The Famous Five - Five Go Adventuring Again by Enid Blyton

The Famous Five Julian, Dick, George, Anne and Timothy the dog.

 

The Five's second adventure together.

 

At Kirrin Cottage for the Christmas holidays, the Five were not expecting an adventure...But they found one - and some crocks - and became involved in a running battle underground. 

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I was recently disheartened to find that the Famous Five books were slowly being altered to make them more politically correct. I find this wrong in so many ways. Books often reflect the time in which they were written and this includes both the good and bad elements. Altering a book whether fictional or not shouldn't be done, how are we to reflect and consider the differences in time periods if all of our literature has been changed. 

 

Even though it is a work of fiction I strongly feel that it should be left as it was originally intended, giving the reader the opportunity to reflect upon its contents. I was lucky enough to find an almost complete set of Famous Five books from 1978 which is where this edition has come from.  The narrative is complete and I plan to keep this set for my own children/niece and nephew to read one day. I actually remember the Famous Five television series from which the photo cover is taken from (it was the first VHS video my family owned lol). I also love the fact it states the original UK price as 50p!

 

 This book was very fun to read. I enjoyed it and found it has aged very little. Yes the language used by the children is no longer the normal kind used by today's youth but I don't see that as a bad thing. The language is much more adult in its sentence structure and the words used. In this way it would be a refreshing change and possibly a challenge for children to read. However this is not a negative, it is most definitely a positive. The story is simple to follow and exciting in parts. I enjoyed the fact it was based during the Christmas holidays which is why I decided to read in the week leading up to Christmas. 

 

It is the perfect book for escapism. As a child I didn't read every Famous Five book but I remember loving the ones I was lucky enough to get hold off. They make you want to run about the countryside and have adventures of your own. The best part of the book is the overall friendship and support of the children who never fail to believe each other and always strive to protect their group. Its a quick fun read and I recommend it to everyone, whether a child wanting a bit of adventure or an adult (like myself) going back and reading the classics I missed as a child. 

 

I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

I really enjoyed this story. It was exciting, fun and transported me back to a simpler time. The difference in language and writing style was also refreshing and entertaining in itself when comparing it to modern language.