Find-Outers Readathon

The books! Over seven hundred of them and still counting...
Moose
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Post by Moose »

I bought a copy on ebay over the weekend so hopefully it should be here tomorrow or the next day :).
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.
Time to die.




EF
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HeatherS
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Location: Melbourne, Australia
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Post by HeatherS »

From chapter 2:
Buster crunched up the bone and then swallowed the biscuit. They seemed to fill him with joy and he began to caper round and about the children, inviting them to chase him.
I have two dogs myself, and I've never once seen them "crunch up" a bone. Gnaw for hours, possibly, but never crunch.

I found it a strange choice of words for Enid, a dog owner herself.
Heather
"Have you held your breath in wonder, at the sky so dark and deep?" - Enid Blyton
http://www.heathersblytonpages.com/
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Lenoir
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Favourite book/series: FFO/FF. Five run away together, Most FFO books.
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Location: Cape Town,South Africa

Post by Lenoir »

I read a few chapters last evening. By the time I read this book (the first time), I’d read some of the later ones, so it felt very strange not to have Fatty in charge and no disguises. That’s probably why I never rated it. But now I’m starting to enjoy it much more. It’s also interesting to read how the Find Outers started.

Even at this early stage, Mr. Goon never fails to amuse me:
“Right, sir,” said Mr. Goon, pleased at being able to ‘clear orf’ so many people at once.
I enjoyed that scene in the kitchen - Mrs Minns is quite a character. In fact, all the suspects seem to be colourful characters.

And I wonder if the tramp subconsciously inspired some of Fatty’s disguises in the later books! He sounds like one of Fatty’s inventions.
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Ming
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Post by Ming »

He might have! Thinking of it, it seems that most of his disguises were of tramps!

And yeah, Goon really does amuse me.
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Kitty
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Favourite book/series: Five Find-Outers/Malory Towers
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Post by Kitty »

The ending is a bit Poirot-ish - it really relies on the confession! If Hick had accused the children/tramp of lying because of a grudge, or simply said that they must have been mistaken, he'd probably have got away with it easily enough! In any case, it would have been worth taking a gamble on, assuming whoever he sold the documents to would have been happy to keep quiet.
Moose
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Post by Moose »

My copy still hasn't arrived yet! I bought it last weekend! Don't move on without me *cries*
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.
Time to die.




EF
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Lucky Star
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Favourite book/series: The Valley of Adventure
Favourite character: Mr Goon
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Post by Lucky Star »

Dont worry Moose, I believe Moonraker will be joining us as well so we'll wait. Besides I havent got around to reading "..Hidden House yet. :wink:
"What a lot of trouble one avoids if one refuses to have anything to do with the common herd. To have no job, to devote ones life to literature, is the most wonderful thing in the world. - Cicero

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Kitty
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Post by Kitty »

I haven't reread HH yet either, don't worry! It's one of my least favourite FFO books, so I was waiting for the discussion to start in the hope that it would make me see the book in a different light!
Moose
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Post by Moose »

I read Hidden House a couple of weeks ago but I am happy to read it again. I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would do on the reread but there's alot of interesting scope for discussion there, including, of course, the Five's treatment of Ern and Ern's relationship with Goon.
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.
Time to die.




EF
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Rob Houghton
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Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
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Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Post by Rob Houghton »

I think the only really interesting aspect of Hidden House is the way Goon and the find outers treat poor old Ern. Ern's presence lightens the book and makes the story much more worth while. Without Ern, I feel the book would be even weaker than it is. The plot leaves a lot to be desired. It reminds me of a Famous Five plot, which would be fine if it was, but somehow, with the Five find outers the reader expects something more mysterious with more clues, like a 'who- done-it'.

The find outers are certainly rude to Ern, and show their full 'bratishness' in front of him, especially when they first meet him. Enid writes him as an 'annoying' character, rather like Susie in Secret Seven, but I feel this is Ern's strength, like Eunice later on in the series. Enid's annoying characters are always her best drawn I think.

But it's the quips and the rudeness and the cruelty from Goon and the F.F.O's that are the things that stop Hidden House from being run of the mill.
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



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Ming
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Post by Ming »

That's true -- I was fascinated by the way the Find Outers and Goon treat Ern. Quite interesting that an uncle should pretend so much with a nephew, and that friends do so much to trouble another friend. That was one of the things that really drew me into the story.
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Vic Nicholas
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Post by Vic Nicholas »

I love Hidden House - in fact, I would go as far as saying it is one of my favourites - but, hey, who am I to throw a spanner in your collective works.

The Winter Mysterys are my favourite, though with the exception of the first two books and the last in the series, I love them all!
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booklover
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Favourite book/series: Whyteleafe, Faraway Tree, "Barney" books
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Post by booklover »

Hi everyone! :D Some thoughts on Burnt Cottage, before everyone moves on.

This book does everything a first book in a series should do. It tells a reasonably complicated story while introducing all the central characters. It has good byplay between the children themselves (Fatty regularly being taken down a peg or two) and with their nemesis, Goon. It captures the essence of life in a suburban English village. And it cleverly introduces Inspector Jenks to the children.

As others have said, we cannot accept Fatty and Larry searching Mr Smellie's house. More like delinquents than find-outers! But the boys acknowledge their wrongdoing. The message is: always tell the truth.

The book also establishes Bets as a most appealing character. We laugh at her struggles with "glues". We smile as she follows footprints like a bloodhound. And we feel vindicated when the man who has betrayed her confidences turns out to be the criminal.

Overall, Burnt Cottage deserves more applause than it generally receives. It is a cleverly constructed - and understated - introduction to the series.
Moose
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Post by Moose »

My copy is still not here :(

I agree that the plot of Hidden House is lame. I dunno why on earth they considered that what Ern accidentally overheard when he got lost and the fact that a car had no lights on was a 'mystery' *rolls eyes*
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.
Time to die.




EF
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Ming
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Post by Ming »

I don't know why, but I loved Hidden House. I found the plot much more advanced than the earlier books, but probably that's just me. But I found the whole floor thing very ingenious and complicated -- I loved it. I also agreed with Ern that it was a mystery about no lights. After all, don't we have our headlights on while driving in the middle of the night?
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