What Enid Blyton book are you reading right NOW!

[Katharine]

I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to do a review, as although I remember I enjoyed the book very much, my useless memory can't recall enough to write about it. I definitely intend to read it again one day, but I have too many books I've never even read to get through first.

Fiona, I'm not 100% sure how much I paid for my copy, my spreadsheet has £3 with a question mark next to it. I did write down everything I paid at the EB day, but have misplaced the piece of paper, but it probably wouldn't have been much more than that. I definitely want to get the other book at some point.

[Fiona1986]

Oh well. Shows just how impossible it is to price a Blyton book!

I'll try and write a review soon but it's the last day of my holiday today and we're packing and cleaning at the moment.

[Tony Summerfield]

I've just read Humpty Dumpty and Belinda, one of the Collins colour camera books. I bought it yesterday for £15, which I think was a good price (having checked on amazon it's £20-£25 plus postage, and on eBay there was one for £220 )

Anyway, the story is lovely. A little girl has two dolls Belinda and Tom, and her father makes doll houses and toys.

I think you will find that it is Belinda and Tod, not Tom. When I was originally doing my bibliography research I discovered that there were other Collins Colour Camera books about Belinda and Tod, as well as the two that I have, but the dustwrappers (uncommon) didn't list them and therefore didn't help as to who wrote them. I have never seen any other books so I am none the wiser, but I took an executive decision and decided not to list them as Enid Blyton books. If my memory serves me right (which it does less and less nowadays!) one of the books had Tod in the title.

[Tony Summerfield]

I am adding a bit to my previous post if anyone is interested. It would seems that Belinda and Father Christmas by Hugh and Sally Gee was published in America by Chanticleer Press in 1948. Obviously Enid Blyton saw this book and fancied writing her own version of the story and it was published by Collins in 1951 as Father Christmas and Belinda. This would not be the first time that Enid saw illustrations from another book and wrote her own story to fit the original illustrations as she did exactly that with Let's Pretend.

It seems that Hugh and Sally Gee did write other books about Belinda (Belinda and the Magic Journey, but Enid just rewrote the two of them.

[Katharine]

Thanks for the information Tony. If the other books are American, I'm guessing they may be quite hard to come by over here? I think I'll probably restrict myself to just trying to track down the Enid Blyton Father Christmas one.

[Julie2owlsdene]

Unless you looked on EBAY for American books, Katharine.

[Katharine]

Julie, I suspect the postage would be horrendous to ship a book over from the US, it's bad enough getting a hardbook posted in the UK. However, I dare say that if it was something extra special I might be prepared to push the boat out, as it were.

[Anita Bensoussane]

Interesting information about the history of the "Belinda" books, Tony.

[Tony Summerfield]

I am adding a bit to my previous post if anyone is interested. It would seems that Belinda and Father Christmas by Hugh and Sally Gee was published in America by Chanticleer Press in 1948. Obviously Enid Blyton saw this book and fancied writing her own version of the story and it was published by Collins in 1951 as Father Christmas and Belinda.

All the potential reviewers have missed the bus on this one, as I have just added a review of Father Christmas and Belinda to the Cave. As usual the review is by Terry Gustafson - the Cave would be a poorer place without his sterling efforts.

It is worth mentioning, for those that have never seen the book, that as well as the 14 full-colour plates by Hugh Gee, there are numerous line drawings by Shirley Hughes. This must have been one of her earliest commissions in a long career as she is a major children's illustrator and still working today at the age of 86. Earlier this month one of the books for World Book Day, Alfies' Shop, was her most recent work. Last year she wrote and illustrated a best-selling children's novel, Hero on a Bicycle. The Belinda book was the only illustrating that she did for Enid Blyton.

[Anita Bensoussane]

Gosh, I bought and read that book years ago without realising the line drawings were by Shirley Hughes! I have both Blyton "Belinda" books and they're charming and unusual.

[corkontheocean]

I'm halfway through the third Barney mystery, the Ring O' Bells Mystery

[Loony the Dog]

Reading the Spiteful Letters for the Readathon!

[deepeabee]

I've just finished Five are together again. I suppose it's been noted elswhere that George couldn't wait to get home to see Timmy in this book but in all the other books Timmy was allowed to be at school with her!

Anyway, that concludes my FF reading for now.

[Daisy]

Yes, that anomaly has been discussed elsewhere deepeabee. I guess it's another slip of the mind on Enid's part although a change of ruling at the school isn't an impossibility!

[deepeabee]

I remember working round it when I first read it as a child and thinking that maybe George and Anne had changed school because they'd grown too old for the school they were in (sort of like a sixth form).