Rob Houghton wrote:I've just posted a photo on facebook of some daffodils we saw today on a walk in our local park.
They look lovely. I'm reminded of Enid Blyton's 'From My Window' article in the Journal, in which she describes daffodils so beautifully: "They are the most cheerful flowers, like little splashes of sunshine tied on to a long green stalk. Nobody could be sad when they see them, for they are happiness itself."
She doesn't approve at all of daffodils that have flowers of white, green or any other colour except yellow: "Daffies should be yellow, yellow, yellow, and nothing but yellow."
I like Enid's 'Country Letter' too. It's warm and chatty and makes life at Old Thatch and in the surrounding countryside sound idyllic. It's nice to hear about Sandy's puppies. I've often seen birds pecking at buds on trees and hadn't realised they were removing grubs from the buds. Forty-odd years after first picking up an Enid Blyton book, I'm still learning new things from her!
Katharine wrote:It was very interesting to read Anita's thoughts on the Dean book [Tales of Long Ago]. I only read it as a couple of years ago, and it didn't appeal to me much, but it was interesting to read the classic tales - I'd only come across a couple as a child. I certainly think that Enid's delicate way of dealing with some of the more gruesome parts of the originals is better than me reading them in their original form. Once again I was in awe of Anita's reading ability at such a young age, and for her to have a friend of a similar ability. I have been listening to Reception class children reading for the past 7 years, and I don't think I've come across one, let alone two who would be capable of reading a book like that.
Funnily enough, I think it was the sad stories that appealed to me most - along with the adventurous ones in which truly horrific things happened. They made such a change from tales with "happily ever after" endings!
My sister was an early reader too. Reading was like breathing as far as we were concerned - we simply couldn't live without it! Before encountering Enid Blyton we were crazy about Ladybird books and also liked Miffy books.