The Enid Blyton Society

Francis wrote:I have just reread both Valley of Adventure and Sea of Adventure and have finally made my mind up. They are both excellent but 'Sea' shades it for me. Having to rescue Bill is a refreshing change and the setting is stunning with Huffin and Puffin thrown in - unbeatable!

This is how I feel about these two books! Valley has a great setting - and I love the back story about the treasure etc...but Sea also has a great setting, and has such a brilliant edge-of-your-seat ending too!

Francis wrote:...the setting is stunning with Huffin and Puffin thrown in - unbeatable!

And now we cannot even watch Huffin and Puffin on the Puffin Cam for at least 7 months...

Don't remind me! Mind you'll they will be back next year with all their many friends. They're still waiting for Jack and Philip.

Rob Houghton wrote:

Francis wrote:I have just reread both Valley of Adventure and Sea of Adventure and have finally made my mind up. They are both excellent but 'Sea' shades it for me. Having to rescue Bill is a refreshing change and the setting is stunning with Huffin and Puffin thrown in - unbeatable!

This is how I feel about these two books! Valley has a great setting - and I love the back story about the treasure etc...but Sea also has a great setting, and has such a brilliant edge-of-your-seat ending too!

Glad you fee l the same Rob. It's not a criticism of 'Valley' to celebrate 'Sea'.

Rob Houghton wrote:This is how I feel about these two books! Valley has a great setting - and I love the back story about the treasure etc...but Sea also has a great setting, and has such a brilliant edge-of-your-seat ending too!

But no one seems to be thrilled by "Castle"...

I enjoy Castle. It's a great book, very tense and exciting with a fairly nail biting ending. I think it and Island have the darkest atmospheres of the series; all that creeping around underground in gloomy candlelit rooms ratchets up the tension tremendously. I usually rate it as third in my assessments of the Adventure series. However I simply enjoy the plots and ambiance of Valley and Sea better.

I have always thought that Castle has the darkest and eeriest atmosphere of all Enid Blyton's books.

I love the gloomy claustrophobia of The Castle of Adventure but, like John (Lucky Star), I'd put it third on my list after The Valley of Adventure and The Sea of Adventure. There's a strong feeling of remoteness in Valley and Sea - of being stranded far from civilisation, surrounded by scenes of incredible beauty but with a palpable sense of doom hanging over everything. That feeling of being so cut off from everything heightens the tension and poignancy.

I also like Castle, but I think I prefer those with more interesting locations...so I tend to like the first two books, and Mountain, less than the others, as the locations are all a bit 'normal' for a Blyton book. Valley and Sea are my equal favourites I think - they alternate into the Number One spot! Then I have to vote Circus as Number Three - then probably Ship and River before Castle, Island and Mountain - but there are honestly no books in this series I really dislike - I even enjoyed Mountain when I read it again last year, despite hating it aged 10!

I think all the books in the Adventure series are great, but my favourite is The Castle of Adventure.

I love them all too, but I'm not able to decide whether Sea or Circus is my favourite... I'll have to do a marathon re-read of them all one day and figure it out.

The only reason why Valley isn't in the running for my top spot is that — as I've said before — I'm afraid the idea of the two elderly people living in the caves on their own for several years, with no contact with the outside world and no means of replenishing their supplies, is just too unbelievable for me. Well, of course there's always a bit of suspension of disbelief involved in an Enid Blyton story, but that part is somehow a bit too much of a stretch... Other than that, though, it's an absolutely brilliant and atmospheric and incredibly exciting story and I would probably rate it as my third favourite.

Isn't there a Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy film in which Stan stayed at an MG-position for several years after WW I? I think I remember seeing a big pile of empty tins behind him.

yes - Block Heads, I think.

I've just finished Sea and agree that it and Valley are the best two in the Adventure series. All 8 books are a wonderful real but the setting and atmosphere in these two just raise it and set them slightly higher.

The great thing about the Adventure series is that they are all very readable and of a high standard. Most of them were written by her in her golden period when she had matured but not lost her inventive abilities. Personally I also rate 'Mountain' highly and 'Castle' is very good. 'Island' is a good start and 'Circus' has some magical scenes. 'Ship' and 'River' are also very readable.