Journal 45

What did you think of the latest Journal?
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Anita Bensoussane
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

Anita Bensoussane wrote:I ordered How to Be a Detective from a book-club leaflet handed out at school, when I was in the third year of junior school (now known as Year 5).
Nick wrote:Blimey - your right, that's were I got it from! :D I have Bookworm club in my head for some reason now??
Anita Bensoussane wrote:Bookworm Club it may well have been, though I'm not too sure after all this time!
Thinking about this again, I have a vague memory of a logo of a bookworm wearing glasses, perhaps with the head rearing up and a book lying open in front of him. He may have been green, though I'm not certain. 'He' might even have been a 'she', though I'm definitely not certain about that! :)
Moonraker wrote:I don't know William Ferguson (or at least, I don't think I do), so I would only be utterly polite and respectful towards him. You, however, I know very well...... :twisted:
:roll: :lol: Actually, you may remember that we bumped into William Ferguson last August when we visited Viv's Eileen Soper's Illustrated Worlds in Poole. He's a friendly, chatty man, well-travelled and full of stories. I first met him a year before that when we went to the BFI in London to see the 1960s Five Have a Mystery to Solve film - I recall that he has a liking for sherbet lemons and peppermint bull's-eyes!
Petermax wrote:My copy of the Journal 45 arrived yesterday, just the tonic needed to kickstart me back into E.B.S mode! :D
Good to see you posting, Petermax. :D Tony and I were talking about you on the phone earlier today, saying that we hadn't heard from you much lately. Hope all is well.
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

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Re: Journal 45

Post by Lucky Star »

A thoroughly excellent read as always. I have now finished Journal 45 but its one that I will revisit I am sure. Saving the best till last Robert Houghton gave us a brilliant study of my own favourite Mary Pollock book Smuggler Ben. Its a pity that the reasons why Blyton chose to write these books under a pseudonym will always remain a mystery but I do think Rob took us as far down the road to a solution during his series as we will ever get.

I really enjoyed the two "nostalgia" articles by Anita and William Ferguson. Both were equally enchanting. William's was very evocative of the Secret Seven books I thought, while Anita's was very close indeed to my own childhood at about the same time. Wonderful articles both as was Anita's continuing Naughtiest Girl feature. I haven't read these books but as I have recently taken the plunge and immersed myself in Malory Towers I may take up the Naughtiest Girl when I have done with MT.

What a detctive we have in David Chambers. I have learned so much about Enid's early work from these articles, I do hope there are more in the pipeline. I am a bit confused about something he wrote near the end of the article though. He mentions a Fred Gordon Cook, a "substitute Author" for Frank Richards who wrote the Billy Bunter books (another favourite character). What is a substitute author? A pseudonym?

Bill's Diary and John Lester's Shadow the Sheepdog exploration were both very enjoyable. Both Terry Gustafsson and John Lester are excellent and lively contributors; I always enjoy their work as indeed I enjoy all of our regular writers articles.

The pieces from Enid herself were great as well. I have been to St Ives on holiday so particularly enjoyed her wartime letter from there. The From My Window piece was very evocative as well and her writing for children article very thought provoking. Always nice to get these glimpses into what went on in her mind. In that same vein Angela Canning's article with extracts from Enid's letters to Professor McKellar was fascinating. As always though I felt that her adult story lacked a lot of the magic and sparkle that went into her children's stories. This time around I guesed the end before I was halfway through it. Good to get to see this side of her writing but I doubt I would ever have gone out and bought dozens of books of this kind of story.

The information on the Seven Stories endowment was concise and interesting. Its good to know that Blyton's charitable legacy will continue to thrive in good hands. The colour plates and illustrations were, as always, lovely to see and the Old Thatch day pics on teh baclk cobver made me gnash my teeth all over again that I missed it. My only little quibble is that I didn't see Tony in the picture.

You are way too modest Tony. You have produced yet another splendid magazine absolutle bursting with amazing features. It is beyond me how any Blyton enthusiast could ever let their subscription lapse. Thanks Tony.
"What a lot of trouble one avoids if one refuses to have anything to do with the common herd. To have no job, to devote ones life to literature, is the most wonderful thing in the world. - Cicero

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Re: Journal 45

Post by Sally »

I have only read a couple of articles so far but both absolutely excellent - Anita's Club article (I have even persuaded my husband to read it) which suggests you had a wonderful childhood doing all the things children should do - using their imagination! Terry's Bill's Diary was also excellent - and it shows how much material was in the background of the Castle of Adventure which reflected the time when it was written. Really enjoyed it. I hope, Terry, that you continue throughout the series - Mountain and Ship should be particularly interesting. I always wondered what transpired between Bill and Allie at the farmouse while the children were lost in the mountain......no doubt he will tell us!

Looking forward to the rest over the weekend. Thank you Tony - a really excellent issue, as always.
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Re: Journal 45

Post by David Chambers »

Thank you Moonraker and Lucky Star for your kind comments.
I wanted to say (but couldn't fit it in!) how much it interested me that fairy stories were among Enid's first credited work particularly in context of the time at which they were written. In 1917 ten year old Frances Griffiths and her seventeen year old cousin Elsie purportedly photographed themselves with fairies. In 1920 Arthur Conan Doyle (author of Sherlock Holmes) wrote about the images and declared them authentic. The controversy surrounding the photos stretched on for years. And throughout all this time J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan kept a consciousness of the little folk alive with the words from his book and play: “Every time you say you don’t believe in fairies, a fairy dies.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bradford/sense_of_ ... ries.shtml" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It is therefore telling that both an early uncredited fairy story in the Merry Moments annual for 1922 and an uncredited fairy story from Merry Moments story paper in 1921 end with the same emphatic words: “There really are fairies.”
Interesting also that Enid was later to raise funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital, to which Barrie left rights to Peter Pan in perpetuity. And Enid was moved enough to write this poem for Punch to mark his passing in 1937.

J.M.B.

He dwelt in our world but his kindly eyes
Saw more than we knew was there;
He guessed at the childlike heart that lies
On our sleeve for a poet to tear.
He made us laugh and he made us weep
With his tender ridiculous whims;
And now that he lies in his last long sleep
And that bright-burning spirit dims,
We think he is gone, not with angel hosts
At Heaven's portal to stand,
But gladly, with small and familiar ghosts,
To visit his Neverland.
He mentions a Fred Gordon Cook, a "substitute Author" for Frank Richards who wrote the Billy Bunter books (another favourite character). What is a substitute author? A pseudonym?
Sorry if I confused you Lucky Star. Hopefully this link will help to explain the Fred Gordon Cook substitute comment http://www.greyfriarsindex.co.uk/Substitutes.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Anita Bensoussane
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

Sally wrote:I have only read a couple of articles so far but both absolutely excellent - Anita's Club article (I have even persuaded my husband to read it) which suggests you had a wonderful childhood doing all the things children should do - using their imagination!
Thanks, Sally - and others. They really were golden days.

Journal 45 is outstanding, a real pleasure to read. I'm sorry that Robert Houghton has now finished reviewing all the "Mary Pollock" titles as his observations on them have been full of insight and have made me want to revisit them in the near future.

I enjoyed reading about what William Ferguson and his chums got up to in days gone by! When my sister and I went to stay with our grandparents in Preston, we also used to go and play on "the rec". At that stage I had never seen the word written down and I wondered for years why it was called "the wreck"!

Enid Blyton's 'Writing for Children' article sheds a great deal of light on how she approached her writing and demonstrates how seriously she took her role as children's storyteller. Interesting that she felt that certain ideals such as "fair play" were essentially British and that her books could help in "reorientating" the thoughts and ideals of German readers in particular (the article isn't dated, but I imagine it was written some years after the Second World War). Blyton claims that she chose to write for children of all ages so that her books would be a positive influence on them for the whole of their childhoods. I wonder whether writing for such a wide age-range really was a calculated move on her part, or simply a happy accident in that her mind was constantly sparking with ideas for plots, some more suitable for older children and others for younger ones? Then there's the notion of being in competition with radio, television and cinema - a point which Blyton also made in her article 'The Golden Key', printed in Journal 40. She says that that competition led her to abandon meandering prose, long descriptions and moralising passages in favour of "direct, lucid prose", "quick, interesting action" and "well-rounded, life-like characters that the children can see and know with their mind's eye - particularly child characters like themselves." That's revealing as her simple prose style has come in for criticism, but it's clear that Blyton wrote that way deliberately. And it has to be said that lack of complexity in sentence structure and vocabulary is more than made up for by the lively rhythms and onomatopoeic quality of much of her writing, not to mention the natural-sounding dialogue. The fact that her prose is so easy to read doesn't prevent it being stirring and engaging.

The latest entries in 'Bill's Diary' are crisply written and packed with period detail - they really do come across as having been penned by Bill Smugs/Cunningham!

David Chambers' research is always thorough and we're learning a huge amount about Enid's early work from his investigations, which are undertaken in consultation with Tony. "Gruncle" - what a fabulous portmanteau word for "Great uncle"! I'm surprised Snubby didn't think of that for Great-uncle Robert! 'Rough and Fluff' and 'Crazy' are intriguing and unusual finds. Inadvertently adding fireworks to a bonfire, as happens in one of the 'Rough and Fluff' strips, is something which occurs in several later Enid Blyton tales including 'Mr. Twiddle's Bonfires' and 'The Firework Club'. It's fascinating to see all the repetitions and associations in her work. It may be significant that the name Peterkin, used in various stories and poems, was the name of one of the main characters in R. M. Ballantyne's The Coral Island, which we know was among Enid's favourite books as a child. Interesting too that mystery-solving and disguising featured in several Merry Moments stories by other authors as well as Blyton. Great to see the Phyllis Chase illustrations, though I must admit I find some of her pictures better than others. Sometimes, the characters look slightly stiff and a little long in the body.

I hadn't realised until I read John Lester's informative article that Shadow the Sheepdog was first serialised in two separate sequences of chapters in Sunny Stories, with the dramatic ending of the first sequence being used as the ending of the whole story when it was eventually published in book form.

Angela Canning provides a striking photograph of psychologist Peter McKellar, who sounds endearingly eccentric.

I love Enid Blyton's whimsical 'Alone' article ('From My Window', Teachers World). It conveys her mood so well. Her other piece ('Wartime Teachers World Letters') would appear to refer to her honeymoon in Cornwall with Kenneth, though no mention is made of him! It's evident that Enid took great care to draw as little attention as possible to her divorce and remarriage.

Interesting to read the press release about the Enid Blyton Trust for Children assets being donated to Seven Stories. I must take a trip to Newcastle one of these days!

Thanks, Tony, for bringing us yet another bundle of goodies!
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
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Re: Journal 45

Post by RDMorrell »

My copy arrived in Wellington NZ yesterday. So far, I have only skimmed through it, but I think the article I am most looking forward to reading is Anita's one on her detective club. Great photos accompanying that article too! One of your friends (the one with dark curly hair - Clare I think her name was?) looks a bit like George in the Famous Five, Anita. You yourself could possibly pass for Anne, although I'm not sure whether Anne ever wore her hair in pigtails!

I remember borrowing that Whizz Kids How to be a Detective book from the school library. For some reason however, I never ended up buying my own copy. In fact, the only Whizz Kids book I own is one on how to play chess!

Other than playing a few "detective games" in the school playground, I never ended up forming my own detective club. But I was inspired to write similar types of stories, which I'm sure is also true for some of us here.
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

RDMorrell wrote:One of your friends (the one with dark curly hair - Clare I think her name was?) looks a bit like George in the Famous Five, Anita.

If you mean the friend over on the left in the picture of the "Fantastic Four", that's Andrea. I got my mum to hunt out the photos as they're in albums at her house in Wales, and when she emailed them to me she remarked that Andrea looked "like a tomboy" in that picture. Though she wouldn't have if the long ponytail of curls down her back (Andrea's back, not my mum's!) had been visible!

In the "Cinderella" photos, my sister Linda looks as though she has short, curly hair. That's because she was wearing the wig which we also used for disguising! The wig was given to us for dressing-up by our nanna when I was about nine (she had plenty of her own hair, but had worn the wig occasionally as a fashion accessory and no longer wanted it). At the time my sister and I were heavily into the Find-Outers books, so we were thrilled to have a wig of our own! In fact, that wig must count as one of the best presents we ever received (I'm not running down other presents, but it was so unexpected and just exactly what we wanted, and it would never have occurred to us to ask for a wig as a birthday present or anything). Another memorable present was given to us by our other nanna, probably a few months before we received the wig. She was staying with us and Linda and I were talking about the Secret Seven books, and that we only needed half a dozen more to complete the set. My nanna bought us all six titles (they cost 50p each in those days) and we were over the moon.
RDMorrell wrote:You yourself could possibly pass for Anne, although I'm not sure whether Anne ever wore her hair in pigtails!
Whenever we played Famous Five games, my sister and friends used to say I had to be Anne because I looked like an Anne! Don't Julian and Dick criticise Anne in one of the Famous Five books (I've forgotten which one) for wearing her hair in a ponytail? I'm not sure why they object!
RDMorrell wrote:I remember borrowing that Whizz Kids How to be a Detective book from the school library.
Good to know of yet another forumite who is familiar with that book!
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

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Re: Journal 45

Post by Wolfgang »

Anita Bensoussane wrote:
RDMorrell wrote:You yourself could possibly pass for Anne, although I'm not sure whether Anne ever wore her hair in pigtails!
Whenever we played Famous Five games, my sister and friends used to say I had to be Anne because I looked like an Anne! Don't Julian and Dick criticise Anne in one of the Famous Five books (I've forgotten which one) for wearing her hair in a ponytail? I'm not sure why they object!
Hi Fantastic Four(th),

it was Five on Finniston Farm. Julian and DIck were teasing, they didn't like the look of it, and Dick even dared to say it looks like a donkey's tail.
Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration.
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Petermax »

Now where do I begin my appraisal of Journal 45, it is such a difficult choice to have to
make. Robert Houghton’s article on Smuggler Ben was very enjoyable and informative,
this being a title that I never came across as a child. Maybe I overlooked Mary Pollock
in favour of the more familiar Enid Blyton! If only I had known! :lol:

The reference to knives in Smuggler Ben certainly rang alarm bells, accustomed as we
are nowadays to children and teenagers in the UK using such items against each other,
sometimes with tragic results. There was a time however, when almost all boys would
would carry a knife of some description, usually a penknife or perhaps even a small
bowie knife in a holster as I had back in the 1970’s.


My Childhood in the Spirit of Enid Blyton by William Ferguson reminded me
immediately of tales told to me by my father of his own childhood back in the 1930’s.
Sad to say that some of his actics would have had Enid Blyton reaching for the smelling
salts, Richmal Crompton may have been slightly more approving! What a wonderful
childhood William must have had, with most of the Blytonesque elements being within
easy walking distance.

A Club of Our Own by Anita Bensousanne refers to a childhood just a few short years
after my own childhood era, the 1970’s. I too had access to a shed where many secret
meetings took place with my motley band of friends. We even had to put up with my
younger sister doing a "Susie" to upset proceedings every so often. There is certainly no
other building like a proper garden shed for children to play in, wooden buildings have a
certain warmth about them. :D

It is indeed testament to the positive influence of Enid Blyton’s writing that
Anita and "The Fantastic Four" chose to model themselves on some of the storylines and
characters of the books. Equally impressive is the degree of mutual cooperation such as
the "Book Lovers Club". I had always assumed that such things only ever happened in the
Secret Seven, real life children would never have had the discipline to club together and
make a joint purchase of a book. How wrong one can be. :D

In all a very evocative portrait of a wonderful early 1980’s childhood aided
by some wonderful photographs.


How I regard Writing For Children by Enid Blyton offers us a glimpse into her writing
genius. I was surprised to read that at least one of her books Mystery Island (aka The
Island of Adventure
) had been a success in the U.S.A. It would be interesting to learn if
further attempts were made by Enid and her publishers to crack the American market.
One must assume that it would have been near impossible to do so at that time, such was
the sheer number of already established childrens writers/syndicates backed by very
powerful publishing companies.

It amused me to read that Enid’s books were pirated in Russia of all places. Some things
never change, bootleg copyright material still sometimes originates from Russia, usually in electronic form such as the latest Hollywood films. Enid expressed surprise that the contents of her books should find favour in a such a different environment. Obviously the fundamental decency of her stories won the approval of the
Soviets and were deemed not to be subversive, what an accolade!

Enid explains in great detail the need for a story to be well constructed and to have
characters that children can see with their minds eye. Such a notion sounds so very
simple, very easy, and yet achieving such an ideal is beyond many authors.

Once again, a very enjoyable read.What is it about the E.B.S Journal that each issue is somehow better than the last, how on Earth does Tony achieve such a feat? The Journal is of course a very long life publication, one cannot imagine throwing away an issue once it is read from cover to cover, instead it
is carefully filed away to be repeatedly re-read, along with all those Blyton hardbacks!
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Anita Bensoussane
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

Wolfgang wrote:
Anita Bensoussane wrote:Don't Julian and Dick criticise Anne in one of the Famous Five books (I've forgotten which one) for wearing her hair in a ponytail? I'm not sure why they object!
...it was Five on Finniston Farm. Julian and Dick were teasing, they didn't like the look of it, and Dick even dared to say it looks like a donkey's tail.
Ah yes, I remember that now! Thanks, Wolfgang.
Petermax wrote:Equally impressive is the degree of mutual cooperation such as the "Book Lovers Club". I had always assumed that such things only ever happened in the Secret Seven, real life children would never have had the discipline to club together and make a joint purchase of a book. How wrong one can be. :D
We never actually bought a book between the four of us although quite often Claire and Andrea bought a book between them, as did Linda and I. It was a question of taking it in turns. Sometimes we would lend books to each other - I started reading Helen Cresswell's 'Bagthorpe Saga' after borrowing Andrea's copy of Ordinary Jack. And I was mad enough to give my vintage hardback edition of The Mystery of the Invisible Thief to Andrea because it didn't fit in with the rest of my Find-Outers books, which were Dragon/Granada paperbacks! :roll:
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
- E. Nesbit, The Wonderful Garden.


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Re: Journal 45

Post by Sally »

Anita - just another thought - did you remain friends with Claire and Andrea? After sharing so much as children, I wondered if you remain friends to this day? I am happy to say that my closest childhood friend is still a friend and lives in Devon. I remember her coming to my nineth birthday party wearing a beautiful jade green velvet dress, trimmed with miribou fur - it was her bridesmaid's dress which she wore at her aunt's wedding during the previous month. Barbara married the chap she met at sixteen when she was twenty and we are still friends today, although they have lived in Devon for almost thirty years. She came to both my fortieth and fiftieth birthday parties and we will be meeting up in the Autumn. Such friends are precious!
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

Sally wrote:Anita - just another thought - did you remain friends with Claire and Andrea?
Yes, we still keep in touch but don't see each other very often as we all live far apart. It's always brilliant to hear from them, though - we've shared some really special times. I'm glad you've kept in touch with your good childhood friend too, Sally.
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
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Re: Journal 45

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David Chambers wrote:
He mentions a Fred Gordon Cook, a "substitute Author" for Frank Richards who wrote the Billy Bunter books (another favourite character). What is a substitute author? A pseudonym?
Sorry if I confused you Lucky Star. Hopefully this link will help to explain the Fred Gordon Cook substitute comment http://www.greyfriarsindex.co.uk/Substitutes.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
That explains it perfectly David. Thank you. :D
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Re: Journal 45

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Moonraker wrote:I didn't read John Lester's Shadow the Sheepdog article, as the book is sitting on my shelves, and I don't think I've ever read it, so I will read it next. I think being about a dog has always put me off!
I have now read Shadow, the Sheepdog and felt it to be one of Enid's weakest books. It is far too episodic, and it read more like a very junior short story compilation. The Adventures of Shadow might be a better title! I realise that it was first serialised in Sunny Stories, and maybe this is a better format for the story. I also realise that it is a book for young children, so maybe reading it for the first time at 60 explains why I found it thin and the characters not well developed. We don't even know what Johnny's mother and father are called!

I also thought it a bit far-fetched that an eagle could carry off a 'sickly lamb'. This clip proves me wrong!
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Re: Journal 45

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

Moonraker wrote:I have now read Shadow, the Sheepdog and felt it to be one of Enid's weakest books. It is far too episodic, and it read more like a very junior short story compilation.
Someone on the Blyton Yahoo Group once mentioned that there are three or four characters called Harry in Shadow, the Sheepdog. I intend to look out for that next time I read it!
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
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