The Flash Children in Winter

The Flash Children #2

by Mabel Esther Allan, Doreen Caldwell (Illustrator)

Continues the chronicle of the Briggs children - Dilys the eldest, eleven-year-old Arthur and Megan, who is six- who have adjusted well to the physical problems of life in an isolated house beside a Cheshire lake.

128 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1985

About the author

A prolific British children's author, who also wrote under the pen-names Jean Estoril, Priscilla Hagon, Anne Pilgrim, and Kathleen M. Pearcey, Mabel Esther Allan is particularly known for her school and ballet stories.

Born in 1915 at Wallasey on the Wirral Peninsula, Allan knew from an early age that she wanted to be an author, and published her first short stories in the 1930s. Her writing career was interrupted by World War II, during which time she served in the Women's Land Army and taught school in Liverpool, but the 1948 publication of The Glen Castle Mystery saw it begin to take off in earnest. Influenced by Scottish educator A.S. Neill, Allan held progressive views about education, views that often found their way into her books, particularly her school stories. She was interested in folk dance and ballet - another common subject in her work - and was a frequent traveler. She died in 1998.

Reviews

[Louise Culmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this sequel to The Flash Children, it is now halfway through the autumn term and the Briggs children are looking forward to Christmas. The other excitement is that three children have come to stay with their grandparents nearby, and the Briggs children hope to make friends with them. But unfortunately the new children are not friendly, which leads to problems.
Although quite a pleasant story, it is not as interesting as The Flash Children, which had a more absorbing plot.