The Enid Blyton Society

Hello all! I'm new here but am delighted to see such a professional looking site dedicated to the wonderful Enid Blyton. I thought I would start by asking what everyone thinks of my favourite Blyton book: The Secret Island. I think it's top notch Enid, with a story revolving around (surely) every child's fantasy - a self-sufficient lifestyle on an island with no adults in sight. I must have read this book 20 times when I was younger and I still love it. It's a shame the rest of the 'Secret' series didn't live up to this one. Other favourites of mine are 'The Castle of Adventure' and 'Five On a Hike Together' (I don't know why but this is probably my favourite Five - even thought I don't think it's a particularly famous one).

"Secret Island" and "Hike" are two favourites on here alright! I loved Secret Island when I was younger for the reasons you mentioned - it's playing dens at it's best!

"Castle of Adventure" I have only read as an adult, but the part where the storm hits was really well written and gripping even as an adult

My favourite book would have to be "The Rockingdown Mystery" followed by "Five Go To Smuggler's Top" and "Five Go To Mystery Moor". I do tend to change my answer I think, but "Rockingdown" is always in there

Thanks for your reply! Glad to hear Hike is something of a favourite, I always thought it was one of the lesser known ones. I also remember loving 'Mystery to Solve' but not even managing to finish 'Together Again', maybe I should give it another chance, or is it really as awful as I remember? I think part of the reason I liked 'Castle' so much is because it was my introduction to EB - I used to have it on tape read by the great Bernard Cribbins and he had the perfect voice to send you off to sleep. I must admit I haven't read many of the series which features 'Rockingdown' (I don't even know what the series is called!). I definitely read 'The Ragamuffin Mystery' but it didn't leave much of an impression. Again, are they worth reading? Another fave of mine has sprung to mind: 'The Treasure Hunters'!

Hello Swallows,

You're in good company. The Secret Island was Enid's daughter Gillians favourite book too - but she read it fresh off the typewriter!

Viv

many people also seem to like 'Five on a Hike', so you're not alone! It's one of my favourites too.

Welcome to the website and Forums, Swallows!

swallows wrote:I must admit I haven't read many of the series which features 'Rockingdown' (I don't even know what the series is called!). I definitely read 'The Ragamuffin Mystery' but it didn't leave much of an impression. Again, are they worth reading?

Definitely worth another try. This set of six books is known as the "Barney Mysteries" (or "R Mysteries") and it's a good idea to try to read the books in order if possible - Rockingdown, Rilloby Fair, Ring O' Bells, Rubadub, Rat-a-Tat and Ragamuffin. Rat-a-Tat and Ragamuffin are disappointing in my opinion but the other four titles are gripping - very exciting and full of humour and emotion.

Anita

Hi Swallows! Welcome abroad!

Five On a Hike Together and The Secret Island are my favourites too.

Just want to support Anita on the Barney Mysteries. It's my favourite Blyton's series above all. The first four titles are brilliant, especially Ring O' Bells and Rubadub, while the fifth title, Rat-a-Tat, has a charming winter setting.

You can find their reviews of from the cave here:
http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/nove ... cat=barney

Me too! I love The Secret Island - quite a perfect "survival" story, I think. And 'Hike Together' is one of my favourite 'Fives', along with 'Trouble' and 'Smuggler's Top.'

I too found it sad that the rest of the 'Secret' Series were not to live up to to the standard of the first book.

Hi Swallows and welcome. The Secret Island is a longstanding favourite of mine too as is Hike. You chose some good books there. The Barney mysteries are well worth reading , as others have said, and the Adventure series also, if you haven't already read them.

As to the rest of the Secret series not living up to Island I think part of the problem may be that the subsequent four books were very different in style in that they involved tracking down criminals or missing persons rather than the adventure in self sufficiency that formed the basis of the first book. The Secret Mountain and The Secret of Killimooin were both excellent and very exciting books IMO.

Welcome to the forums, Swallows.

I personally don't find the subsequent Secret books at all off-putting. Sure, they're different from the Secret Island which really was magical and wonderful - but the Secret Mountain and Secret of Killimooin are extraordinary - and global.

I have to agree there: the later Secret books, 'Mountain' and 'Killimooin' are two of my favourites, and even 'Moon Castle' is good fun

The only one I think is weak is 'Spiggy Holes', yet as a child I loved it!

I agree that Rat-a-tat mystery is fairly weak (though it has some good ideas, they don't really develop very well) but Ragamuffin (though weaker than Rockingdown, Rilloby fair, Ring-o'bells and Rubadub) does have it's good points I think.

I agree with the others who said that 'Secret of Killimooin' and 'Secret Mountain' was great, and even 'Moon Castle' had its fair share of good points. 'Spiggy Holes' was one of Enid's earliest adventure books, before any of the FF, Adventure etc, yet all the plot elements in it seem very 'tried', if anyone knows what I mean, and none of them seem very original (although it's unfair to say that when you've read the 'Fives' and 'Adventures' before this series!). Overall the rest of the series series was great and funny, but in my opinion, are not of the standard of 'Island', which must remain my favourite. It was Enid's first full length adventure novel, and one of the best!

Viv of Ginger Pop wrote:You're in good company. The Secret Island was Enid's daughter Gillians favourite book too - but she read it fresh off the typewriter!

Viv

I'll bet that she didn't! When Enid was typing this Gillian wouldn't have even reached her sixth birthday, and I can't really see Enid trusting her manuscript to a five year-old!

Timing is everything

Viv

It may not actually be true, but it IS a myth that Gillian herself perpetuated. In her 'Memory of Enid Blyton' at the back of 'Enid Blyton's Adventure Treasury' (1999) Gillian writes: 'the book I loved best was The Secret Island, which, with The Treasure Hunters, The secret of Spiggy Holes and Five on a Treasure Island, was written before I was ten and were each read hot off the typewriter!'