Betty Maxey illustrations (Famous Five)

[yarvelling]

I do love Betty Maxey's drawing of Timmy on his own though, lying down. He looks adorable!

Although I also find some of Eileen Soper's illustrations a bit sketchy, I agree that she definitely does get "the Five" much more right, much more of the time, than anyone else. I would love to collect a full set of the FF with Soper illustrations, old enough editions for the text to be as little tampered with as possible (dust jackets would be a bonus, though not essential), but that would probably take a lot more time and (especially) money than I can afford to spare right now!

You'll be able to find a very wide selection of vintage 40's & 50's hard-backs on the UK Ebay, and if you can sacrifice the dust-wrappers, and forgo true first editions of the earliest books, most can be had for a few pounds each. The 60's Knight and Armada paperbacks are quite plentiful too, and very inexpensive.
Over a not-too-long a period, you could have a full collection of either hardback or paperback, all with Soper illustrations, and the original unmolested text!
That's how I managed a full collection of hardbacks...

[Courtenay]

Sounds great, thanks! I'm not interested in genuine first editions (if I could afford something worth that much, I'd be too scared to touch it, let alone read it!!) - just in having the books to read and the original illustrations to admire. (I'd love the same for the Adventure series, with the beautiful Tresilian illustrations.) Will work on it - it's just that I always seem to have so much else on my "to read" list already!!

[pete9012S]

18. Five On Finniston Farm - Betty Maxey Illustrations

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[Anita Bensoussane]

Thanks for the Billycock Hill and Finniston Farm pictures, Pete - and the amusing captions!

Both those books have beautiful covers, showing Betty Maxey at her best. I like Anne's flowing locks, the expectant/tense expressions on the children's faces and the feeling (on the Billycock Hill cover) of being in a pastoral idyll. Betty Maxey did the jacket illustration for a 1974 edition of Catherine Cookson's The Mallen Girl and it reminds me of her Billycock Hill cover (click on the image to enlarge it):

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Regarding the internal illustrations, Maxey captures the countryside well in Billycock Hill, with some lovely sketches of flowers and foliage. My favourite picture, however, is the one of Benny with the pigling under his arm - really sweet!

The internal drawings for Finniston Farm are okay, but they're nothing special in my opinion. Junior looks unremarkable - not like Eileen Soper's pint-sized thug!

[pete9012S]

Thanks Anita.I didn't realise Betty Maxey had illustrated the front of The Mallen Girl.I wondered if the two images would blend in any way....

[Katharine]

I didn't realise The Mallens was a book. I remember it being on TV. I didn't watch it, but a boy at school's father was in it.

[Courtenay]

Regarding the internal illustrations, Maxey captures the countryside well in Billycock Hill, with some lovely sketches of flowers and foliage.

And John Lennon.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I didn't realise Betty Maxey had illustrated the front of The Mallen Girl.I wondered if the two images would blend in any way....

Funnily enough the two images do blend pretty well as the fields and hills go up to more or less the same level, and the cave entrance curves down to meet the point at which wall becomes tree. The young man and woman in the foreground on the cover of The Mallen Girl look like a grown up Julian and Anne, though I presume they're not brother and sister!

[Julie2owlsdene]

It's always nice to see these 'newer' illustrations than the ones I have in most of my originals, but I have to say I prefer my own original illustrators!

[Moonraker]

Yes, me too. I remain unconvinced about Maxey's talent. She might have the odd spark, but in general it's all pretty dire.

[yarvelling]

Yes, me too. I remain unconvinced about Maxey's talent. She might have the odd spark, but in general it's all pretty dire.

That's a bit harsh...!!
I don't like her illustrations in the FF books because they don't look like the characters described, nor do they fit the period, but she most certainly has talent!
I rather like the odd way that she draws foliage, and is very selective about what is included in the drawing.... the odd occasions when chairs which are being sat upon are missing, etc. I think she tries to punctuate the main items/characters in question, and just leaves out whatever may detract.
I don't know whether she ever illustrated other books that were written and set in contemporary times; here, her drawings would have worked admirably I believe.

[pete9012S]

I don't know whether she ever illustrated other books that were written and set in contemporary times; here, her drawings would have worked admirably I believe.

Good point.Don't forget her historical work as well!

[Courtenay]

[Spitfire]

Yes, me too. I remain unconvinced about Maxey's talent. She might have the odd spark, but in general it's all pretty dire.

Don't hold back, Nigel, say what you think!! I think 'dire' is a bit strong myself!

I like Maxey's illustrations although overall I remain firmly in the Soper camp. I grew up with a mixture of the two, and instinctively rejected the 'authenticity' of Maxey's illustrations because they didn't suit the times. If the text said that Anne was wearing a frock and George shorts, that was what I liked to see - not jeans. I was reading these books in the late eighties and early nineties, and the flared trousers, tank tops and hairstyles that Maxey depicted had the strange effect of being too modern but yet old-fashioned to my eyes!

Having said that, I think that the Maxey illustrations did make an impression on me, and I do feel a nostalgic pull towards them. I enjoy her illustrations overall, and I agree with Kate Mary when she said earlier in the thread that they have a period charm all of their own... but to me they never quite feel like the 'real deal'!!

I do think that Maxey does two things excellently well - animals (thinking particularly of Timmy of course) and facial expressions (particularly George's frowns and scowls).

Thanks for posting up these pictures Pete and Escanor. Of the Finniston Farm illustrations, I like best the one of Granddad sitting in his chair petting Timmy's head, with the window behind. I like the way that Granddad and Timmy are looking at one another; Timmy's expression is gentle, almost passive, his head slightly stretched forward in the way that dogs do when they are enjoying a petting, and Granddad has a tender smile on his face, as though Timmy is reminding him of dogs that he knew in times gone by.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I don't know whether she ever illustrated other books that were written and set in contemporary times; here, her drawings would have worked admirably I believe.

Betty Maxey was the original illustrator of Noel Streatfeild's four "Gemma" books (about a child/teenage actress who goes to live with relatives whose children also enjoy performing - they dance, sing or play musical instruments). The "Gemma" books were published by Armada between 1968 and 1969, so the fashions and hairstyles of the late 1960s were right for that series.

Granddad has a tender smile on his face, as though Timmy is reminding him of dogs that he knew in times gone by.

That's a nice thought!