Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

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db105
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by db105 »

Five on Finniston Farm

** spoiler alert ** Brief Summary by Poppy Hutchinson (from http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;): In this eighteenth Famous Five adventure, whilst spending the holidays at Finniston Farm, Julian, Dick, George, Anne and Timmy encounter a brazen and tiresome duo of American guests. They also discover that the dungeons of an old Castle remain under some of the land of Finniston Farm – but nobody knows where they are! Of course: the Famous Five are determined to find them, and uncover whatever is inside them, but they are not the only ones...


Random thoughts:

OK, people are going to complain about another set of "identical" twins (although it's actually just the second in the series). These ones always talked together in the beginning, when they were hostile, but didn't do so later on. We could talk about how a boy and a girl can't be identical twins in the genetic sense, although they can look quite similar, just like regular siblings can look similar, and more so since they are the same age. And another of Enid Blyton's favorite tropes: yet another girl who dresses like a boy. Anyway, the bottom line is that it doesn't bother me. Yes, it's corny and maybe done too often, but it contributes to the atmosphere of the books. I enjoyed the initial hostility of the twins and how they became friends later.

Having said that, and understanding the difficulties the farm was going through, once you decide to accept boarders you need to offer a good service. I mean, yes, Mr. Henning and Junior were unbearable, but the Five also received their share of hostility from the twins and even from their father ("more visitors?"). Then they became friends with the twins because they saw that they were willing to work and help with the farm work... and I know the Five did it willingly, but come on, paying boarders shouldn't have to do that to be welcomed.

Having said that, it was nice of the Five to be so helpful. We do not see them going on their own to do their usual exploring. Their holiday at the farm seems to consist of working, mostly. Maybe they did other things too, but they were not shown in the book since they were not related to the story.

Now let's talk about Junior. Thoroughly spoiled and irritating, I still liked the character. I mean that i enjoyed hating him. I liked the fact that, unlike other similar characters (like Edgar Stick in Run Away Together), Junior had agency in the story. He's not ineffectual, and his spying and the information he gets plays a major role. The reader of the audiobook made his voice very unpleasant (which is intended) and too loud (which bothered me in a bad way, since I use headphones). Like with Edgar, I did not mind the Five being mean to him, since he thoroughly deserved it (well, one could argue it was more his parent's fault, but whatever).

At some point, Anne thought that it was peculiar that someone had the name of the town as last name (Finniston). Right you are, Anne Kirrin!

There is no mention of myxomatosis. It fell prey to the modernization of the book, which is a pity, because I remember enjoying those references when I read it as a kid. Details like that give depth and a feeling of authenticity to the setting.

Thinking about edits to the book: at a couple of points the children mention that they like Americans in general, they just did not like these Americans in particular. That's quite fair, but I had to wonder if it was in the original or if it was added later so as not to offend.

I understand many people consider later books, included this one, as weaker than the first ones, but I have to say that I enjoyed this one a lot. It has some problems, mainly the fact that the adventure content is very light. The adventure this time is about as simple and light as in Go Adventuring Again (in fact, Finniston Farm is the shortest in the series going by length of the audiobook), but like in that book, there were other things surrounding the adventure that made me enjoy it.

Mainly, this book seemed to me genuine and heartfelt. Yes, it has the typical elements, secret passages, twins, snotty spoiled boy antagonist, children allies with unusual pets, but for all of that, I got the feeling that Blyton's heart was in it, that she cared about the exploitation of the rich history and relics of Britian, by people who had no genuine understanding or appreciation of it. I enjoyed the vivid descriptions of the farm and the fields (as old as the hills), and the character of the grumpy great-granddad, obsessed with preserving the family heritage. There was real intensity and feeling in it, and it made the book memorable when I read it as a child. I remembered the details of this one, while for some other books in the series I did not remember that much.

For once, the antagonists were not criminals. They were just unpleasant, rude and snooty. The consequence is that the children were never in any danger, except when they got accidentally trapped underground. On the other hand, that in itself was an original touch. I think it's the first in the series with no criminal antagonists. The adventure is very simple and straightforward, and also easy rather foreseeable, but since I enjoyed everything around it I did not mind. Other readers may be less understanding.

One could say that it's incredible that the children could find so quickly what no one had found for centuries, and one would be right, but it's the kind of thing we need to suspend disbelief about in order to enjoy the series. Yes, the children easily stumble into adventure wherever they go. Deal with it, because otherwise there would be no series.

The ending was really satisfactory for me, with everyone marveling at the treasure found, and great-grandpa waving the ancient sword, with fire in his eyes, feeling younger than he had felt in decades, and making Mr. Henning and company run away fearing for their integrity. Memorable stuff!


Coming next: Five Go to Demon's Rocks (1961)
----------------------------------
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by pete9012S »

Nice review.Thank you.
Yes the American reference is in the original:
The children trooped out quietly, not feeling inclined to follow the brash Mr Henning round any more.
‘At least the other man stopped him from his mad idea of removing the chapel stone by stone,’ said Anne. ‘I couldn’t bear that beautiful old place to be torn up by its roots and replanted somewhere else.’

‘You sound quite angry, Anne - almost as fierce as old Great-Grand-dad!’ said Julian, slipping his arm through his sister’s. ‘I don’t somehow think the old chapel will be sold to Mr Henning - even if he offered a million dollars for it!’

‘Well, I like most Americans very much,’ said Anne. ‘But not Mr Henning. He - he wants to buy history just as if it were chocolate or toffee!’

That made the others laugh. ‘I say!’ said Julian, ‘what about having a snoop round, now we’re out, and just see if we can decide where to hunt for the site of the castle?
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Rob Houghton »

Another great review. I've really enjoyed reading your thoughts on all the Famous Five books. :-)

Finniston Farm has always been one of my favourites of the latter books. I agree the adventure part is quite light, but like 'Mystery To Solve' the strength is in the feeling of place - and the enthusiasm Enid quite obviously has for it. I particularly like this book because things like the big old door and the kittens and the chapel etc, as well as the farm, built on the site of older remains, are all 100% real - based on the Farm Enid owned in Dorset. that is the strength of the book.

I have a first edition of this book, and I'm sure that there are references to 'We generally like Americans - but not Junior' etc. I had a quick look, and found one such instance where Anne says 'I've met lots of nice American children...' etc.

Going by chapter amount, Finniston Farm isn't the shortest Famous Five book - it has 19 chapters, while 'Together Again' only has 17. :-)
'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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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

I'm also enjoying these reviews and discussions. :D

Five on Finniston Farm is a lacklustre story for me. Another farm, another set of twins, another girl who looks like a boy, another hoard of treasure (the finding of which doesn't involve much complication or danger) and a pair of tiresome antagonists.

At least the story is enlivened by Great-Grandad and his sword (I like Enid Blyton's quirky/eccentric characters).
db105 wrote:At some point, Anne thought that it was peculiar that someone had the name of the town as last name (Finniston). Right you are, Anne Kirrin!
Heh - yes, that makes me smile. :)
db105 wrote:...this book seemed to me genuine and heartfelt. Yes, it has the typical elements, secret passages, twins, snotty spoiled boy antagonist, children allies with unusual pets, but for all of that, I got the feeling that Blyton's heart was in it, that she cared about the exploitation of the rich history and relics of Britian, by people who had no genuine understanding or appreciation of it. I enjoyed the vivid descriptions of the farm and the fields (as old as the hills), and the character of the grumpy great-granddad, obsessed with preserving the family heritage. There was real intensity and feeling in it, and it made the book memorable when I read it as a child.

An interesting observation. That may have something to do with the fact that (as Rob says) Finniston Farm was based on a real farm belonging to Enid Blyton and her second husband Kenneth - Manor Farm in Stourton Caundle. Enid and Kenneth never lived there but they used to visit the farm while on holiday in Dorset.

This book contains a couple of incidental episodes which shed some light on Anne, showing how she is growing up. In the first chapter we learn that she has done her hair differently, perhaps indicating that she's beginning to take more of an interest in her appearance. Dick objects to this in typical brotherly fashion:
"I just can't get over Anne's new hair-do. I don't like it, Anne - do you, Ju? Pony-tail! A donkey-tail would suit you better, Anne!"

"It's all right - it's just because the back of my neck was so hot," said Anne, shaking her hair free in a hurry. She hated her brothers to find fault with her.
We also find out that she collects horse-brasses just like Enid Blyton's younger daughter, Imogen.
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Courtenay »

Anita Bensoussane wrote: We also find out that she collects horse-brasses just like Enid Blyton's younger daughter, Imogen.
Ah, to go off on a tangent, you've just cleared up a minor mystery for me, Anita. I had no idea what horse brasses were (not coming from any kind of horsey background!), so I just looked them up, and in the process realised I have one myself. It's a brass "Cornish Tin Miner", absolutely identical to this one I've just found on eBay. I picked up mine from a cabinet of curios at a tea-room near Madron a couple of years ago (incidentally for the same price as the eBay one is going for), but had no idea what it was meant to be — I assumed it was part of a door knocker or something like that. Now I've learned better, thanks to you! :D

I haven't read Finniston Farm, but it sounds worth it, even if it does have repetitive plot elements and sounds a bit like a version of The Treasure Hunters for older readers! :wink:
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by pete9012S »

Some of the monetary values vary greatly between the Soper & Maxey editions.The price to excavate is offered at £250 pounds - then jumps to £500 in the Maxey era.

The book's 1st edition was printed in 1960 which was quite late for a Famous Five Book.
Some figures,valuations and amounts haven't been altered at all in the Maxey edition though..
‘I should advise you to approach Mr Philpot - not the old Great-Grand-dad, but the farmer himself - and offer to put down, say, £250/(£500 Maxey) for the right to excavate up on the hill there,’ said Mr Durleston. ‘Then if you strike anything interesting, you can offer a further sum for whatever’s down there - say another £250/(£500 Maxey). If there is anything there, it will be extremely valuable - so very, very old. Hmmm. Hmmm. Yes, that is my advice to you.’
‘I don’t somehow think the old chapel will be sold to Mr Henning - even if he offered a million dollars for it!’

Image

Image

Image

Image
1977.
‘Why so stiff and haughty'’ whispered Dick, putting on a face exactly like the twins. Anne giggled. They all followed the twins, who were dressed exactly alike in navy shorts and navy shirts. They went right down the long hall, passed a stairway, round a dark corner, and into an enormous kitchen, which was obviously used as a sitting-room as well.
1960.


I did notice a textual change about the twins clothing which I didn't pick up on when I first read this paperback back in the early 1970's.

I know this book irritates a lot of readers,but I like it.I like the fact it was only published in 1960,a mere seven years before I was born,making me feel somehow more connected to this work than the early 1940's Treasure Island from a historical perspective - as if I wasn't many years away from the golden age when new Famous Five books were still being published and immediately devoured!
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by pete9012S »

Image
They all went up the little winding lane, where red poppy-heads jigged about in the breeze, and after a while they came in sight of the farm-house. It was a big one, three storey's high, with whitewashed walls, and the rather small windows belonging to the age in which it was built. Old-fashioned red and white roses rambled over the porch, and the old wooden door stood wide open.

Finniston/Stourton Caundle

https://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/for ... on#p252243" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Some more background info above that some may find of interest.
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Wolfgang »

We see Dick teasing George:

"Dick grinned. „Funny how some girls want to be boys!“ he said, with a sly glance at George, who gave him a furious look."

I don' think we see that very often. Come to think of it - in which other book does Dick make fun of the girls or tease them? I wonder because Dick is considered to be the joker of the series, but I hardly remember him adding to comic relief...
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by sixret »

I love reading all the comments in this thread. Very insightful. :D
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

I'm glad you now know what your "curio" is, Courtenay! A nice item to have.
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by John Pickup »

I was interested to read db105's review of this book as I've never cared for it myself. Another set of moody twins and then we meet Junior, a boy I could willingly bury alive. It was one of the last Famous Fives I read as a child and, compared to Hike, Trouble and Smugglers Top, I was hugely disappointed with it. By this stage of the series there were some really annoying male characters such as Junior and then Tinker and Wilfred which spoilt the later books for me.
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by Rob Houghton »

I agree about Wilfred and Tinker definitely - but at least we aren't meant to like 'Junior' - so Enid does a very good job there!!! :lol:
'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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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by pete9012S »

Chapter Six
A LITTLE EXCITEMENT FOR BREAKFAST!
It was fun to sleep in the barn. Dick tried to keep awake for a while, and enjoy the barn-smell, and the sight of the stars in the sky seen through the open door, where a cool little night-breeze came wandering in.
He lay still and listened. He suddenly felt a rush of cool air over his face, and stiffened. That must have been an owl’s soft-feathered wings! Owls’ wings made no noise, he knew. The feathers were so soft that not even a quick-eared mouse could hear an owl swooping silently down!

There came another little high-pitched squeak. ‘The owl’s doing his job well,’ thought Julian. ‘What a fine hunting-place for him - a barn where food-stuffs are stored - over-run with mice and rats, of course. I bet this owl is worth his weight in gold to the farmer. Well, owl, do your job - but for goodness’ sake don’t mistake my nose for a mouse! Ah - there you go again - just over my head. I saw you then - a shadow passing by!’
I remember as a child being very envious of Julian and Dick sleeping in the barn.
Enid made it sound so exciting.Has anyone ever slept in a real farmer's working barn?
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by pete9012S »

A note on Finniston Farm:
We have great grand-dad,his grandson and wife and then the twins,his great grandchildren.We seem to have missed out a generation somewhere?

I've just started Demon's Rocks and lo and behold up pops another great grand-dad.
‘Well - you’ve certainly got a place with a fine view!’ said the driver. ‘I was born at Demon’s Rocks. My old great-grandad is still in the same cottage where I was born. My word - the stories he used to tell me of that old light-house - and how the wreckers got into it one night and grabbed the keeper there, and doused the light, so that a great ship might go on the rocks.’
The book I'm reading cost 7s 6d net in 1961.
I wonder what that would be in today's money?

The older books seemed to be priced at 7s 6d for a long time too,or is that just my imagination?
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Re: Listen-Through/Discussion of Famous Five Audio Books

Post by John Pickup »

My copies with the illustrated spine are all 7s 6d. The ones with the white spines are all 6s 0d. The white-spined books are all from the early fifties.
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