@karisimo saw this shared by @Eggs #MiddleGradeMonday and it was a lot of fun!
I absolutely LOVED the tagged book, and a birthday gift that one of the protagonists gets in this book catalyses the whole adventure.
And look at those endpapers!
The children learn about the lore and traditions of Christmas, from the pre-Christian era (top left) to the “modern day” (lower right). Well, sort of modern day … the book was published in 1944. Look at the plane overhead. 😬
This is such a sweet book!
Two children return from boarding school and excitedly join their family in celebrating a traditional Christmas. In the process (and after all their questioning) they learn the history of how this season came to be celebrated.
pickThis is a cute book that uses imagination. For kids between 4 to 7, a flying chair that promises fun. #ISpyBingoNov @TheAromaofBooks
“The best way to treat obstacles is to use them as stepping-stones. Laugh at them, tread on them, and let them lead you to something better.”
pickI haven‘t read a Famous Five book in ages but this was honestly such a good time that - I‘m considering a full reread. The drama was amped up from the beginning, it‘s all more than a little ridiculous but it‘s set in a house with multiple secret passage ways… so what‘s not to enjoy?
He‘s literally been kidnapped, along with Sooty (who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time) and is being held underground in an old smugglers tunnel. Love the sentiment, Uncle Q but maybe play along??
This book is honestly so dramatic - I love it.
At this point, I‘m wondering if the stepfather loathing comes from personal experience…
Update : no personal experience of having a step parent but her beloved father did abandon the family, leaving her with a mother that she didn‘t particularly get along with. Wikipedia notes that she didn‘t attend either parents funeral.
“You don‘t have a stepmother and a stepfather!” said Sooty, scornfully. “You only have one or the other. My mother is my real mother, and she‘s Marybelle‘s mother too. But Marybelle and I are only half brother and sister because my stepfather is her real father.”
As someone with half siblings and an awful stepfather the SHADE in this book is hilarious! Everyone proceeds to feel extremely sorry for Marybelle having such an awful biological Dad.
I found this beautiful case bound hardcover edition from 1974 in the second hand bookstore in Sassafras and 😍!! It‘s in beautiful condition - and I‘m obsessed with the cover!
Queer and highly suspicious things happen at Smuggler‘s Top. The Five have gone to stay with Sooty Lenoir and his father, after the ash tree fell on Kirrin Cottage.
Time for a reread, I think! I don‘t have strong memories of this one.
