Has anyone ever read Malory towers?

[Orangejelly1]

I used to love the books as a child! I read them cover to cover so many times and my favourite character was Darrell. I recently found my old collection and re read parts of them just for old times sake and I was actually really disappointed to see, as an adult, how awful some of the popular characters were. I know it was a product of its time and a different era, but Darrell, Alicia and some of the most popular girls would be called nasty bullies nowadays. I also felt so sorry for Gwen, which surprised me because as a child rearing the books she was my least favourite character.

just wondered if anyone else re read the books and thought this too!

Yes, she's a love child! And that's also why her father sent her to boarding school. Partly to "civilise" her and make up for her missed education but also partly so she wouldn't be around the town and raise difficult questions.

Her mother was Spanish and there were lots of European people in the circus. And yes, I forgot that Lotta called her parents by their names.

I knew it, I knew it! Lotta is Carlotta!

The Trebizond series was written later though, starting at the very end of the 70s and I think still being published in the 90s.

I liked the surfing and boyfriends!

And it's one of very few universe crossovers in EB, so she was definitely trying to tell us something.

@ReneBumsWombats No, Carlotta's father is a upper middle class chap who got involved with a circus girl. Echo's of Barney's upper middle class actor father who again got involved with a circus girl in the "R" mysteries (rockingdown hall etc)

@AsAnyFuleKno The "adult" book was going to called "The Caravan goes on" which was rejected by publishers in the 1930s. Sadly no manuscript survives as many would like to read it!

She had couple of "adult" (for adults not adult content!) stories published in newspapers and magazines before getting her major success with children's novels.

There is a nod to this in one of her "family" books (House at the corner) where Lizzie has a story published in a paper and asks her mother what she thinks (not telling her it is her story) - the mother read the "adult" story and tells her basically is rubbish, poor characters etc!

Margery Fenworthy of St Clare's is one of the best Blyton characters ever. Brave, fearless and doesn't give a shiny shit for anyone's good opinion - given her classmates who can blame her? The rude, sulky, rebellious ones are a lot better than the breathless, eager girls (here's looking at you, Darrell Rivers) who arrive all starry-eyed, wanting to fit in with the regime from the word go. But there are only two character arcs for those types: they are either rusticated or end up assimilated as reformed, obedient girls, doubtless the good sound women of the future ....

Oh, I didn't know the title - thank you!

I wondered if there was a nod to personal experience in 'House at the Corner'. I remember the story Lizzie's mum read by mistake was called 'Sheila's Folly' which seemed an oddly specific sort of title if it was totally made up.

@Needmorelego I think Whyteleafe must have gone upto 16 (maybe 17/18 as you get the impression that the head boy and girl (William and Rita are 16+). But there was also a "kindergarten" in the school which the younger (under 10?) are in.

Whyteleafe was supposedly based on Summerhill School, which takes pupils from 10 - 18.

Carlotta had her fifteenth birthday while in the second form.

Was she a little older than the others because she was academically behind?

@AsAnyFuleKno

Her "family" books, which were supposed to be for slightly older children are some of her best novels (House at the corner, six cousins, family at red-roofs and six bad boys).

Apparently the arguing husband and wife in six bad boys was based on her experience of growing up (her parents separated and due to the era her Mother made her pretend her father was "away")

The two 'Six Cousins' books are my absolute favourite Blyton novels. I read the second one first and was in agonies to read the first one for about a year (both were out of print at the time, early 1980s). My lovely grandma, who lived in a large city, eventually tracked a second hand copy down for me..

Yes 'fat' was up there with being vain, lazy, or working class as a negative attribute, and all were much worse than having a bad temper and slapping people!
Ironically I had some older versions with pencil illustrations, including one of a fat girl (I think it was Jo in felicity's class) - I remember thinking she was completely normal sized, and this was back in the 90s - 90% of teenage girls today would be much bigger (and taller) than the mallory towers 'fat' characters!

I remembered thinking at the time how annoyed the other towers must be -the NT characters were always head of the class, head of games, head girl, etc! They were clearly the Gryffindors of Malory Towers!

Has anyone read "the put-em rights"? - this is one of the worst novels for EB's thoughts (and the views of the period of course) on class and people's "place" in society.

The only EB books with working class families as the main focus are "six-bad boys". Jimmy from the circus books is from a working class family (father is carpenter).

Yes I loved those books. Felt sorry for Aunt Rose. She had seemingly no option other than being an obedient wife.

Has anyone read "the put-em rights"? - this is one of the worst novels for EB's thoughts (and the views of the period of course) on class and people's "place" in society

Yes, indeed - Bobby's lesson is explicitly 'know your place' which I was taken aback by even as a child. I was also annoyed that the villagers let themselves be bossed around by Sally's mother. It's interesting that there was no mention of Sally's father - I assume her mother was widowed, which would have been why she was still working as a married, middle-class woman.

The whole book is based on the us and them of the PERs and the villagers; with the PERs lording it over the villagers, albeit in a mostly well-meaning way. It's quite compelling!

@AsAnyFuleKno They are both good but I think the first is better (one of the best). There are some progressive (for Blyton!) ideas such as Linnie of course being a brilliant mother and farmers wife, but also educated and knows about music and literature.

This and the the willow farm book are actually an interesting historical record of the concept of the "gentleman" farmer with a mixed farm just before the second agricultural revolution and even when she wrote these the use of horses as the power on the farms was dying.

Yes. The life-admin task of renewing the insurance sat with David (in those days the insurance company wouldn't have dealt with a married woman, I shouldn't have thought) and he let it lapse - losing the house and all their belongings, substantially paid for by Rose, and then she's expected to become a farmer's wife and get involved in the farm work in which she has no interest.

I think if Rose wrote an AIBU it would be a resounding LTB!

Of course, she almost does LTB, but can't bear to be parted from her children who want to stay on the farm. So we're supposed to cheer when she puts on an overall and starts cooking breakfast 🤔

@KimberleyClark But she threatened to miss-treat a puppy!

I really liked the Mistletoe Farms books too. The flighty mother had every reason to be pissed off, her house had just burnt down!

There was another one similar to that I enjoyed, The Children of Cherry Tree Farm, which featured a group of city siblings sent to live on their uncle's farm while their parents swanned off somewhere for 6 months. I don't think there was much of a plot, it was just about the kids adjusting to nature and the joys of the countryside. There was a character called Tammylyn who was a cave dwelling hermit who knew everything there was to know about nature.

Oh yeh, loved those books! But I agree - awful upon re-reading. I can't remember if it was Malory Towers or St Clara's, but there was all that stuff about the English sense of honour (so the French girl, claudine, would not understand as she hadn't got English morals), and they were nasty to a girl for not speaking 'properly', accused her of not washing her neck, and suggested that she was the daughter of a bin man 😱 Awful stuff! I know there are modern editions on the market... I really hope these issues have been addressed for a modern audience!

When you put it like that I'm even more on her side.

This and the the willow farm book are actually an interesting historical record of the concept of the "gentleman" farmer with a mixed farm

Yes - I suppose Mistletoe Farm is rather like the Marlows' Trennels in that respect.

I used to dislike Linnie as a child because she seemed irritatingly perfect (I rather sided with Melisande in all the disputes) but I've warmed to her in later life - it's clear she has a formidable intellect and a great capacity for generally getting things done.

@MurderAtTheBeautyPageant

Yep "Cherry-tree farm" is basically a nature book (when they are on their uncle's farm) "Willow farm" is about the farming year (and does talk about new technology in agriculture), "more adventures on willow farm" is much more of a "story".