Hilary's Island

by Elinor Lyon, Eileen A. Soper (Illustrator)

When sisters Jane and Judy come to visit their Uncle John in the country one holiday, they confront the mystery of the boy Hilary, and his connection to the demure young Amaryllis.

222 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1948

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Jane and her younger sister Judy come to spend the holidays at their Uncle John's home in the mountains, the two girls initially regret the loss of their usual seaside visit, and wonder whether there will be anything to amuse them in the small lakeside village. No sooner do they arrive, however, than they are catapulted into a local mystery involving a wild prank-pulling young boy who has become the terror of the neighborhood. When a lost sling-shot gives them the opportunity to become acquainted with the boy, named Hilary, they find themselves having many good times on the lake and its islands. But Hilary is not what he seems, and when his connection to the demure Amaryllis Arkwright - an insipidly ladylike girl living near Uncle John, whom the sisters have nicknamed the "China Doll" - Jane and Judy find themselves involved in an exciting adventure with significant consequences for all involved...

Published in 1948, Hilary's Island was the first of English children's author Elinor Lyon's twenty stories for young readers, and one can definitely see some of the themes - outdoor adventures, children off on their own, (mostly) non-interfering adults - that would become hallmarks of her work. She seemed still to be finding her feet as a storyteller here, and it occurred to me, at a number of points, that the young characters' perspectives didn't always ring true. Jane, for instance, sometimes felt a little too mature for her thirteen years to me. I also found it interesting that Lyon had her characters comment disparagingly on "girls' stories" - Judy scornfully asserts, at one point, that Amaryllis' books would all have titles like The Honour of the Lower Fourth; while Jane tells Judy that she has been "reading too many girls' books," when she makes a melodramatic suggestion - a number of times. The assumption, of both author and characters seems to be that boys are naturally more adventurous, and gravitate more toward leadership roles, and although Hilary is eventually revealed as a girl, it is her boy-like qualities that make her an exciting companion.

With the comments about stereotypical "girl" books, and the critical observations of "girly" behavior, Lyon seems to be consciously positioning herself more in the Arthur Ransome school of British children's literature, and distancing herself from the girls' school story world of Elinor M. Brent-Dyer and her compatriots. All of which is interesting, even if it felt a little too crudely done. Leaving all of this aside, Hilary's Island was quite engaging for a first effort, and I think I will continue on, in reading Lyon's work.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book when I was a kid. An adventure book that had girls as the main characters!

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite childhood book.

[Anne Greening]

This was my absolute favourite book as a child. I still have the rather battered hardback copy. Will share this with my Grandchildren.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

really didn’t like when the gardener said “I don’t care how much or little you’re wearing” when walking towards two sunbathing tweens but other than that this book was cool