Enid's most complex plot?

[Chrissie777]

However, I have no sentimental values attach to Adventure series. I am very fond of Fatty and the co, Snubby and the co. So I must say that my favourite series are FFO and Barney R series. Then Adventure series, Secret Seven, Faraway Tree, all 3 school series, Mr. Twiddle and Amelia Jane. In that order.

sixret, how about the Famous Five? They must have been as successful in Malaya as they were in Germany and France?

[sixret]

Actually, FF series has been the most popular one since I was young and still is in Malaysia. It's just that personally, I prefer FFO series.

[mynameisdumbnuts]

I just finished "House-at-the-Corner." I'm not sure it's the most complex plot -- I agree that "Rubadub Mystery" is a strong contender -- but there are lots of elements Blyton had to tie together. There are three children whose characters need developing (I'm omitting the twins David and Delia because they seem all right from the beginning). Pam and Tony are bad and need reforming. Lizzie is very good and needs to be made better. Blyton had to weave in the fact Lizzie is competent at housework because her teaching Pam is an important part of Pam's development. The twins need a friend who can later become Tony's friend, which is important to his development. Then to finish up, each child needs a reward for having learned his/her lesson.

It comes together beautifully -- all those characters and morals, and yet the book is still a really good read. To me, that's more complex than some of the other books with their adventures, puzzles and clues.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I agree that Enid Blyton weaves several strands together very skilfully in House-at-the-Corner, Mynameisdumbnuts. The story flows so naturally that she makes it look effortless, but focussing on the different characters and their various dramas and getting the balance right must have taken a lot of thought.

[Germander Speedwell]

Have to re-read Rat A Tat again, I never noticed that something is wrong with it. I actually enjoyed it even more than the first two volumes which I thought are both are great.
I love the wintery atmosphere of Rat A Tat.
However, Ragamuffin was a weak sequel!

I'd like to muscle in on this thread if I may, admittedly rather late in the day, but I've only just joined!

I too really like the atmosphere in Rat-a-Tat, it certainly conjures up some of those snowy childhood winters I had, even growing up in London. The book may not be as strong as some of its predecessors, certainly not as strong as Rubadub - but it has its moments. Everything is building nicely but somehow it all just falls flat, the criminals aren't even apprehended (the police will get them when the thaw sets in). All quite probable but not exciting. I always feel that Enid, who maybe was not wholly motivated by another Barney book at the start, lost the plot just over halfway and struggled from then on.

As for Ragamuffin, more like a disaster in my view!

[Rob Houghton]

I agree - the less said about Ragamuffin the better - although I do rather like the idea of Snubby being mistaken for someone else - that's about the best part!

I also find it amusing that at the front of Ragamuffin Enid dedicates the book to all her Welsh reader who begged her to write a mystery story set in Wales. I often wonder if they were disappointed - or even downright insulted by the fake Welsh 'accents'!

[Germander Speedwell]

I read Ragamuffin for the first and only time about 30 years ago, when childhood was already something of a distant memory. I was prepared to be disappointed as the Barney Mysteries were clearly going off the boil with Rat-a-Tat. I can barely remember the plot - as I recall there wasn't much of one. I can recall a couple of rip-off incidents from other Blyton tales (OK, I can live with that). But those Welsh people going round saying 'Look you' all the time - I cringed. A terrible caricature, I felt.

[Lucky Star]

But those Welsh people going round saying 'Look you' all the time - I cringed. A terrible caricature, I felt.

Enid put "look you" in every Wales set story. Interestingly I have just finished a re-read of Frederick Forsyth's superb The Day of the Jackal and at one point a Welsh police detective turns to his English colleague and snaps something like "get onto it then look you"! So Enid was not the only author to put this expression into the mouths of her Welsh characters.

[Rob Houghton]

I wonder if this is more common in south Wales? My dad was born in North Wales and none of my relatives ever say 'look you' or 'whateffer' but maybe it's more of a south Wales thing? Personally though, I get the feeling no Welsh person ever said such a thing except in books and films! One of the few Welsh phrases I have heard regularly is 'isn't it?' added to the end of a sentence.

[Poppy]

I was amused to hear my Auntie, who lives in Wales, repeatedly embellish her sentences with 'Look you!', quite regularly - so I have always assumed that Enid based these phrases off real Welsh phrases, etc.

[Rob Houghton]

Was that south Wales or North Wales? Just wondering!

[Poppy]

South Wales. She lives in Abergavveny.

[Anita Bensoussane]

That's interesting. I grew up in North Wales and never heard anyone say "Look you", though if I remember correctly the Welsh for "Look" (command) is "Edrychwch chi," which does literally mean "Look you."

[Rob Houghton]

My dad comes from North Wales, and so I spent very many holidays in the Denbighshire region, and never heard anyone say 'look you' so presume it's more of a south Wales thing!

[Chrissie777]

I too really like the atmosphere in Rat-a-Tat, it certainly conjures up some of those snowy childhood winters I had, even growing up in London. The book may not be as strong as some of its predecessors, certainly not as strong as Rubadub - but it has its moments. Everything is building nicely but somehow it all just falls flat, the criminals aren't even apprehended (the police will get them when the thaw sets in). All quite probable but not exciting. I always feel that Enid, who maybe was not wholly motivated by another Barney book at the start, lost the plot just over halfway and struggled from then on.
As for Ragamuffin, more like a disaster in my view!

I like your beautiful avatar. You are probably aware that "Five on a Treasure Island" (1957) was filmed for CFF very close to Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove. We've been there in August 2008 to see some of the locations. The Jurassic Coast is gorgeous and Corfe Castle quite impressive.

Yes, "Ragamuffin" was a disappointment...at least the German translation was.
So far I was looking in vain for an old hardcover copy.
I like "Ring O Bells" very much.