Enid Blyton Enchants for Eons

E of the AtoZ Challenge

My favorite author as a kid was and still is Enid Blyton – the writer who fueled imagination in thousands of kids across the world and in India as well.  So many books, so many series, so many characters and so many worlds.

As a young child I was enthralled with the world of Brownies, Pixies, Goblins, Fairies, Witches, Wizards and the little magic people who were introduced to me by my Mom who used to read out Enid Blyton’s stories aloud to me.   The first book I remember (it may not have been the first I heard) was that of the cheeky Brer Rabbit and his antics.  I slowly started on the Green Book of stories, the Yellow Book etc. and then I was completely enchanted by the magic Faraway tree. How I wish I lived near the Faraway tree and could go visit the Saucepan Man, Silky the elf and Moon-face and the land of Ice-creams.  The Wishing-Chair adventures had me hoping one of our chairs would magically sprout wings and what fun it would be to whiz away!  To this day, Chinky from the Wishing-Chair adventures remains my favorite pixie.

Other characters I enjoyed were the naughty doll Amelia-Jane, Mr Pink Whistle, Noddy, Mister Meddle, etc.   Then there were the little boys and girls such as Billy Bob, Belinda, Betsy-May in whose worlds I lived. 

If early school had me in the throes of the magic people, later it was the mystery series and the school-series.  The Five Find-outers, Famous Five, the adventure series, the circus stories, snubby-loony series, the secret seven.. I read them all. But my very favorite were the Five Findouters.  I must have had a crush on Fatty, of the Five-Findouters with his sharp wit and mind in solving mysteries and teasing the irrepressible Mr. Goon!

Malory Towers , St-Clairs and the Naughtiest girl’s school were super too and how I wanted to attend one of the midnight feasts or be present for the wicked Alicia’s tricks on the teachers!  The characters of Darrel, Sally, Belinda, Irene, Elizabeth (the naughty girl) are permanently etched in my mind and I recall fondly all their stories and life at the school.

Looking back I feel so fortunate that I was introduced to the world of Enid Blyton and could enjoy so much fantasy, go on adventures with the kids, eat scones and drink cool lemonade!

From Wikipedia - Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer whose books have been among the world's bestsellers for children since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies in 90 languages.  How many books did she write?  - Well, if I consider all her writing, here is an approximate number provided by enidblyton.net –

• 186 novels/novelettes
• 250 character books
• 924 short story series books
• 267 education books
• 201 recreation books
• 174 continuation books
• 284 Enid Blyton contributions

Enid is credited with writing over 10,900 short stories, poems and plays through her career, but some were used many times so the actual number is more like 7500. Plenty has been written about her books being sexist, racist and how several of her books have been mired in controversy and even banned from public libraries.  However that has not deterred her young readers from reading them over and over again all the same.

Have you read Enid Blyton as a kid? Which were your favorite books/characters?