Journal 54

[Anita Bensoussane]

Thanks Jack and Courtenay, for your comments on my "Pip" article. Sorry you were put off as a child by the notion that "fairies are for girls", Jack! Courtenay, it's lovely that the stories still made such an impression on you when you were a youngster, even though the wildlife around you was different.

I've only read half the Journal so far but I'm really enjoying it and will post my thoughts when I've finished. I agree that the cover and centre pictures are beautiful, with their soft yet striking colours.

[Courtenay]

Yes, I saw that about the uncollected Pip stories - very intriguing, although the ones where he and Jinky interact with toys don't sounds as attractive. One of the aspects of Pip that appeals to me most is that although he's a fantasy character, his stories are set in the natural world and are intended to encourage children to discover that world for themselves. Stories about toys, while they can be fun, don't have the same special purpose.

Poppy, I loved your comparison of Julian, Fatty and Peter too! Very well done. I laughed out loud at the end as well! It's nice to have a "compare and contrast" review of characters or other elements from different Blyton books. Perhaps you could do a follow-up article comparing three strong girl characters - George, Lotta and Darrell, for instance? (Those were just the first possibilities that came to me.)

[Courtenay]

Courtenay, it's lovely that the stories still made such an impression on you when you were a youngster, even though the wildlife around you was different.

Well, we do have introduced European sparrows and blackbirds in Australia, so they were something I could relate to - the stories about Pip giving them their little black bibs and golden beaks certainly stuck with me! I must bring my copy of Pip back with me to England after I next visit my family, read through it again, and see what else I can now find "for real". Or else see if I can pick up another copy here!

[pete9012S]

This month's Journal is great.
It's got that heavy,meaty,weighty feel to it when you take it out of the envelope.

I've only read one article so far.The one about Barney.I was drawn to read that one right away and it was truly excellent.

Next, I'm looking forward to reading about the adventures of Pip,a book I have never read before.

Interestingly my wife is currently reading about a character called Pip in her kindle Charles Dickens novel.
Also,we once had a little dog throughout all my childhood years,and it's name was,you've guessed it...Pip!! Spooky!

[Courtenay]

Also really enjoyed "The Famous Five in Belgrade, Serbia" by William Ferguson. I had no idea until fairly recently that Enid Blyton's books were translated into so many other languages and are enjoyed to this day by children from so many different countries and cultures! It just goes to show how universal her appeal is, and how well Enid's stories and characters and adventures speak to children everywhere. I'm delighted to learn how much the children at William's school love the Famous Five and how those stories inspired their own adventurous excursion - with one child in particular thinking of his hero Julian when he was confronted with a real-life burglary that same day!

[Daisy]

I have now read all the Journal, having just dipped into it when it first arrived. What a feast of good things! I was glad to read in Anita's article that the Adventures of Pip had been combined with More Adventures by the Dean publishers as that is the version I have, but thought I should still be on the lookout for another one. I hadn't read the stories for years, but I guess I must have read it as a child for I'm sure much of my knowledge of nature has been gleaned from Enid Blyton.
It's hard to pick out one article above the others as they all make interesting reading but I did enjoy hearing about the Famous Five in Serbia! What lucky children to have such an inspirational teacher.
The second part of the comparison of The Railway Children with The Family at Redroofs was equally fascinating. I wonder how much of the E. Nesbit story was in Enid's "under mind" when she wrote hers. I agree that the much weaker ending of "Redroofs" does not have the same "tears to the eyes" effect that Bobby's greeting has.
I enjoyed Poppy's comparison of the three boys but I think Julian and Fatty must be about the same age as Fatty is not thirteen until just before Christmas in the third mystery book. The previous April when the Burnt Cottage was set, he would be twelve - (and Larry was already thirteen then.) I think Peter might be nine or ten, but certainly all the children were at junior school. Very good observations about the different characters too. A most entertaining article.
Enid's letters to the librarian were very interesting too. And the photograph of her standing in front of her books jumped out at me as that is one I have framed on the top of my Blyton book shelf - complete with her autograph in greenish ink. She sent it to me in response to a letter I wrote to her. I wonder how many thousands she had printed!
Thank you Tony for all the hard work in setting out the pages with illustrations so beautifully. It is such good value for money - especially when I see other Journals of half the size for the same price!

[Anita Bensoussane]

How lovely that Enid Blyton sent you a signed photograph, Daisy!

Like others, I loved William Ferguson's article. I remember that he once wrote a piece about reading Enid Blyton with schoolchildren in Tajikistan, and that was fascinating as well. It's great to see the Serbian editions of the Famous Five books. Going on "a Famous Five quest" to explore tunnels sounds like immense fun, and Marko must have been thrilled to have an adventure of his own!

Apparently, Enid Blyton was surprised when she first realised how popular her stories were with readers living abroad. After all, her tales are set largely in a British rural landscape and contain references aplenty to British wildlife and folklore, British political and royal figures, tongue, scones, sou'westers, "the English sense of honour" and showing foreign enemies "how brave British children could be."

However, although readers from far-flung countries may sometimes be left somewhat mystified by mentions of certain birds, flowers, articles of clothing or items of food, the important features of Blyton books are the characters, plots and values - and children everywhere can engage with those. Individuals from around the globe may identify with various personality traits (e.g. Lotta's determination, Julian's sense of responsibility, Peggy's motherliness, Fatty's sense of fun - perhaps even Darrell's hot temper) and will respond to the exciting plots and the sound values of the stories (generosity, honesty, courage, justice, hard work, pulling together, owning up to wrongdoing...) Such things are the essence of Blyton books so it's not surprising that, despite their Britishness, their appeal is universal (and of course, the "Britishness" may well be a draw for some foreign readers - as a child I enjoyed reading Johanna Spyri's Heidi - to give just one example - partly because it was set in Switzerland and Germany, giving me a glimpse of other cultures).

I've got more to say on other Journal articles when time allows. What a cracking issue!

[Moonraker]

Google - Abligurition simply means spending lavish amounts of money on fine foods.
A bit simpler than your definition Nigel!

Then why not just say so!

[Courtenay]

Yes, that's just what I was thinking - wow, Daisy! I'm sure that photograph must be a treasured possession of yours.

Anita, thanks for your thoughts on Enid's popularity with children of other cultures - I completely agree with your conclusion of where her appeal lies.

I've now just finished Robert Houghton's second article comparing The Railway Children with The Family at Red Roofs ; I really enjoyed Part 1, and this was just as good a follow-up. I've never read The Family at Red Roofs, which is a drawback, but the comparison is fascinating to read nonetheless. I do agree, though, that Enid's ending sounds weak and contrived and a bit of a let-down compared with E. Nesbit's. In fact - although, having not read the book, I can't judge it fairly - the "wise words of Jenny Wren" at the end of Red Roofs sound quite trite and moralising, especially given Robert Houghton's thoughts on how the story concludes:

Even as a child, I found this mass relinquishing of their new-found responsibilities to be irksome and extremely disappointing. All that growth and learning and fending for themselves for nothing? It feels like a definite retrograde ending.

Whereas, yes, the ending of The Railway Children is indeed supremely satisfying and unforgettable, especially as Nesbit reins in the emotion so perfectly and sensitively in that final paragraph, and (as the article points out) also carefully refrains from telling us what happened afterwards. We're left on a marvellous high point, which is neither taken too far emotionally nor brought crashing down in any way. That last line - "we may just take one last look, over our shoulders, at the white house, where neither we nor anyone else is wanted now" - never fails to make me smile in complete agreement and understanding.

I'm afraid this article has ensured that The Family at Red Roofs will never be high on my must-read list, but it's also made me realise that The Railway Children is waaay overdue for a re-read!

[Courtenay]

Another little gem (on the next page) - Laddie's letter. Did he ever feature as a character in any of Enid's stories, as others like Bimbo and Bobs did? I love his reaction to "ear-ribbons"!

[Poppy]

I've enjoyed many excellent articles so far, from this brilliant issue. I was very much interested in Part 2 of Robert Houghton's comparison of E.Nesbit's The Railway Children and Enid Blyton's The Family at Red-Roofs and enjoyed reading about his viewpoints on the similarities between both book's endings. An interesting read. I have always loved the ending of The Railway Children , but for he audience Enid's story was aimed at, I think The Family at Red-Roofs' ending is just as satisfying.

I also read 'Pot Pouri' which was also a very unique and interesting read.

The Famous Five in Belgrade, Serbia (William Ferguson) was a very original piece, too and fascinating to see how popular Enid's are in other countries. It would be great for further articles to be written in the viewpoint of people outside the UK, explaining the popularity of Blyton's work in their country.

I have enjoyed numerous pieces by Enid herself including the Wartime Teachers World Letter: interesting to read about Enid's daughters viewpoint of the War (well, the air raid warnings) - and Bobs' too, of course! And Laddie's letter was great, too - fantastic to read another dog's point of view!

Looking forward to reading more!

Thanks for your lovely comments about my article. And thanks Courtenay for the suggestion about a second article on female leaders. I will definitely have a go at writing one!

[Tony Summerfield]

Another little gem (on the next page) - Laddie's letter. Did he ever feature as a character in any of Enid's stories, as others like Bimbo and Bobs did? I love his reaction to "ear-ribbons"!

I believe that I have read somewhere that Snubby's dog, Loony, in the Barney books was based on Laddie, but I am sure someone will put me right if I am mistaken!

[Anita Bensoussane]

I don't recall you ever being mistaken! Yes, Enid Blyton says in The Story of My Life that Laddie "appears in many of my books as Loony." She adds that Laddie is a lunatic at times, liking to fetch mats and cushions and towels and drape them about the house. It wouldn't surprise me if Crackers in the Six Cousins books was based on Laddie as well.

That reminds me - in the 1940 Teachers World letters printed in the Journal, there is mention of a male dog named Sandy. In The Story of My Life Enid Blyton talks of having had a female smooth-haired terrier called Sandy who was Bobs' "wife", and who gave birth to "many beautiful puppies". But whether she also had a male Sandy at some point, I don't know.

I agree with Robert Houghton about the ending of The Family at Red-Roofs as it's disappointing to see the clock turned back, as it were. However, the book as a whole is a skilfully-constructed family drama and it's one of my best-loved Blyton novels. I agree too that the ending of The Railway Children is touching and just right, drawing the reader away from the house to let the family enjoy their happiness and togetherness in private. If I remember correctly, the 1970s film version - wonderful as it is in many ways - gets things wrong by shutting out the children at the end and saying that they're not wanted at the house now.

Poppy, you make some perceptive points in your comparison of the three leaders and, like you, I regard Fatty as the most likeable of the trio. A great idea for an article.

The Famous Five in Belgrade, Serbia (William Ferguson) was a very original piece, too and fascinating to see how popular Enid's are in other countries. It would be great for further articles to be written in the viewpoint of people outside the UK, explaining the popularity of Blyton's work in their country.

I'd like to see more articles like that too!

[Courtenay]

Very interesting to read Angela Canning's summary of The Three Golliwogs - a title that hasn't been reprinted in modern times, for sadly obvious reasons! (I assume older editions of it in particular must be worth a fortune now.) Aside from their very unfortunate names, I can't see anything in the stories that suggests racial stereotyping - if they were three identical pixies, dolls, teddies, mice or some other kind of character, no-one would take exception even to this day. I do understand why people in our time are so sensitive over these issues - and in many cases rightly so - but just think it's so sad that Enid Blyton is so often accused of being "racist" when it's quite clear she had no such intentions.

[Julie2owlsdene]

I've read somewhere that Looney was based on Enid's dog, Laddie.

Only read a few articles so far, but what I've read has been great. Lovely to see and read Enid's letters to Stanley Dedman. It was also interesting to read what she put about how she and Basil Henriques would like to raise up just one generation of first-rate children, then they wouldn't have to worry about the future. Impossible task springs to mind!