RM Ballantyne, The Coral Island, 1857.

The book is terribly dated, in terms of its biology (coconuts are not soft skinned, you cannot see more easily in warm sea water than in cold sea water). It is even more dated in terms of its values (white folks are not natural leaders, missionaries are not an unmitigated good, South Sea Islanders are not ( Read more... )

There had been books published prior to 1857 that were set in schools; but there had not been a genre of school stories up until when Thomas Hughes published *Tom Brown’s Schooldays ( Read more... )

1, Ruby is always attracted to books about trips to hospital, no doubt her way to process her life. At the moment a picture book about a bear having an ear operation is on high rotation. She likes to point out the degree of greyness in their fur which illustrates that the doctor bears are older than the patient bears, nurse bears and orderly bears ( Read more... )

1, We went to *Zootopia* today. I am loving that my kids are old enough to go to movies that I also enjoy. Because this movie rocked ( Read more... )

The Enid Blyton was one I had not read before and it makes me wonder if my editions (from the 60s and 70s) were censored. It's the only Famous Five novel I've read that references rationing (first published 1948). Also, it has a lot of praise for spam, delicious food for all ( Read more... )

I have been reading some Blytons to Pearl (the Secret Seven, not the Famous Five). I remember it from when I was a kid only because I remember how cool it was for the kids to disguise themselves as snowmen with white faces. I had forgotten how sexist it is - I edited it so the girls did not stay at home while the boys went out in the snowmen ( Read more... )

In April I did a lot of reading about Enid Blyton who, apparently, still sells 10 million copies a year (from the 600 books she wrote). Does this mean she is still a best seller, forty years after her death, with very little advertising?

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Barbie, Faraway Tree, Noddy, Wishing Chair, My Little Pony, Peppa Pig, The Big Bang Theory, Totero, Wizard of Oz, Jane and the Dragon, The Paperbag Princess, and more, did not take notes.

But not Thomas the Tank Engine, Fireman Sam, Timmy Time, all of which feature selfishness and meanness.

I am shocked at the editing of Enid Blyton's Faraway Tree series. While deploring the Americanism, I get why you might change Dick and Fanny into Rick and Franny.* But why change Jo to Joe? And Bessie to Beth? Why?

* Seriously, what are the odds of landing on those two names?