Newnes Tower House Series

[Moonraker]

What a fascinating collection. Thanks for digging them out and showing us, Tony! Incidentally, the Blue Peter Book Awards are on BBC1 at 4.30pm. Shortlisted under Favourite Series (although only one book has been written so far!) is the excellent Dead Man's Cove, by Lauren St John.

[Moonraker]

Incidentally, the Blue Peter Book Awards are on BBC1 at 4.30pm. Shortlisted under Favourite Series (although only one book has been written so far!) is the excellent Dead Man's Cove, by Lauren St John.

Silly me, the old eyes/brain were playing up again, the book was listed under Favourite Stories! The good news is that it won! A fantastic read, buy it when you can, and enjoy!

[Julie2owlsdene]

I'm glad that Dead Man's Cove won. It is a fantastic book as Nigel says. And its made even more appealing when you know of the locations inside!

[Spitfire]

Thanks for sharing, Tony. What a wonderful place those inner caves must be! Those dustwrappers are a delight to pore over for anybody who loves old children's books.

Sadly I can't afford ebay prices for books such as these, but I'm always on the look out in charity shops. It's amazing what you can find when you least expect to, though it's not a reliable way to build a collection!

[Tony Summerfield]

Incidentally, the Blue Peter Book Awards are on BBC1 at 4.30pm. Shortlisted under Favourite Series (although only one book has been written so far!) is the excellent Dead Man's Cove, by Lauren St John.

Silly me, the old eyes/brain were playing up again, the book was listed under Favourite Stories! The good news is that it won! A fantastic read, buy it when you can, and enjoy!

You might be interested to read Lauren St John's comments in the Daily Telegraph

[Moonraker]

You might be interested to read Lauren St John's comments in the Daily Telegraph

Very interesting, Tony. I must try to find out when the second book will be released.

Just checked on Amazon, and I see it's due to be published on 7 July!

[Julie2owlsdene]

Thanks for the link, Tony. Nice to read that Enid influenced the author into writing such a good book. Also nice to hear that the BBC Editor, said that Mulligan's book was unsuitable, as it contained bad language and violence. There's enough in the world of that today, without putting it into a children's book!

[Julie2owlsdene]

Just noticed your link, Nigel. Thanks for that. I'll make a note as that will be a must buy too.

[Tony Summerfield]

Thanks for the link, Tony. Nice to read that Enid influenced the author into writing such a good book. Also nice to hear that the BBC Editor, said that Mulligan's book was unsuitable, as it contained bad language and violence. There's enough in the world of that today, without putting it into a children's book!

I have read the book that was deemed as unsuitable, Trash by Andy Mulligan, and I certainly didn't notice a great deal of swearing. It is an excellent book and has had fantastic reviews and I think the main beef was that it was a bit old for the target age group.

[Moonraker]

I have read the book...It is an excellent book and has had fantastic reviews and I think the main beef was that it was a bit old for the target age group.

Do you come into the target age group?

[Eddie Muir]

I agree Dead Man's Cove is a great book and I'm looking forward to Kidnap in the Caribbean. Thank you for the links, Tony and Nigel.

[Moonraker]

I must say part of the enjoyment for me was the fact that the story was set in Cornwall. Not sure that the Caribbean holds the same attraction. Still, I'm looking forward to reading it.

[Tony Summerfield]

I have read the book...It is an excellent book and has had fantastic reviews and I think the main beef was that it was a bit old for the target age group.

Do you come into the target age group?

I know that most authors who currently write for children and young adults would like to think that their books can be read by someone of any age - so on that basis, yes, I guess I do come into the age group. Lauren St John writes for a slightly younger age group and apart from reading the prize-winning book I have also read The White Giraffe by her, which I enjoyed.

Trash paints a very good picture of what life is like for the very poor children who spend their day living and scavenging on the rubbish dumps in Manila (hence the title!) and most of the violence comes from the treatment they get from the police.

[Moonraker]

I have read the book...It is an excellent book and has had fantastic reviews and I think the main beef was that it was a bit old for the target age group.

Do you come into the target age group?

I know that most authors who currently write for children and young adults would like to think that their books can be read by someone of any age - so on that basis, yes, I guess I do come into the age group.

I'll remember that the next time I get odd looks in the children's book department!

[pete9012S]

I thought I would take a break from the Cave where I have been loading uncollected stories from Teachers World in the Periodical Section and visit one of my bookshelves instead.

The six Mary Pollock books which can be seen in the Cave were all published as part of the Newnes Tower House Series in the mid to late 1940s. There were 16 books in this series and the other ten books are not often seen. It took me 12 years to collect all of them and I guess it would be a much harder task now, so I thought you might like to see them. I have not spent hours repairing these so you are seeing them straight off a shelf in the inner Cave!







And just to keep my fellow anoraks happy, a bit from my files:-

Newnes Tower House Series
1 Six in a Caravan (November 1945) by Bridget Mackenzie (ill Eileen Soper)
2 The Kennys on Their Own (November 1945) by Jill Latimer (ill G. E. Breary)
3 Ringed Round With Foes (November 1945) by C. Bernard Rutley (ill C. P. Shipton)
4 Smuggler Ben (November 1945) by Mary Pollock (ill E. H. Davie)
5 Those Turbulent Twins! (November 1945) by Agnes M. Miall (ill Dudley C. Cowes)
6 Three Boys and a Circus (December 1945) by Mary Pollock (ill Edith Wilson)
7 The Luck of Riverlands (November 1945) by Cecily M. Rutley (ill Dorothy White)
8 The Children of Kidillin (December 1946) by Mary Pollock (ill Edith Wilson)
9 Demon Island (October 1946) by Cecil R. Baldock (ill W. Bryce Hamilton)
10 The Secret of Cliff Castle (July 1947) by Mary Pollock (ill W. Lindsay Cable)
11 The Adventures of Scamp (July 1947) by Mary Pollock (ill uncredited)
12 Mischief at St. Rollo’s (July 1947) by Mary Pollock (ill Hilda McGavin)
13 The Runaway Four (April 1948) by Ann Beverley (ill G. W. Backhouse)
14 Peril on the Ridge (April 1948) by Michael Poole (ill Arnold Bond)
15 Kidnapped on King’s Moor (May 1948) by Cecily M. Rutley (ill Jessie Land)
16 The Mystery Man (January 1949) by Charlotte M. Kelly (ill S. Bright)

Enjoy!

(An older post of Tony's, but surely like a fine wine, these books can only get better with age..)

I like the look of every one of these!!
Wonder if any are going for a reasonable price on amazon/ebay?