William and the Space Animal

Just William #30

by Richmal Crompton, Thomas Henry (Illustrator)

William and the Outlaws were going to start a newspaper - the Old Barn Times - when six-year-old Violet Elizabeth Bott came in and put an attache case on the floor.

"Yeth, William," she lisped, "I thtole it. I thtole it from a motor car. You can't have a newthpaper without thomeone thtealing thomething out of a motor car." William's face was blank with horror.

William had wanted a scoop: it looked as if he was going to get one.

Whether Willliam is finding a job - as a spy - for his sister Ethel, planning a Civil War ("When''ll we start?" said Douglas. "This afternoon," said William. "That's the best of a Civil War - you can start it straightaway without havin' to go out to foreign places to start it") or carrying out "sci'ntific" experiments, this is another gloriously funny collection of the adventures of William Brown.

Genres: Fiction, Childrens, Short Stories, Humor

218 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

Richmal Crompton Lamburn was initially trained as a schoolmistress but later became a popular English writer, best known for her Just William series of books, humorous short stories, and to a lesser extent adult fiction books.

Crompton's fiction centres around family and social life, dwelling on the constraints that they place on individuals while also nurturing them. This is best seen in her depiction of children as puzzled onlookers of society's ways. Nevertheless, the children, particularly William and his Outlaws, almost always emerge triumphant.

Reviews

[Rajeev]

Recently I picked up a bunch of children's books including this title and another from the 'William' repertoire to reread and get a view "from the other side". Years ago a friend whom I hold in great esteem for introducing me to the more literary of fictions, had commented that he found William to be a couple of cuts above the rest of the children's cannon of the time and I finally see why. This particular title may not be the best of them. I strongly urge you to start with those written in mid-flow.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another collection of William stories. As with many of the later books, in my opinion this was a little weak, but I did enjoy many of the stories.

My favourite stories included
"William and The Space Animal"
"William Goes For A Nice Little Walk"
"William The Tree Dweller"
"William and the Old Boy"

[Martyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good selection of William stories, some of them reminiscent of earlier ones in the series (which is a good thing). Not outstanding, but perfectly satisfactory.

[Diva · Rating 5 out of 5]

as good as ever, William will never fail in brightening you up. :)