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Biggles #40
Biggles Goes to School
Chlapci jménem Bigglesworth je už čtrnáct let, když začíná objevovat život v Anglii - dosud totiž vyrůstal v daleké Indii. Udivují ho zde města i příroda, nejvíc ovšem anglická škola. Zažívá řadu dobrodružství, jde mj. o střet s párem zákeřných darebů, dobytí nepřátelské vlajky při dobrovolnickém cvičení či souboj s drsným pytlákem. A pak se na obloze zjevuje zázrak. Biggles vidí první letadlo!
193 pages, Hardcover
First published June 7, 1951
2 people are currently reading
68 people want to read
About the author
W.E. Johns
613 books113 followersInvariably known as Captain W.E. Johns, William Earl Johns was born in Bengeo, Hertfordshire, England. He was the son of Richard Eastman Johns, a tailor, and Elizabeth Johns (née Earl), the daughter of a master butcher. He had a younger brother, Russell Ernest Johns, who was born on 24 October 1895.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 24, 2020
The Boy Biggles
24 January 2020
First of all, I really do hope I didn’t end up paying $35.00 for this book, though a part of me probably shouldn’t be all that surprised if I did, considering that these old Biggles books, particularly the ones that still have the cover, can actually fetch quite a pretty penny, especially from collectors. Actually, I can’t quite remember where I got this one from, though I do tend to keep an eye out for them, especially if they happen to be sold by a place that doesn’t quite know how much these books may be worth.
So, as the author mentions, this book was written because a lot of people were asking him to write a story about when Biggles went to school. Mind you, it does make me wonder how they asked him since he really wasn’t around in the age of the internet, but I do suspect that he probably did get an awful lot of fan mail. Actually, come to think of it, I suspect that a lot of people communicated with authors (though I suspect it was generally all one way) by writing to them.
However, as the author suggests, there probably isn’t all that much to say about Biggle’s time at school, though of course since he is a bit of an adventurer, it might be an idea to throw him into an adventure early on in his life. Then again, it was also suggested that he grew up in India and that he returned to England to go to a proper English boarding school (because the suggestion was that there really wasn’t much in a way of such schools in India). Yeah, it sounds like this is going to be the typical boarding school type of book, though it does feel these days that boarding schools have pretty much gone to the wayside, though they still do exist.
The story focuses on his first few months at the school, and then we begin going on some adventures with Biggles, most of them really only taking up a single chapter. However, that changes somewhat about halfway through when the adventure proper begins, and it basically involves poaching game from a local estate, something that Biggles, who went there to get some chestnuts because, well, all of the easily accessible trees have been stripped bare by other students. Here he basically runs into a full-blown investigation that has a few twists and turns in it.
Actually, one of the interesting things that are done is that the author doesn’t do things by half, and while not all of the stories are building up for the conclusion (such as the one involving the missing diamond ring), many of them are, and a lot of things happen based on events that had occurred earlier. It was something that I felt was well done, because while at first, it seemed as if all of the stories were independent, it became clear fairly quickly that there was a thread running through all of them, and something that happened earlier in the book, ended up being quite important later on.
So, yeah, this book wasn't bad. It was a pretty quick read, though I suspect that this had something to do with it basically being a boys book. I would say a children’s book, but back in the days in which this was written, the authors tended to target books towards either boys, or girls, and one really didn’t read books that were geared towards others. This isn’t actually something that one tends to find the case these days, though I have to admit that I generally down read much in the way of youth, or young adult, fiction, with the exception of these books that my Dad used to collect when he was young.
24 January 2020
First of all, I really do hope I didn’t end up paying $35.00 for this book, though a part of me probably shouldn’t be all that surprised if I did, considering that these old Biggles books, particularly the ones that still have the cover, can actually fetch quite a pretty penny, especially from collectors. Actually, I can’t quite remember where I got this one from, though I do tend to keep an eye out for them, especially if they happen to be sold by a place that doesn’t quite know how much these books may be worth.
So, as the author mentions, this book was written because a lot of people were asking him to write a story about when Biggles went to school. Mind you, it does make me wonder how they asked him since he really wasn’t around in the age of the internet, but I do suspect that he probably did get an awful lot of fan mail. Actually, come to think of it, I suspect that a lot of people communicated with authors (though I suspect it was generally all one way) by writing to them.
However, as the author suggests, there probably isn’t all that much to say about Biggle’s time at school, though of course since he is a bit of an adventurer, it might be an idea to throw him into an adventure early on in his life. Then again, it was also suggested that he grew up in India and that he returned to England to go to a proper English boarding school (because the suggestion was that there really wasn’t much in a way of such schools in India). Yeah, it sounds like this is going to be the typical boarding school type of book, though it does feel these days that boarding schools have pretty much gone to the wayside, though they still do exist.
The story focuses on his first few months at the school, and then we begin going on some adventures with Biggles, most of them really only taking up a single chapter. However, that changes somewhat about halfway through when the adventure proper begins, and it basically involves poaching game from a local estate, something that Biggles, who went there to get some chestnuts because, well, all of the easily accessible trees have been stripped bare by other students. Here he basically runs into a full-blown investigation that has a few twists and turns in it.
Actually, one of the interesting things that are done is that the author doesn’t do things by half, and while not all of the stories are building up for the conclusion (such as the one involving the missing diamond ring), many of them are, and a lot of things happen based on events that had occurred earlier. It was something that I felt was well done, because while at first, it seemed as if all of the stories were independent, it became clear fairly quickly that there was a thread running through all of them, and something that happened earlier in the book, ended up being quite important later on.
So, yeah, this book wasn't bad. It was a pretty quick read, though I suspect that this had something to do with it basically being a boys book. I would say a children’s book, but back in the days in which this was written, the authors tended to target books towards either boys, or girls, and one really didn’t read books that were geared towards others. This isn’t actually something that one tends to find the case these days, though I have to admit that I generally down read much in the way of youth, or young adult, fiction, with the exception of these books that my Dad used to collect when he was young.
November 23, 2025
De schooljaren van Biggles en dat merk je aan de afbeelding op de cover. Ook het boek zal volledig in overeenstemming zijn met andere (jognens)kostschoolverhalen uit die tijd. Zoals de oudere boeken van P.G. Wodehouse.
Het gaat wel over Biggles maar we weten natuurlijk al uit de latere verhalen (chronologisch volgens Biggles leeftijd) dat hij zijn vrienden destijds nog niet kende. In dit boek zal hij dan ook 1 vriend maken, al zal die wel de mindere blijken tegenover Biggles wat moed betreft.
Biggles maakt kennis met het kostschoolleven in Engeland na een heel vrije jeugd in India - en dat verschil merkt hij al op de eerste dag wanneer hij meteen een slechte indruk maakt op het schoolhoofd en ook al op de eerste dag zich moet melden voor straf. Destijds waren lijfstraffen nog gewoon op Engelse kostscholen. Hij maakt al meteen twee vijanden, de pestkoppen van de school die in combine sterker dan de rest zijn. De eerste hoofdstukken worden dan ook besteed aan het beschrijven van de pesterijen en de manieren waarop Biggles er mee omgaat, want buigen doet hij niet, dan liever barsten. Soms krijgt hij straf, soms kan hij zich verbergen of er zich uit redden.
Zo krijgen we het verhaal van de verborgen grot en de kennismaking met de dame op wiens terrein die te vinden is. Biggles zal enkele kleine "goede daden" verrichten, zoals het terugvinden van een diamanten ring en daarbij de zuster van bovengenoemde dame uit de gevangenis bevrijden. Ook maakt hij kennis met de zigeunerkermis en de gevolgen van stropen. Met schade en schande leert hij tot W.E. Johns de rest van het boek besteed aan het proberen te grijpen van een moordenaar.
Dus geleidelijk gaat het van het normale kostschoolleven naar het serieuzere werk wat dan een aanwijzing moet zijn hoe de verdere carrière van Biggles zal verlopen.
Een klein stukje gaat over zijn kennismaking met de luchtvaart, de landing van een vliegtuig op het schoolterrein door een oud-leerling waarbij Biggles getuigt van zijn droom om ook eens te kunnen vliegen. Zelfs wanneer de piloot vlak daarna neerstort en daarbij sterft zal dat zijn verlangen niet beïnvloeden.
Een goed verhaal en een must voor wie Biggles beter wil leren kennen. Volgens het voorwoord is het dan ook enkel geschreven na lang aandringen van de fans.
Het gaat wel over Biggles maar we weten natuurlijk al uit de latere verhalen (chronologisch volgens Biggles leeftijd) dat hij zijn vrienden destijds nog niet kende. In dit boek zal hij dan ook 1 vriend maken, al zal die wel de mindere blijken tegenover Biggles wat moed betreft.
Biggles maakt kennis met het kostschoolleven in Engeland na een heel vrije jeugd in India - en dat verschil merkt hij al op de eerste dag wanneer hij meteen een slechte indruk maakt op het schoolhoofd en ook al op de eerste dag zich moet melden voor straf. Destijds waren lijfstraffen nog gewoon op Engelse kostscholen. Hij maakt al meteen twee vijanden, de pestkoppen van de school die in combine sterker dan de rest zijn. De eerste hoofdstukken worden dan ook besteed aan het beschrijven van de pesterijen en de manieren waarop Biggles er mee omgaat, want buigen doet hij niet, dan liever barsten. Soms krijgt hij straf, soms kan hij zich verbergen of er zich uit redden.
Zo krijgen we het verhaal van de verborgen grot en de kennismaking met de dame op wiens terrein die te vinden is. Biggles zal enkele kleine "goede daden" verrichten, zoals het terugvinden van een diamanten ring en daarbij de zuster van bovengenoemde dame uit de gevangenis bevrijden. Ook maakt hij kennis met de zigeunerkermis en de gevolgen van stropen. Met schade en schande leert hij tot W.E. Johns de rest van het boek besteed aan het proberen te grijpen van een moordenaar.
Dus geleidelijk gaat het van het normale kostschoolleven naar het serieuzere werk wat dan een aanwijzing moet zijn hoe de verdere carrière van Biggles zal verlopen.
Een klein stukje gaat over zijn kennismaking met de luchtvaart, de landing van een vliegtuig op het schoolterrein door een oud-leerling waarbij Biggles getuigt van zijn droom om ook eens te kunnen vliegen. Zelfs wanneer de piloot vlak daarna neerstort en daarbij sterft zal dat zijn verlangen niet beïnvloeden.
Een goed verhaal en een must voor wie Biggles beter wil leren kennen. Volgens het voorwoord is het dan ook enkel geschreven na lang aandringen van de fans.
January 24, 2018
I found this enjoyable. It's actually my first Biggles book, but not my first old-style British boarding school fiction. It's a bit different from others in the genre because there's less emphasis on the school life (although Biggles gets bullied and has to fight back against bigger boys) and more emphasis on adventure. It's told in the form of short stories, finishing with a longer story, which was my favorite, although I also enjoyed the war maneuvers with the cadet corps.
It did not really have the heavy drama that I often enjoy in these books (the boy unjustly accused and rejected by his friends who manages to prove himself, or things like that), but it was entertaining.
It did not really have the heavy drama that I often enjoy in these books (the boy unjustly accused and rejected by his friends who manages to prove himself, or things like that), but it was entertaining.
October 11, 2020
This is a more interesting Biggles book than many others written during the same time. Instead of flying to Africa, getting eaten by lions of crocodiles, we get to meet a young Biggles who has been sent to school in England. Through the adventures young Biggles observes or takes part in, we get to see how he was shaped to become the adventurer and leader he later became.
Then again, my four star rating should not be seen in a vacuum. It's a good adventure book if you want something simple and are prepared to overlook things that could make a 21st century person cringe. It's nothing more.
Then again, my four star rating should not be seen in a vacuum. It's a good adventure book if you want something simple and are prepared to overlook things that could make a 21st century person cringe. It's nothing more.
September 29, 2024
Having decided to revisit some of my Biggles books I picked this one to follow on from the first. This book is notable as one of two Biggles books which does not feature flying, being instead an account of his schooldays. So far as I can tell the story is fine example of an English school story of which there are a great many. There is a bit of action ad a few insights into Biggles' character as we see it in other books, but this is probably one more for Biggles fans than for any other audience.
June 8, 2018
This Biggles book is a very simple one. Probably a good starter. Even though it was written before 'The Boy Biggles', it feels like it's a gap bridger, or even a book to get the younger boys wanting to read the Biggles books he'd already written. A proper Biggles book with a variety of adventures at school that would lead him to be the man he becomes. The longer story right at the end is very cleverly written and perhaps the best of the lot.
January 12, 2026
Na een aantal op zichzelf staande hoofdstukken veranderden de laatste hoofdstukken het verhaal van een bundel tot een boek. Met een aardig eind tot slot al is daar ook wel het nodige op aan te merken. Volgens mij is dit niet de beste introductie op de serie.
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June 20, 2024crazy that the one chapter with an aeroplane is actually mostly about biggles befriending a large brown bear
December 22, 2025
I am reviewing the series as a whole, rather than the books individually
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
October 12, 2013
Head of School - “You know what they call people who are afraid?”
Biggles - “Yes, sir.”
“What?”
“Funks.”
The Head’s lip twitched. “You wouldn’t like to be called that, would you?”
“No, sir.”
Before I read this book, I never thought that I'd ever think of Biggles as cute. But in this one when he's starting out at school, he's just adorable.
Biggles is the type that is mainly confident through experience. He has absolutely no clue about “white boys” and their humour. He's fresh from India and England is so foreign to him.
Of course he gets bullied. He's small and different. It's a bit strange to see his iron determination coming into play in a domestic situation. His school is a military one where bullying and fighting is the norm – almost encouraged.
Biggles being Biggles gets the chance to turn the tables on his tormentors. But this is such a British book, he just becomes friends with them eventually. The easy forgiveness of the old days really can be startling sometimes.
Biggles - “Yes, sir.”
“What?”
“Funks.”
The Head’s lip twitched. “You wouldn’t like to be called that, would you?”
“No, sir.”
Before I read this book, I never thought that I'd ever think of Biggles as cute. But in this one when he's starting out at school, he's just adorable.
Biggles is the type that is mainly confident through experience. He has absolutely no clue about “white boys” and their humour. He's fresh from India and England is so foreign to him.
Of course he gets bullied. He's small and different. It's a bit strange to see his iron determination coming into play in a domestic situation. His school is a military one where bullying and fighting is the norm – almost encouraged.
Biggles being Biggles gets the chance to turn the tables on his tormentors. But this is such a British book, he just becomes friends with them eventually. The easy forgiveness of the old days really can be startling sometimes.
August 22, 2012
Unlike the chronologically previous "The boy Biggles", this book is entertaining. It is like y typical "young adult"/schoolkid novel (and by that, I mean this genre as it was when I grew up, meaning Ransome, Kästner, Blyton), combined with Biggles-like discretion, strategic planning and critical thinking. Collection of short stories, Biggles deals with bullies, solves criminal case, makes humorous intrusion into fossils-led military excersise - and sees plane for the first time.
This indeed makes a nice addition to the "Biggles library" and truly corresponds with Biggles'es character and modus operandi.
This indeed makes a nice addition to the "Biggles library" and truly corresponds with Biggles'es character and modus operandi.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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February 4, 2019I am not sure what to rate this book. It very much reflects its time. In one sense some dashing adventures of a young Biggles in his boys’ school. Yet, here and there some comments even if brief that struck me as very out of sync with how we see things now. The most worrying was only a couple of sentences but contained a sweeping reference to domestic violence.
Will see what the other Biggles books I have are like, hope these also do not have throw away urrrgh bits in them
Will see what the other Biggles books I have are like, hope these also do not have throw away urrrgh bits in them
September 30, 2014
Not sure if I have ever read this one.
June 28, 2016
oude jeugdboek. Minstens 20 jaar geleden voor het laatst gelezen.
Oubollig, Zoet Verhaal, maar daarom niet minder leuk. Wel heel wat anders dan het tegenwoordige jeugdverhaal.
Oubollig, Zoet Verhaal, maar daarom niet minder leuk. Wel heel wat anders dan het tegenwoordige jeugdverhaal.
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