Enid Blyton Press Reviews
The prize must go to the adventures of George and co. Listed as one of the 100 Best Children's Books Ever (Novels) The Daily Telegraph
One of the 50 books every child should read by Age 16 essexbaby.co.uk
Famous Five books are essential for all children's bookshelves MADEFORMUMS.COM
I thought this series was wonderful. It struck me as a great injustice that they were having adventures and I wasn't -- Alexander McCall Smith The Sunday Telegraph
Dangerous criminals are no match for children and a dog. Adults are useless Country Life
Always popular, always a favourite. And ALWAYS full of adventure -- Dan Smith The Big Issue
This book is so exciting you'll want to play detective yourself The Week Junior
As the first set of 'grown-up books I ever discovered I could read on my own, the Famous Five have a very special place in my heart. I still remember running through to my parents room to tell them I could read well enough to go adventuring with the Five without their help. And with 21 books in the series, I had plenty of escapades to look forward to! The List (Glasgow & Edinburgh)
I loved so much of Enid Blyton ... the Famous Five were my favourites of all, so much so that I demanded to be called George for most of my early childhood East Anglian Daily Times
Pacey and passionate, this truly exceptional book tells a tale that truly needs to be heard Lovereading4kids
About Enid Blyton
Enid Blyton is one of the most-loved authors in children’s publishing. With over 700 titles published, Enid Blyton’s stories remain timeless classics, adored by children throughout the world.
Soon after Enid Blyton was born in 1897, she fell gravely ill with whooping cough. Her father, Thomas Blyton stayed up with her night after night until her cough subsided and she recovered. From that time on, Enid followed her father wherever he went, and it was through her father that she developed a love of nature and animals – an enthusiasm which stayed with her throughout her life. It was also her father who instilled in Enid her love of books, and she would often be seen sneaking into her father’s library and borrowing a pile of books.
As a young woman Enid was faced with many choices; her father had planned a career in music for her, while she felt drawn to writing. In the end, she became a teacher, though her passion for writing never dwindled. In 1922, a collection of poems by Enid was published - it was her first step toward her dream of becoming an author.
At 27 years old, Enid married Hugh Pollock and moved to London. Enid had two children with Hugh, and soon after wrote her first novel, The Adventures of the Wishing Chair. Enid divorced Hugh after almost 20 years of marriage, and remarried Kenneth Waters in 1943.
Throughout the 40 and 50s, Enid wrote books at a colossal pace: adventure stories, mysteries, magical stories, farming stories, stories for younger children, best-selling series like The Famous Five and Noddy…her writing knew no bounds!
Apart from breaks to play golf and spend time with her children, Enid’s working week was consumed with writing new stories, correcting proofs and answering the hundreds of letters she was, by now, receiving weekly. She explained that her characters evolved organically and her stories seemed to naturally form, she described herself as “merely a sightseer, a reporter, and interpreter.”
Enid fell ill with Alzheimer’s disease in her old age (a disease that affects people’s memory) and she died in 1963. Her spirit lives on in her books and she is remembered as one of the most-loved and celebrated children’s authors.
If you are interested in more about Enid Blyton you may like to visit The Enid Blyton Society
Author photo reproduced with permission of Hachette.
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