The Enchanted Wood: 1 (The Magic Faraway Tree)

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Enid Blyton turns out (according to Wikipedia) to be a rather strange woman and not somebody who one would expect to the a very successful author of children's books. She is very much out of favor these days, but Enid Blyton's old-fashioned adventure books are still popular in many countries like India and Australia. However, the views of Wikipedia, and some of those who wrote about her, do tend to be somewhat tainted. When I started reading this, I felt I have read this already but then parts of it I couldn't remember. Chock full of vibrant colour illustrations from Alex Paterson, these are the perfect way to introduce The Magic Faraway Tree adventures to children aged five and up.

This really has won against the test of time, and I will be recommending it to my nieces in a few years as I think they will absolutely love the books too! The plot-line whets the appetite immediately because not only are fairy-folk found to be living in the tree but there is also the added attraction which begs the question: What land is at the top of the tree today? Apart from the language, another thing that dates the book, is that the mother is quite happy for the children to go out without supervision all day (and many nights too), and meet up with strangers (including adults) who haven’t been vetted. Featuring extraordinary illustrations by Clive Hicks-Jenkins and an exclusive introduction by Janina Ramirez, each of the 750 numbered copies has been signed by both contributors.Do these PC editors really think a set of books will entirely change the way a kid speaks when modern English surrounds them every other waking minute? In the middle of the wood is the Magic Faraway Tree, a tree that grows right up to the clouds and from the top of the tree you can travel to magical worlds. Often, what so appealed to our younger selves we later find riddled with plot holes, become distanced from the young protagonists, or find them just generally unsuited for an adult readership. This is the loveliest birthday party I’ve ever heard of,’ said Beth happily, flapping her big wings, as she sat and watched the fireworks. It is actually not a single adventure but a collection of at least five different adventures that three children, Jo, Bessie, and Fanny, have after moving into the country.

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. They climb that, pass through a cloud, and enter their very first venue — Roundabout Land which, true to its name, goes round and round and round.I was only a few pages in when she started complaining that it wasn’t how she remembered it –two of the children’s names were different! This was most definitely the first novel I read when I was about 7 or 8, and I was completely mesmerized by Joe, Bessie and Fannie and their adventures in the enchanted woods so much that I just COULD no keep this book down. Unlike the first three books in the series, this work is not a novel, but a series of illustrations with short text underneath.

As my husband remembered, there were some really hairy moments where if I’d been a child reading this, I might have been quite scared.

It's the loss of Bessie that I find saddest as it was updated because Bess/Bessie has fallen out of fashion.