Text modifications in Egmont editions and elsewhere

[JulieA]

Hello

I'm a lifeline Enid Blyton fan, but new to this forum so apologies if this is all obvious to all you Blyton groupies!

My 7 year old daughter is starting to get hooked on Enid Blyton, so I'm having fun buying her copies of books that I loved when I was her age. Current favourites are the Famous Five and the Faraway Tree stories.

I'm finding myself getting irritated at the obvious and unnecessary textual changes in some of the current editions. In The Enchanted Wood (Egmont edition), we have Jo, Bessie, Fanny, and Dame Slap. Sadly, when we started on the next book inthe series, The Magic Faraway Tree (Mammoth), they have turned into Joe, Beth, Frannie and Dame Snap. My daughter is resolutely sticking to the original names when reading the book to me, I'm happy to say. We also have the CD with Kate Winslett reading complete Enchanted Wood, and the version she reads has the new names, too. For goodness sake, who's going to be afraid of being lined up and having someone snap at you? Being slapped is scary, being snapped at is not. PC gone mad.

Does anyone know the reason behind the children's name changes? The only thing I could think of was possibly trying to make it more marketable to a US market - where Jo is a girl's name (c.f. Little Women) and Fanny is possibly a bit anatomical? Just a guess.

Another reason to avoid the Egmont editions of the Faraway tree books would have to be the horrible illustrations.

And while we're on the subject if textual changes, in one of our Famous Five books (Famous Five Centenary Edition, Hodder), on several occasions Julian stuffs important bits of paper in his jeans pocket - I'm sure this must originally have been trousers (or shorts - going by the illustrations, poor old Julian and Dick wore shorts at all times, rain, shine or snow). Grrr.

Okay, rant over. I think I'll just have to be a bit more careful which editions I buy in future.

But I am enjoying watching my daughter get really excited by the cliffhanger at the end of each Famous Five chapter. I've even caught her reading on under the covers after lights out because she just can't wait until the following night to find out what happens.

cheers, Julie

[Raci]

Hi Julie!

I agree the way new versions are messing with the text is dreadful and very frustrating when trying to get copies for children!!

I've given up and bought 2nd hand copies of older versions for my daughter - that way I guarantee she gets to read the story the way Enid wrote it! ( eBay is good for this)

Welcome to the forum! Hope you register and start posting, the more the merrier!

[Topsy-Turvy]

Hi there JulieA! Welcome aboard! I'm a newbie myself Glad to see you are so enthusiastic. I've no kids (waiting for my man to pop the question before we do anything but we are both studying, so will be quite a while before anything happens!) but I can't wait to introduce them to Enid Blyton (hence my stock-up)

Another reason to avoid the Egmont editions of the Faraway tree books would have to be the horrible illustrations.

I couldn't agree more with you. I don't know if you are a fan of the Mystery series (Fatty and gang) but the covers are really *awful* Sort of shattered the Peterswood in my head when I saw them! I'm actually rather surprised they haven't modified his name to Freddy. Yet.

And yes I think it's do with the whole PC issue, hence the name change. I would have thought it was un-PC to modify someone's work but...sigh. The worse thing is I can't see anyone stopping them and as our 1960s+ copies fall apart, what's going to replace them?

Oh JulieA before I forget, you might want to avoid the Faraway TV series altogether. The feedback I've heard from these forums convince me to! Anyway let your daughter finish the books before entering the world of TV!

I'm with Raci, go to eBay to get your books. Yes they won't be brand-new but the children in the books sound awful (not just the names) with the updates. I do rather like having boys do nice things for their sisters (is that a noticeable difference in your new editions? I don't know that for sure but it's something I read about that's been changed in the books when it comes to the chores the Faraway children have to do at home).

I get perturbed even with items like "wireless" become "radio" in these books - I sort of expect Eminem or something to be blared out when there's a radio involved in a children's books these days... *shudder*

End of whinge - I'll be grateful that there are still older editions floating around! Oh and how could I forget, eBay *nudges Raci*

[Anita Bensoussane]

Hi Julie, Raci and Topsy-Turvy,

All these text modifications are quite depressing. I've found alterations to the original text in the Award short-story collections and the Mammoth St Clare's books, and I've also heard of changes to the Find-Outers, Secret Seven and Adventurous Four books, as well as the Famous Five and Faraway Tree series as already mentioned. I'm not sure how far back you have to go to be sure of having the original text, but I was surprised to find the other day (through discussion on this forum) that, even in my 1967 Knight paperback of Five On a Treasure Island, references to the King had been changed to the Queen. A lot of the alterations are inconsistent, so that you end up with a short story about a girl named Courtney rummaging through the pockets of her flared jeans for twenty-five pence with which to buy a stick of barley-sugar and the latest Boney M CD for her gramophone.

Anita

[Topsy-Turvy]

Hi Anita!

All these text modifications are quite depressing.

Hear, hear! One doesn't think anything can be done about it though. It seems to be an eventual recess until it reaches the point of

....a short story about a girl named Courtney rummaging through the pockets of her flared jeans for twenty-five pence with which to buy a stick of barley-sugar and the latest Boney M CD for her gramophone.

as you said Anita. Good one Anita! You forgot to mention :

Courtney then meets up with her 12-year old boyfriend (probably smoking already?), whereupon they stumble into adventure...using solar powered lightsabres (talk about a neat 2in1 lighting and weapons needed for those baddies hiding in the dark, dank caves lit with scented candles!). Oh and handy to have the mobile to call the police in to save the day.

Yuck! It feels like the publishing company really just want to make as much as money as they can at this point even if it means scrambling the book, as long as it bears her name. We obviously can't really ALL get hold of those books from the 1940s/50s, so what can we do? If classic children writers like Frances Hodgson Burnett and Louisa May Alcott are still popular with the 1800/1900s setting, I don't see what's wrong with leaving the original EBs the way they were...

I think the depression stems not only from the modifications but the helplessness of the whole situation!

[Kirrin]

Hello


And while we're on the subject if textual changes, in one of our Famous Five books (Famous Five Centenary Edition, Hodder), on several occasions Julian stuffs important bits of paper in his jeans pocket - I'm sure this must originally have been trousers (or shorts - going by the illustrations, poor old Julian and Dick wore shorts at all times, rain, shine or snow). Grrr.

Okay, rant over. I think I'll just have to be a bit more careful which editions I buy in future.

cheers, Julie

That is how everyone imagines f5 with shorts isnt it! jeans indeed!

[Georgina]

I haven't read the editions you are all referring to but they sound awful!! (I was fortunate enough to find "old copies" when they were easy to find.)
Its ridiculous that these changes are made at all but in the centenery versions too! I had assumed the centenery was a celebration of Enid's work, therefore there should be no need to change it!

[Raci]

Its ridiculous that these changes are made at all but in the centenery versions too! I had assumed the centenery was a celebration of Enid's work, therefore there should be no need to change it!

I've just bought a full set of these centenary books assuming the same.

My childhood copies have been read and lent to friends and re-read so many times that quite a few were falling to pieces.

I had assumed because of the covers being taken from the original DJ's and the books containing the original illustrations - the text would also be the original text!
I will be so annoyed if its been messed around with!

Still I chose to buy these copies because I will never be able to afford 1st editions with the original covers that I really like - so this was as close as I could get.

I knew they had not got all the original text in as the King/Queen sections Anita is refering to in the centenary's say Queen. I half thought they might have been returned to what the books originaly said although I can in a way understand this particular change.

But clothes???????? Just what is the point of messing with the clothes the children are wearing? Theres not even a PC excuse for that one!

[gareth jones]

I agree with all of you. I see no reason at all to change the text of any of Enid,s books. The whole fun of reading them is to go back to a by gone day when there was less violence and it was safer for children to do some of the things the Famous Five and others did. I,m lucky my 21 F.F and Adventure books are the older editions most of which i,ve had since i was young, only me and my children have read them so they are still in quite good condition, so i haven;t read any of the newer editions.

[JulieA]

It's nice to know that I'm not just a grumpy old woman, and that there are people there who've had the same reaction to all the unnecessary "mucking about" with the text of Enid Blyton's books.

I'd put this in the same "drives me mad" class as misused apostrophes, people (well, men really) who drive along with a newspaper perched on the steering wheel, children (and adults) who drop litter in front of me, shop assistants who chat to their friends on the next till while serving me, predictive texting, and work colleagues who were born in the 1980s...

Okay, so I really am a grumpy old woman.

Anyway, thanks for all the feedback. I'm going to register and become a paid-up member now, then I'm off to Ebay in search of old editions.

cheers, Julie

[Kirrin]

Its free to join this forum only to join the society you have to pay!

[Rob Houghton]

Its one of my favorite moans.

Oliver Twist doesnt wear jeans in the new editions.

Little Women hasnt located to a block of flats.

Tom Sawyer doesnt hang out with his friends taking 'crack'

So why do Enid Blyton's stories have to be modernised - and so shoddily too.

Talking of the 'jeans' issue... This worked fine in the 1970's I guess, when very few children actually wore shorts unless they were very young. But now we're back to a short-wearing fashion. Compare Betty Maxey's illustrations with Eileen Soper's, and I bet most would agree that Soper's look MORE MODERN than the 70's versions.

Pity we can't get Enid listed as a 'classic' author - that would be just wonderful.

[Kirrin]

the 70's clothing do look passe' compared to the soper ones: for instance I have a blazer type jacket as featured in the books which I bought new.. look at five go to smugglers top for instance.
Plus anyone ever seen snake belts..I have loads.. everyone likes them I havve even seen soap stars wearing them!!

[Tony Summerfield]

Actually Julie A there is no charge for joining the Society, the subscription is for a 60-page Journal with coloured covers - although the new one that I am posting out this week has 68 pages. The £8 subscription (UK) is for the next three Journals - I am sure that someone as enthusiastic as Kirrin should be subscribing too!

Best wishes
Tony

[Kirrin]

Yes I have been thinking of joining for ages...
are there some old ones which Laura Petela and Jemima Rooper have written a column and can you purchase these?