Which series have you read?

[Rosina]

Susan wrote: "I loved all Enid Blyton, Malcolm Saville, etc. I don't know the last two series you mentioned and I only read a couple of Nancy Drew books, but certainly I moved, almost seamlessly, from Blyton to ..."

I always claim that my father encouraged me to move on from Biggles - to James Bond. But I was borrowing 'adult' books (Christie, Heyer, Ngaio Marsh) on my children's library ticket from the age of 11.

[Susan]

Tintin and Asterix were favourites of mine too, Lady. I also loved E. Nesbit and many, many others.

[Judy]

Lady C, I didn't know there were Bessie Bunter books either. I do remember reading that all the Bessie and Billy Bunter stories and many others were written by the same author, Frank Richards aka Martin Clifford aka various others! I think he was the most prolific English-language author of all time unless anyone has overtaken him.

[Jan C]

Lady Clementina wrote: "Susan wrote: "I loved all Enid Blyton, Malcolm Saville, etc. I don't know the last two series you mentioned and I only read a couple of Nancy Drew books, but certainly I moved, almost seamlessly, f..."

We also had the Bobbsey Twins. I read a number of Nancy Drew.

[Lady Clementina]

Jan C wrote: "Lady Clementina wrote: "Susan wrote: "I loved all Enid Blyton, Malcolm Saville, etc. I don't know the last two series you mentioned and I only read a couple of Nancy Drew books, but certainly I mov..."

Oh yes, the Bobbsey Twins, I don't know how I forgot them- I did read tons of those as well- I still have some but not all of my old ones.

[Susan]

I bet we have all forgotten loads. I recalled My Naughty Little Sister and Milly Molly Mandy as two more I forgot yesterday and Enid Blyton had hundreds, just on her own :)

[Lady Clementina]

I hadn't read My Naughty Little Sister as a child but did read some much later. These were my mother's favourites when she was a child.

I used to read something wth a little girl called Mary Kate by Helen Morgan.

EB has over 700 books I think

[Judy]

Ooh yes, I remember Meet Mary Kate.

I wasn't a big Blyton fan overall though I did like her school stories - but much preferred the Chalet School books by Elinor M. Brent-Dyer. I have never revisited them as an adult though. Loved their Swiss and Austrian settings.

[Susan]

Haven't heard of Mary Kate, but just ordered it for my daughter, so thank you. She loves stuff like that for bedtime stories.

[Jay-me (Janet)]

Judy wrote: "Ooh yes, I remember Meet Mary Kate.

I wasn't a big Blyton fan overall though I did like her school stories - but much preferred the Chalet School books by [author:Elinor M. Brent-..."


I read nearly all of the Chalet school books, I've visited quite a few of the places mentioned in them too.

Enid Blyton, Sam Pig, Milly Molly Mandy, all books that I read plus Biggles, Jennings, Nancy Drew, the Three Investigators (??) the Lone Pine series, Willard Price books about the brothers who captured animals for zoos. There were some about a girl called Susan (I got one of these as a school prize when I was about 7)
When I was in junior school the library gave us three tickets - one had to be used for non fiction. I remember reading some travel books where a brother and sister were taken on holidays and the sightseeing was told more as an adventure. I can't remember the names or titles of any of those books.

As well as the school stories I also read a lot of pony books , plus Sue Barton (nurse) and Anne of Green Gables - both these series were recommended by my mother.

After that I graduated onto Science Fiction books. When I was able to borrow books from the adult library I read Christie (and probably overdid it as I can't face re-reading them now). That took me to my late teens.

[Jay-me (Janet)]

Continued....
When I was seventeen I was given The Lord of the Rings as a Christmas present. That started a reading of fantasy - LOTR is regularly re-read, as are David Eddings and Terry Pratchett.

I read and abandoned Catherine Cookson, read and kept Georgette Heyer and Ellis Peters. Others read in the past have included Ruth Rendell, PD James and Ngaio Marsh.

Since reading on the kindle some of the series I have read include Daisy Dalrymple, Agatha Raisin, Hamish Macbeth, Amelia Peabody,
Jefferson Tayte genealogical mysteries, and countless others.

[Lady Clementina]

Jay-me (Janet) wrote: "Judy wrote: "Ooh yes, I remember Meet Mary Kate.

I wasn't a big Blyton fan overall though I did like her school stories - but much preferred the Chalet School books by [author:Eli..."

Ah yes, the Investigators- again one which I read only a few as a child but many more now. I am really enjoying this series.

The Mary Kate I first read was called Mary Kate and the Schoolbus if I remember right- Illustrated by Shirley Hughes. I remember rereading these often.

[Jan C]

Jay-me (Janet) wrote: "Judy wrote: "Ooh yes, I remember Meet Mary Kate.

I wasn't a big Blyton fan overall though I did like her school stories - but much preferred the Chalet School books by [author:Eli..."

I had forgotten about Sue Barton.

[Rosina]

Jan C wrote: "I had forgotten about Sue Barton.

So had I! Sue Barton, Student Nurse!

[Susan]

I remember Sue Barton. I think I read it after watching, "Angels," was it? The Seventies show about student nurses.

[Lady Clementina]

I hadn't read Sue Barton- but looking it up also came across a series called Penny Parker- written by the author of Nancy Drew (Mildred Wirt), and available through Project Gutenberg.

[Judy]

I do vaguely remember Sue Barton - I think she gets promoted from book to book? Was her husband called Bill?

[Rosina]

Judy wrote: "I do vaguely remember Sue Barton - I think she gets promoted from book to book? Was her husband called Bill?"

I don't know about the husband, but Goodreads entry on Helen Dore Boylston shows that Sue ends up as Staff Nurse (or Superintendent of Nurses).

[Judy]

Thanks Rosina - sounds as if the writer had a very interesting life. I just looked at one of the book write-ups and he was indeed Dr Bill. I see the same author also wrote a series about an actress but I never came across these.

[Susan]

We started reading the Mary Kate books last night. My daughter was amazed that, in the first book, it was her fourth birthday. She thought she sounded so grown up. I do think children were 'written about' as older in books then, but whether they really acted more grown up is less clear. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, or very strict nanny's!

[Lady Clementina]

Susan wrote: "We started reading the Mary Kate books last night. My daughter was amazed that, in the first book, it was her fourth birthday. She thought she sounded so grown up. I do think children were 'written..."

I don't remember whether I read them in any order but the first story I read had her looking at the schoolbus from the window and then in a later story she goes to school in it.

[Susan]

I think the one I got is a more modern collection, so the stories come from various different books.