate animals, or polluted the air with petrol cars etc etc?

WELL SAID KATHERINE, totally agree.

[Moonraker]

Marianne Levy, who wrote the article, is the author of the Ellie May children's books. She is obviously extremely jealous that someone who died in 1968 is still selling many more books than she is.
I'm sick and tired of these articles which appear periodically, for the purpose of labelling Enid a racist. Her work reflects the feelings of the time. She's not here to defend herself but there's plenty of us on here who will.

I think that sums it up nicely, John.

I must heartily agree with John and Boatbuilder on this. I get quite angry with the anti-EB brigade, and now never read any reviews on Blyton's work.

[timv]

I couldn't agree more with the above comments. The modern critics tend repeatedly to ignore the time of writing's cultural context , when social attitudes were far different , and - a common problem with critics, I fear, and not only in children's literature - single out one or two storylines in isolation and play them up. There seems to be a lack of generosity or of serious social research by many critics, especially the ones that get the most headlines. Is this at times reflective of a lack of teaching of social history to younger people of what the common cultural views of the 1930s to 1980s were like ? (Cf the TV shows that have younger TV stars expressing horror as they are shown 'off-colour' 1960s and 1970s sitcoms featuring embarrassing treatment of women and minorities.) If I was to be cynical, I would wonder how many commentators are more interested in either generating the most headlines (and so improving their own usefulness to media outlets as generators of sales) or of seeming to be on the 'right' side of the argument, virtuously attacking all signs of racism, sexism etc.

The question of Enid's 'neglecting' her daughters , in the emotional sense, just ignores what was normal for parents of her era, and assumes that today's values were not shared at the time - and that times change. This is a worrying view of past history to me - a rush to judge everyone by modern standards - though it's an interesting long-term cultural cliche - int he Victorian era lots of earnest Anglican moral reformers were expressing outrage at the moral laxity and social behaviour of the Regency era 30-50 years earlier. It also ignores that as a working woman with a time- and imagination-consuming career and deadlines to meet Enid often couldn't afford to spend more time with her children or was too tired to do so. The myths are repeated time and time again and so become fixed in the popular consciousness, aided by the film starring Helena Bonham-Carter as Enid, where the public are shown more of Enid ignoring her daughters for her fans than of her as an emotionally caring mother. (Arguably she was helping to boost her income and so make her daughters more financially secure even if she was 'too busy with her fans and doing her publishers' bidding; the critics are having it both ways.)

I fear that contrary views are difficult to get out in sections of the 'trendier' media, too. I haven't exactly experienced much enthusiasm myself from certain literary publishers for my proposed book's highlighting of 'good' rather than 'horribly snobbish and sexist' Blyton writing, which sounds like the same problem - though Andrew Maunder's book does get some of the same arguments out at last. Still, we can keep plugging away for those who are willing to listen to both sides of the argument...

[timv]

For those who're interested in other authors' coverage of Blyton biography and locations, there's also a chapter on Enid in Purbeck in Peter Fiennes' book 'Footnotes: A Journey Around Britain in the Company of Great Writers (Oneworld Publ, 2019; PB edition 202) which I've been reading recently. Enid gets the honour of being in Chapter One, though this is partly due to the geographical location in Dorset as the author starts there and then moves on to writers on tour in the farther SW (Wilkie Collins in Cornwall in the 1850s).

Not much is added to what appears elsewhere about Enid in Swanage and Studland and only the basics are covered, eg her hotels (he doesn't visit her golf course) and the 'Malory Towers pool' link for Dancing Ledge, plus jokey remarks on her 'repetitive' use of language, problematic use of gollywogs etc, and the inevitable quotes from Imogen's book about Enid 'neglecting' her. This is a quick personal view of the landscape and its connections to the author in a book with plenty more to cover, and I am unclear if the author, in his fifties, knew Swanage closer to Enid's own time or not. We only get a brief reference to Corfe Castle - and to Viv's shop - and no in-depth look at how surprise bits of Purbeck pop up in Enid's books, probably as this is such a quick visit . But there is a shrewd if speculative assessment of her imaginative/ 'intuitive' approach to creating storylines and characters books (based on her statement about the images and action coming into her mind in a sort of trance, not being planned) and the long-term effects of her family problems, with Hugh's drinking as well as her parental breakup .

The latter as a 'submerged' source of strain and embarrassment for her through the 1920s and 1930s may add more light to the question of her frenetic 'escape' into her work and avoidance of things that contradicted the 'perfect family' image that she was trying to create in that era than the usually flagged-up story of her mother. Was it that Enid could not do anything about Hugh's drinking and was at a loss as to how bad it was, so she retreated from it into her work, concentrated on her controllable fantasy life instead, and once she had remarried avoided all contact with Hugh for herself or her children - not unusual for the time or for a writer's/ artist's approach to life , despite the modern criticism. It' s suggested that Hugh was as damaged by the past (by First WW psychological effects) as she was but dealt with it differently. So it's time to add 'PTSD' on Hugh's part to the reasons for their difficulties and reason to see Enid as a victim like many post-1918 soldiers' wives - which the 2009 BBC film drama did not deal with at all. The 'suppression' of horrific war memories by ex-soldiers instead of modern 'therapy' was normal for both post-WW1 and WW2 soldiers, as was the long-term risk of side-effects on their lives for decades - but this does not often get put into the Blyton story with much emphasis or any understanding.

The chapter is a lot more understanding and balanced than many accounts, pointing out that Gillian's recorded memories were at odds with the most famous bits of Imogen's book, the BBC 2009 drama was very unforgiving and seems to have relied heavily on the more sensational bits of Imogen's account, and the sexist and snobbish implications of male and 'establishment' critics (literary, librarians, and TV/ radio) attacking a successful, commercially-minded, self-made, non-university-educated top woman author. He also points out that the critics have not gone for, or have excused, worse 'of its time' alleged racism and snobbery by male 'mass-market' authors with 1900s-1930s attitudes and simplistic views of 'villainous foreigners' who wrote for adults , eg the likes of John Buchan. I shall be interested to see what others think of this chapter.

[Judith Crabb]

Thanks timv for the tip. Travel is not my forte so I would not have found 'Footnotes' (good title). There are plenty of copies sitting on shelves in South Australian libraries at the moment and I've just ordered one. It won't arrive til the New Year but there's no hurry.

[Fiona1986]

Has anyone actually received this book yet? My mum ordered it from Waterstones for my birthday which is in the middle of December, and she still hasn't got it.

[Eddie Muir]

I received a copy as a present on Christmas Day, but haven’t had chance to start reading it yet.

[Viv of Ginger Pop]

I hadn't thought of Hugh having PTSD - that's a good observation timv.

I'm not interested in giving interviews about Enid, since the last time I was asked "why didn't she write about refugees?" Is there any other author where a fan is supposed to mind-read in this way?

I was so gob-smacked that I didn't think about Noddy, or Greta the Austrian maid.

I'm not sure in what direction the Ginger Pop Shop will go this year
http://www.gingerpop.co.uk/

Viv

[Anita Bensoussane]

Barbara Stoney writes of Hugh "reliving some of the traumatic experiences" of the First World War while working on the publication of Winston Churchill's The World Crisis, and of Hugh falling into depression and alcoholism during the 1930s as he realised that Churchill was right that "the world was on the brink of another war".

Some years ago I read Ida Pollock's memoir, Starlight. She loved Hugh to the end of his life but it's clear from her book that he was a very difficult man to live with at times.

Tom and Sheila in The Children of Kidillin are refugees, though they go to live with relatives in Scotland rather than with strangers.

I've asked for a copy of Enid Blyton: A Literary Life for my birthday.

[Viv of Ginger Pop]

Tom and Sheila in The Children of Kidillin are refugees, though they go to live with relatives in Scotland rather than with strangers.

I've asked for a copy of Enid Blyton: A Literary Life for my birthday.

I think of them as Evacuees rather than refugees

Viv

[Anita Bensoussane]

You're right, Viv. No idea why I was thinking of evacuees while reading and writing 'refugees'!