Enid Blyton

[Kookamoor]

I went into my local Chapters (Canadian book chain) the other day and was helping a friend look for some christmas presents for her niece. I asked if her niece had read The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. My friend had never heard of Blyton! I stared at her and then went to the 'Classic Childrens Books' section to show her some of her work. I couldn't find ANY!!! No Noddy, no Famous Five, no Magic Wishing Chair, no Magic Faraway Tree!

I realise there was some controversy regarding Blyton in the 1960s when some of her themes were seen as racist (gollywogs), sexist (Anne in The Famous Five) and homoerotic (Noddy), but I thought those had largely been dismissed by now.

So here are some questions for you:

Did you read some or many of Enid Blyton's books growing up?
Will/Are you giving your children Blyton's books to read today?
Do you find them to be easily available?

 

[Ice]

Did you read some or many of Enid Blyton's books growing up?
Will/Are you giving your children Blyton's books to read today?
Do you find them to be easily available?

Yes to all three

I read several Enid Blyton books as a young child and thoroughly enjoyed them. If I ever have children (that want to read), I will certainly give them something by Blyton. However, in the UK, her books are readily available and all the big book stores carry them (Waterstones, WH Smiths, Ottakers etc).

 

[jaybe]

You'll get them on amazon surely?

I loved them, my kids didn't.

My favourites were the circus trilogy. They weren't her biggies, but running away to join a circus ... Who wouldn't, apart from John Major, who ran away from a circus to be an accountant And a prime minister

I think the first is called 'The Circus Comes to Town.' One is definately called 'Circus Days Again' , I think

 

[lilbiteb]

As far as I'm aware all of Enid Blytons books are still available here. My son read the Famous Five series a couple of years ago.

When I was young I just loved The Faraway Tree series best of all. I also read the Wishing Chair books and Mr Gallianos Circus books.

Wonderful!

 

[G4G]

So here are some questions for you:

Did you read some or many of Enid Blyton's books growing up?
Will/Are you giving your children Blyton's books to read today?
Do you find them to be easily available?

Yes, I read them, my favourite was and still is The Secret Island. I still read it occasionally today.

I would give them to my kids if I had any. I wouldn't, however, give them any kind of watered down, politically corrected versions though.

Yes, they are easily available.

 

[Halo]

I read Blyton books when I was young. I read the Famous Five series, which I loved, and probably lots of others which I've forgotten. But my favourites were the Mallory Towers books set in an English boarding school.

Unlike Ice, I do not see them in many shops at all. My nearest decent town for shopping has a WHSmith and a Waterstones, but they must be smaller branches because I don't remember seeing any Blytons in either shop.

 

[Kookamoor]

I can't help but notice only responses from the UK thus far (not sure where jaybe is from, though).

I can certainly order them from Amazon, but I am surprised that I would have to. She has written over 4000 books and my earliest reading was defined by her works (for years I was confused by her signature and thought it said 'Guid Blyton' - I though he was her husband!). I find it very odd not to find them readily available. Perhaps she's not as recognised here in North America?

 

[Ice]

Unlike Ice, I do not see them in many shops at all. My nearest decent town for shopping has a WHSmith and a Waterstones, but they must be smaller branches because I don't remember seeing any Blytons in either shop.

That's strange. In our local town they had The Faraway Tree in the window display not too long ago. They certainly have all the Famous Five books and several others.

 

[mojo]

I loved Enid Blyton as a kid, especially The Enchanted Wood/Faraway Tree ones. She also has an 'adventure ' series which was my favourie ('The Castle/ Island/River/Circus of Adventure etc), but nobody I know seem to remember those ones. To be honest I did find some of her character portrayals racist and sexist, it used to especially drive me mad the way the girls often weren't allowed to come on the adventures, but George from the Famous Five used to fight back and redress the balance so it's not all bad It's not offensive though, so would still let my kids read them, as, when all's said and done, they're still great stories...

 

[Shade]

I read a lot of the Famous Five and Secret Seven books when I was a child. I enjoyed them but even then, twenty or more years ago, they had an air of belonging to another world entirely, nostalgic and innocent, or if you prefer, backward-looking and unrealistic - and with, of course, lashings of ginger beer. So I imagine that to children these days they would seem more dated still. I can't remember seeing them in the bookshops but then I've never looked for them, and if I was buying a book for a child among my family or friends it would never occur to me to choose a Blyton. So if they're lost to us now, I don't think it's anything to be desperately unhappy about: there's plenty of much better stuff out there. As Rick Gekoski said, Enid Blyton is part of our cultural heritage, not our literary one.

 

[Stewart]

She has written over 4000 books...

Doing a bit of research, I place it at approximately 600.

As a kid I first read Blyton's The Valley of Adventure and from there I read the whole Adventure series, the Secret Seven series, the Famous Five series and, looking over her books, one called Mr Twiddle although I vaguely recall reading plenty more.

 

[Kookamoor]

Sorry, Stewart, I meant to say 'stories'. She produced a magazine for 27 years called 'Sunny Stories' which probably accounted for a lot of these. Other publications also carried her stories and columns. You're right - about 600 actual books. The number is still staggering.

From the ABC Shop Website:

Enid (Mary) Blyton (1897-1968) was a British writer who published over 600 children's or juvenile books in her 40-year career. Blyton was most famous for the Noddy in Toyland books for very young children and her mystery series, the Famous Five, the Secret Seven and the Adventurous Four.

Blyton's works painted an idyllic vision of rural England, which celebrated good food, spirit of comradeship, and honesty. Her books have been translated into nearly seventy languages and sold up to the 1980s some 60 million volumes.

For an astonishing 80 years, Enid Blyton has been storyteller extraordinaire to generations of children. Arguably the most prolific children's writer of the last century, she has a staggering 4000 stories and some 700 books to her credit.

At some stages in her life she wrote 10,000 words a day and for at least one year in the 50s she was averaging a book every 5 days.

 

[MonkeyCatcher]

I loved Enid Blyton when I was younger. My father used to read me the Noddy books (I'd watch the tv series too), and I had an obssession with the Famous Five. My very favourite would have been The Secret Island, though - I absolutely adored it! Enid Blyton books are very easy to buy here, I was actually looking at a Famous Five bookset that you can buy the last time I visited the bookstore.

 

[Peronel]

Reviving this.

As you can tell from my name, I love Enid Blyton (being all of 23, I may be getting a wee bit old for her stories). The Enchanted Wood collection were the first things I read on my own, and I used to climb the trees on our farm looking for the hole at the top. I really wanted to visit the land where all your wishes came true.

I have excellent illustrated copies of all the books in the series that I hope to give to my own children.

I had forgotten about the circus stories. They featured a boy and a girl, yes? And I recall something with a bear or a horse escaping. Must look for these again.

 

[Mysia]

I read Enid Blyton-books when I was younger but I never really liked them that much. I was more of a Nancy Drew-girl. But of course my kids can read Enid Blyton if they want.

 

[Peronel]

I just realised I wrote 23, and I'm only 22. What is wrong with me?

 

[Catalyst]

'The Castle/ Island/River/Circus of Adventure etc), but nobody I know seem to remember those ones

Oh i loved them too. Though my favourite was the famous five (of course!) I was obsessed with making myself look like George! I even had my hair cut to look like her! Yes i was young

 

[Devilgirl]

I loved The Famous Five when I was younger, have the complete collection. But also at that age there was the TV series which kept me occupied.

I would say the books are readily available. And I would like my kids to read them if I were to have any, but I would leave it up to them to decide if they want to read these books.

 

[vajra]

I was incredulous when all the american friends i tried to discuss blyton with responded with "who is enid blyton"? I was like, what are you talking about? you know, the one who wrote the naughtiest girl in school, magic faraway tree & more than half of the children fiction i own?
then i read about the controversial.
i mean, look at the junks kids are abosrbing everyday from tv. How much worse can Dame Slap be?

 

[jcsoblonde]

the only enid blyton books ive read are her adventure series...i adored them when i was younger and always dreamed of having a cave hidden behind bushes that led behind a waterfall! (book 3-The Valley of Adventure) they are still favorites.