Five on a Treasure Island

“That doesn't look like a new book,” my husband said to me last night when he saw me reading Five on a Treasure Island.

“It was first published in 1942,” I told him.

“Maybe it was a book we read when we were kids?” he asked.

“No, I don't think so. Enid Blyton was never big here in America.”

Why, I wonder. I can't think of a single reason. Julian, Dick, Anne, and George (as well as the dog, Timmy) are worthy characters. George (really, Georgina) is a girl who doesn't want to be a girl (what girl really wanted to be a girl back then, anyway); George is wildly ahead of her time. The story is full of adventure and mystery, with the kids rowing out to an island sans grownups and exploring an old wreck. What parent now would allow children to do such a thing? But how much fun it would be for kids today to read about it.

I would have read every book, had these stories been available in my school library, and my husband would have, too. Let's hope kids everywhere now have access to this great series.