Journal 76

[Boodi 2]

Mine arrived this morning too, which is surprising as mine has a much longer journey. Needless to say, I have already read Brer Rabbit's letter, Brer Rabbit in the Deep South by Angela Canning (with lots of new information) and have started Brer Fox's Nice New Scarf. Thanks so much to Tony and all the contributors as I really needed cheering up after a visit to the dentist this morning. The journal has taken my mind off the fact that I have to return in a few week' time for root canal treatment

[Lucky Star]

Mine has arrived too and what a treat it looks to be. I've only read the editorial so far (always my start point) but I'll tuck into the rest of it over the next couple of days. The editorial was a bit grim this time. I'm curious about this facebook page Tony mentions. In my experience most people who join Facebook pages have only a passing interest in the subject and usually forget about after a while. I know I've done it myself. A post catches my eye, I click the "Join" button and then after a day or two my interest wanes and I never look at it again! I suspect many of the 1200 members of the new Enid Blyton Facebook Club will do the same.

More worrying is the drop in re-subscriptions. For what it is worth I have just renewed my own two minutes ago but I do hope we don't lose many more. The internet is a great invention but I do hate the way it seems to have the attention span of a gnat sometimes!! Our fabulous high quality and high maintenance website getting lost in the sea of spam and junk and quickie facebook clubs makes me so angry.

[John Pickup]

If not, give Tony hell John -
He was explaining to me recently that the forums were far too gentlemanly and polite, just between you and I!

It was here, Pete, so Tony's off the hook.

I've just read the editorial and I'm disappointed that subscriptions to this wonderful publication have dropped alarmingly. I know nothing of the Facebook site and I shan't be joining it, I'm quite content with this amazing website and the journals.

[Lucky Star]

I know nothing of the Facebook site and I shan't be joining it, I'm quite content with this amazing website and the journals.

I have just applied to join it out of curiosity. If I'm right it will no more than a handful of posts with lots of "like" clicks. We shall see. It's best to "know the enemy" so to speak.

[Eddie Muir]

My copy has arrived in today’s post. It looks great and I shall enjoy reading it from cover to cover over the coming weekend. Many thanks, Tony.

[John Pickup]

I have just applied to join it out of curiosity. If I'm right it will no more than a handful of posts with lots of "like" clicks. We shall see. It's best to "know the enemy" so to speak.

Keep us "posted", John.

[Hannah]

Wow, that was quick, Boodi. I hope mine will arrive soon, too.
Looking forward to reading it!

[Fiona1986]

Well I was about to do what apparently is the considerate thing and post my thoughts on what I had read of the journal so far, but my attention has now been drawn to the editorial.

For anyone who isn't clear I am the "someone" who has started the Enid Blyton Club on Facebook.

I started it because the group "Enid Blyon's Novels" which was started by Georgina Hargreaves and has 14,000 members is now over-run with spammers (and members swearing at each other now and again) as it is not actively adminned. Several members discussed creating a new group with joining requirements so that those of us who enjoyed the original group would still have one. I took the plunge and created a new group which so far has been a lovely place to chat and share photos and short thoughts. The vast majority of the 1200 members a) don't post and b) were members of the original group who also tired of the spammers.

But thanks for the backhanded compliment implying that I'm somehow single-handedly destroying the forums! I had no idea I was so important and powerful.

The only reason there are member requirements (you have to say what your favourite Enid Blyton book/series is, and agree to obey the rules which are things like no bullying) is to make sure that the people joining are not spammers. (A couple have made it in, and have been quickly zapped.)

[Fiona1986]

I have just applied to join it out of curiosity. If I'm right it will no more than a handful of posts with lots of "like" clicks. We shall see. It's best to "know the enemy" so to speak.

I hope you enjoy the Facebook page. I don't spend an awful lot of time posting in it (certainly far less than I should!) but there are a lot of nice people in it.

[Boatbuilder]

Mine arrived this morning too, which is surprising as mine has a much longer journey.

Perhaps Tony used a carrier pigeon to deliver it, Monique, or maybe even Kiki...

I hope nobody on here lives in the Chelmsford (CM2 postcode) area and awaiting their copy as there has been a lot on BBC Look East recently about lack of postal deliveries - some people haven't had one since October. Covid is being blamed for staff shortages.

[timv]

My Journal has now arrived , and was full of interesting pieces as usual; thanks to Tony and all the contributors. (Also to Fiona for her news about the Enid Blyton group on Facebook. I tend to treat that institution with some suspicion, not least as its new author fan groups have taken over a lot of members from some existing author fan clubs on the internet eg Monica Edwards and Antonia Forest, and outsiders can't view posts! Ditto the original Old Students group club for my old secondary school, which has replace the original one where I could see what was being written without having to join the group . A thought-provoking editorial from Tony; if more articles are needed I can put in some of my pieces on the Blyton family books or even on the Famous Five and the Adventure series, which are intended for my still-delayed Blyton book. I can back up what Judith says in her book review about academic and mass-market publishers, as I have faced a complete halt of any progress on getting my book out with both - and advice that the major publishers are wary of taking risks with a market of uncertain size and where no 'major' and 'well-known' books have been published on the subject in the past decade. I hope that the new Blyton 'Literary Life' does well.

It was very nostalgic to read about the Brer Rabbit books, which I read as a small child and loved; I have always wondered how much (apart from the language) was altered from the original Deep South books, which stories Enid created, and how Joel Chandler Harris picked up the ideas. Angela's piece explained a lot, eg about the alligator family, and it was nice to see the EB Brer Rabbit illustrations which I remember from the 1960s editions. Arthur Ransome also wrote updated versions of African 'trickster' folk stories - about Anansi the spider. I remember reading 'Holiday House' too, and noting the similarities to bits of the plotline of Spiggy Holes, and 'Cat Among the Pigeons' is one of my favourite Christie novels.

But the big bonus of this issue was for me the story 'When Julie Ran Away', as this solves a mystery that I have wondered about for many years. I remember reading it as a small child, in an annual, but could only remember that the bullying brother was called Terence and that a brother and sister hid Our Heroine in their play-shed until Terence was panicking at what his parents would say when they got back to find his sister gone. I was not even clear that Enid had written it; now I see that it comes from one of her 1955 collections of stories (EB's Magazine, no. 22, vol 3). As the book in question was one that my mother gave me and the date was around 1966, she must have bought it when she was a primary school teacher; she used to teach her pupils to read with Blyton story collections so she must have been using this as one of her 'teaching aids'!

[Tony Summerfield]

I just wanted to say thank you to those who have written something nice in this thread since Journal 76 arrived in a number of homes yesterday. Up to yesterday morning there had been just four new members to the Society since August, but in the past 24 hours there have been six new members. I think this says a great deal about the significance of relevant posts in a thread such as this.

I also apologise for a number of typos as I do know they are there. I had to type out rather a lot for this Journal and my ultra-sensitive keyboard was the winner in several places!

[Lucky Star]

I hope you enjoy the Facebook page. I don't spend an awful lot of time posting in it (certainly far less than I should!) but there are a lot of nice people in it.

Thanks. I didn't realise it was you who set it up. It does look interesting. I agree it can never replace this website or The Journal.

[Moonraker]

I've not looked at the Journal yet, but it is on my priority reading list! I shall make a start later today.

As for competition from Facebook, to be quite honest, it is like comparing a five-course gourmet meal with classic wines to a bag of crisps and a can of Coke - and I run four Facebook groups/pages! I have just done a search check and found no less than forty Facebook groups/pages dedicated to Enid Blyton - one is even called Enid Blyton Stinks. They range from just three followers to several thousand. I do understand Tony's feelings though as he spends his days constantly adding to the website and to suddenly see a Facebook page with thousands of members. However, size isn't everything. No Facebook page can compete with an author's website - especially one with as much content as ours. Join up the website to the forums and the Journal, we have a three-carriage train of superlative quality, knowledge and entertainment.

I don't posts anything like the amount on these forums as I did in the past. I find I have little interest in off-topic posts and I have probably said all I can say about our authoress! I was once accused of being too tolerant on a forum I manage, and my co-admin was accused of making knee-jerk reactions! Nevertheless, I do check in and post if the mood takes me - in spite of my tolerance I still manage to cause upset at times!

In any case, I wouldn't let a Facebook page give you cause for concern, Tony. What you have created, managed and administer is a legacy that will continue for decades after you and I have gone to Land of Hereafter! Yes, membership numbers fall, such is life and the fickle attention span of humans. I can see that costs consistently rise so subs have to increase. I would like to know how our numbers compare with the Malcolm Saville Society and if they have falling re-subscriptions.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings. I'm sorry for writing a post that isn't directly connected to J76 (apart from the Editorial!), but you did start it, Tony!

[Fiona1986]

As to not be churlish...

Before reading the editorial I read Judith's review of Enid Blyton's the Untold Story which I found to be very fair, and I agree with her on all points!