Enid Blyton 234 success facts by Martha McClure

[Daisy]

You're right Julie - I was thinking that too. Also, I doubt it contains anything we here don't already know, and if it does, I think we might question the authenticity and source of that information! The cover is quite nice!

[Julie2owlsdene]

I'd also be interested to know who this author is, Daisy.

I'd love for Anita and Tony to read this book and report back to us just how much dribble is in this book, and what percentage is actual fact!

But then I'm sure they've both got better things to do with their time than waste it on this read.

[Anita Bensoussane]

You've guessed correctly that I won't be reading this book, Julie!

Is this one of your jokes, Pete?

It certainly reads like a joke by someone - but a very expensive joke if they've actually had copies printed!

Hilarious that it says the book is divided into "easy to read chapters"! The phrasing is anything but easy to read! This made my head spin:

Blyton created narratives blanketing a ample span of fictitious categories, as of pixie and narratives and creature and essence narratives to investigator and enigma narratives and cirque narratives, however she frequently blurred the limits inside her own narratives, and frequently encompassed a span of categories even in her small narratives.

This is the reason given for Hugh and Enid's divorce:

Pollock charged her [Enid] of polygamy and experiencing a homosexual matter with one of her children's caregivers following detecting them sealed in the amenities alltogether.

And then there's the claim that "her [Enid Blyton's] foremost 2 publications" were published under the name Mary Pollock, and the statement that The Naughtiest Girl in the School "was pursued by The Naughtiest Girl Again"!

Heh - and Noddy is called "a itty-bitty timber young man"!

Enid Blyton's style of writing is described as "real straightforward lingo" - unlike the style of this book, which is rambling and littered with errors! Was it written in another language and then translated into English using an online translation service, I wonder?!

[pete9012S]

Yes,my library ordered it in specially for me.
I don't want to say anything about this book except the short excerpt you have read is very real and is genuinely the work of Martha McClure.

The books comments on the Enid Blyton Society is on the last page of the short review...

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[Daisy]

Oh dear, oh dear! It is quite painful..... I think you've hit the nail on the head Anita with the suggestion it was originally written in another language and has been badly translated by an online translation service. I take some comfort from the fact it is so badly written that few people will ever persevere with it to the bitter end.

[Anita Bensoussane]

The books comments on the Enid Blyton Society is on the last page of the short review...

I see the Journal now has "about ninety leafs per subject"! I'm currently writing an article for it but I wasn't going to make it quite that long!

The publishers of 234 Success Facts are Emereo PTY LTD (at first glance I thought it was Emereo PITY LTD). They declare on their website that "Education is needs to be delivered on demand."

http://emereo.net/index.php/about-emereo-publishing" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Fiona1986]

It certainly reads like it's been badly translated. Things like Prince Paul's kin [who] desire to lease a fortress to remain in for some 7-day periods. That's either a Google translation or someone's gone through their original and looked up all the interesting words in a thesaurus to replace family, want, rent, castle, stay, weeks.

[Moonraker]

Thus, the 'Enid Blyton Day' is nevertheless going forceful

So, that is one of the 234 facts, then. Says much for the remaining 233!

Thanks for going to the trouble of posting these excerpts, Pete. It goes to show what rubbish is out there.

[Moonraker]

I don't want to say anything about this book except the short excerpt you have read is very real and is genuinely the work of Martha McClure.

Does this mean you know more than you are letting on, Pete?

I think you've hit the nail on the head Anita with the suggestion it was originally written in another language and has been badly translated by an online translation service.

Swatiwasthinking. We had a thread in the Games section where we did this.

[Tony Summerfield]

Pete, you are wonderful! I needed a good laugh and you have provided it. You have also persuaded me to post again after almost three weeks silence. I take back what I said earlier in the thread about her using other people's research - this is very clearly all her own work and opinions!

If it wasn't so expensive I would be tempted to buy a copy to cheer myself up when I feel down. I did check her out originally and it would seem that this is her first book - and probably also her last!

[pete9012S]

No, I don't know anymore about the book or the author.
I do however feel bad about the library forking out £20.99 on my behalf.

I don't want to comment on the book as I think it quite clearly speaks very well for itself.
The purpose of the brief extract was to enable anyone curious about this book to be able to instantly decide for him or herself if the book was something they wished to spend their hard earned money on.

One thing I did notice this morning is that the Anecdotage available for £7.32 on kindle:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Famous-Five-Per ... anecdotage" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(Which in my humble opinion is an absolute bargain compared to 234 success facts by Martha McClure at £20.99)

[Moonraker]

If you've done nothing more so far this year, Pete, you've at least managed to drag Tony out of hiding!

[pete9012S]

Good to see the Flea circus there. I learnt a lot about fleas from reading the Mystery of the Missing Man!

Just for you Lenoir,the book doesn't say to much about fleas,but on page 23 it states:

Flea Circus - Other

A flea cirque is highlighted in Enid Blyton's bestseller The Mystery of The Missing Man (1956),that is no.13 of her Find -Outers/Five Find-Outers and Dog serials of children's enigma narratives.The publication mistakenly proposes that the cirque functions since the fleas are clever,and consequently able of being instructed.

[Julie2owlsdene]

When I first started to read this dribble, I did think someone was having a laugh, but I think as Anita said, it would be a very expensive joke!!

I really do think it's time that self publishing had a governing body, to stop all this rubbish getting into print. Some innocent person who loves Blyton, may see this book, think - great a book about my favourite author - then go and buy it!!!

And what the heck is a caregiver!!! Are they referring to a care worker, or a live in nanny of sorts!!

At least this book has cheered Tony up.

[pete9012S]

Pete, you are wonderful! I needed a good laugh and you have provided it.

Glad to have been of service!

The book is not layed out in alphabetical order,which makes looking up specific details difficult.
In this digital age,I would have thought that would have been very easy to do. It makes the book all that more harder to digest.