On a comment conversation with a fellow blogger, susieshy45, we started discussing, briefly, books, and the conversation turned to Enid Blyton books, and how a bookstore in The US that she visited hadn’t even heard of Enid Blyton!
I was astonished! How could a bookstore not have heard of her? It was possibly a young employee, but still!! Enid Blyton rocks! Her books were the core of my reading as a child, the reason I fell in love with books!
My mother was, and is an avid reader. She likes the family sagas by Cathrine Cookson, romance by Danielle Steele, all the Virginia Andrews Books, and many more, but as she grew up, and went to an English school in Kenya, she was exposed to the literature of Enid Blyton, and alongside many traditional tales, she encouraged my love of books too.
At the tender age of 4 I was admitted to hospital… Nothing drastic, my tonsils needed removing, but I was in there for 2 nights. As a reward I was bought the Noddy series of books.
The originals!
These are the uncensored ones, before Shhh! Gollywogs were not allowed…!
Hello Noddy and Big Ears!
How I loved these books! I read and re-read them! My mother had kept them for me, so I could share them with my children, but not before I had invested in some modern versions of the wonderful Noddy for Lil Man and Lil Princess.
Modern day Noddy!
This was just the start of my love for Blyton’s books. As I grew, I read the Amelia Jane series and the Naughtiest Girl books. I think I must have read them so much they near disintegrated! But I managed to find some for the kids.
More modern classics
And I then progressed to Mallory Towers, and St Clare’s. Oh how those books made me long to go to boarding school! I read them all. Again and again. These are the next ones I hope to get for try children to enjoy too!
I was never into the Famous Five, or the Secret Seven, but thanks to Macdonalds, of all places, and a very thoughtful range of Happy Meal gifts, the kids even heard some of these stories!
Three cheers for Maccy D’s!!
And that’s not all. I discovered a whole host of Enid Blyton classics that I hadn’t devoured as a child, which I read with my children now!
Even more Blyton!!
Ok, so I know she wasn’t politically correct, there were racist tendencies in some stories, but I can look beyond them! She was an amazing author, and probably a huge part of my desire to write, for children, as well as for adults!
There are other authors who I enjoyed immensely as a child, but she was my number 1! Who was yours?
But I Smile Anyway... 
Feb 16, 2018 @ 15:13:27
Enid Blyton framed my childhood too and snap I was desperate to go to boarding school too because of them. Once I moved on from Blyton I became hooked on the Sweet Valley High books 🙂 (I’m based in the UK)
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Feb 16, 2018 @ 16:37:28
I’m UK based too. Yes I went on to Sweet Valley High as well! My brother went to boarding for his secondary years and I was so jealous!
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Nov 29, 2016 @ 13:37:35
Fantastic – I also read Amelia Jane and I also have the modern Noddy books!
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Nov 29, 2016 @ 16:43:15
Me too!
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Apr 25, 2015 @ 06:46:31
I did so love the Famous Five. It also nurtured my romantic love of the idea of camping. I have found the reality doesn’t actually measure up 🙂 but it’s lovely to dream
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Apr 25, 2015 @ 06:45:37
I did so love the famous five. It also nerturered my romantic love of the idea of camping. I have found the reality doesn’t actually measure up 🙂 but its lovely to dream
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Apr 25, 2015 @ 07:15:04
That’s what I love about books! Their ability to nurture a child’s imagination!
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Mar 10, 2015 @ 16:48:52
I remember the fuss newspapers made when Madonna was still living in the UK and she did a promotion thing for her book – she was asked about Enid Blyton and said: “who is she”? Everybody was outraged she’d never heard of her but it does seem strange, doesn’t it? I am French and I grew up with her books 🙂
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Mar 10, 2015 @ 18:35:36
I know!!! Love her, and her political incorrectness!!! Still, it was just normal when she wrote the stories, wasn’t it!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:53:20
A slight envy creeps up in me seeing your Noddy collection.
I didn’t read them but used to watch their cartoons with my brother.
And I can proudly say that I had grown up with some Enid Blyton’s besides my bed during the long summer vacations.
These bring back some memories. Thanks for that.
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:59:26
You’re welcome!! Glad I found another Enid Blyton-ite!!
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Mar 12, 2015 @ 13:14:37
He He. Thanks.
Those were the easy times you know. i mean the library in the school and near our locality was like a treasure trove to me and some of my friends. We used to love the prospect of taking our bicycles to visit the community library every sunday just to go through another Blyton book. Or maybe even a Goosebumps.
And now i hardly find that kind of a zest with the younger generation. My brother is an example. The time spent in going to the library and all is now being spent on games in tablets or mobiles,and wacky programs in TVs.
They surely are missing a part of childhood. And this inspired me to ask my brother whether he knows who Enid Blyton was. Luckily he knew. And all the characters created by her gave a smile within me.
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Mar 12, 2015 @ 15:40:37
That is so true! I have, thankfully, instilled a great love of books in my own children, so they look forward to bed time story time, and happily choose to read at other times too! (The iPad/technology still looms around though, but I limit it!)
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:21:44
II also grew up with Enid Blyton! I have read all the ones you mentioned, plus ‘The Children of Cherry Tree Farm’ and the ‘Children of Willow Farm’. There were loads of one off books that she wrote too which I also enjoyed. Wonderful memories, thanks for sharing Ritu. 🙂
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:27:41
Ooh, I might see if I can get hold of them for the kids!!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:42:18
They will enjoy them, I know I did. In fact I still have one of them that I had proudly written my name and age (11) in. Not bad condition either for almost 40 years old! 🙂
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:43:17
I live sharing my old books with them! It makes story time even more special!!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:45:18
Yes. I love your original collection of Noddy books. A real treasure 🙂
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:52:49
I know!!!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 16:33:50
I loved the secret seven!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:26:50
😊
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 16:07:56
I loved Nancy Drew and Hardy boys too – apparently Hillary Clinton is a fan too !
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 17:27:05
😊
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 11:56:13
I pretty much grew reading Blyton followed by Nancy Drews. Ah! What days..
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 12:56:08
The best!!
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 11:01:54
Oh my!! 🙂 I had written an entire post on Enid Blyton. Reading your post made me go all warm inside. This is the one. Maybe I will recycle this and add to my thoughts.
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 11:43:50
I’ll check that out!😊
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 10:04:07
Hey Ritu,
You quoted me – I’m famous.
Well, the San Diego bookseller was in an old, dark and deep book shop and she was at least in her late 50’s and as much of a book lover as I am – we had long talks on most days of my visit there- needless to say, I went there every day.
She knew most of the children’s authors I had read when I was little but Enid Blyton- no, no. Can you beat that / Perhaps Americans had other authors for their children’s books.
I love Junie B Jones too and my children do too. I started off with Mr. Pink Whistle and his adventures, then went on to Famous Fives, The Five Find outers, Secret seven ( I didn’t like these too much). In my adolescence I read Malory Towers and St. Clare’s( as an aside I enjoyed Chalet School school stories too). I read the House at Red-Roofs, the six cousins series, the house at the corner ( her more serious books), the Children’s life of Christ, then all the Adventure series ( Castle, Sea, Ship, Mountain etc- Prince Paul was one of my favourites)- oh, I could write pages on these books – I think I have read every one of them.
Thank you for sharing your love of Enid Blyton with the blogging world-she really deserves a thumbs up !
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 10:22:05
Hey, credit where credits due! You inspired me to write a post!! 😊
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Mar 09, 2015 @ 08:57:15
Oh.. this brings back memories 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
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