hades99's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.25
artistpunk's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
megadan777's review against another edition
4.0
I'd never read these books as a kid. We got the Famous 5 boxset for our newborn daughter and I've been reading to her every night (not that she can understand yet). I can see why she was such a popular Children's author and I was completely drawn into the first book as well. Well written adventure story that was thrilling for me to read. Onto the next one...
rakkel_io's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
i'm biased because these were my childhood
bearnadst's review against another edition
3.0
This book is the first book of Famous Five series, i don't want to say it's bad, but it's not that good beside other books of famous five. i really like every character in this book, George who always thinking that she's should not be cry because it's the girl identity, she's want to be a boy. Julian, who always have a bright idea that it saved them all for a dangerous. DICK, I LOVE HIM SO MUCH, in this book he's very shining. Anne too, without her, five can't found a secret well. And yeaaa, don't forget to mention our lovely dog, Tim, he's really cool, truly a guard of the Five. This book is pretty good surface, worth to read.
zarahzoe's review against another edition
I recently read that the famous five is a problematic series because of the gender roles depicted (Mum makes the sandwiches etc), in additiobn to Blyton being racist and xenophobic.
So when I found the first instalment in a freebox, I decided to re-read it and check for myself.
After this one book of 21 I can say I dont think that is the main problem. I don't think a mum making sandwiches in a childrens book will produce kids that will never subscribe to the idea that men make their own food sometimes.
Rather, this completely anachist idea of children rowing around a wild sea in a boat and looking for treasure on an abondoned island is top notch children adventure content, and parents leaving them to their own devices - isn't that the dream of every overprotected child?
But....
See, Famous Five is the series which established in my mind that I wanted to be a Reader, capital R. I took all of them out of the library with my first own library card at age eight. I have fond memories of the characters.
Also, when I thought about if I ever read about a gender-nonconforming child before I was a grown-up myself, George is the only one that comes to mind. What I had apparently forgotten is, how mean eveyone is about Georges' presentation and desire to be more boyish. Everyone, George's parents, George's cousins - they are really mean. I'm glad I forgot about that, but I can also understand why not conforming to stereotypes was hard for me my entire life, if this is the only representation of the topic I had until I was 25 and read my first proper queer book with a happy end (or even age 29 when I read my first book with a non-binary protagonist).
I know I probably have too strong an opinion on this. I don't hate this book. Maybe I'll re-read one or two more of the series, to see if it gets better as it progresses. But tbh, if I had kids, I probably wouldn't want them to read this.
So when I found the first instalment in a freebox, I decided to re-read it and check for myself.
After this one book of 21 I can say I dont think that is the main problem. I don't think a mum making sandwiches in a childrens book will produce kids that will never subscribe to the idea that men make their own food sometimes.
Rather, this completely anachist idea of children rowing around a wild sea in a boat and looking for treasure on an abondoned island is top notch children adventure content, and parents leaving them to their own devices - isn't that the dream of every overprotected child?
But....
See, Famous Five is the series which established in my mind that I wanted to be a Reader, capital R. I took all of them out of the library with my first own library card at age eight. I have fond memories of the characters.
Also, when I thought about if I ever read about a gender-nonconforming child before I was a grown-up myself, George is the only one that comes to mind. What I had apparently forgotten is, how mean eveyone is about Georges' presentation and desire to be more boyish. Everyone, George's parents, George's cousins - they are really mean. I'm glad I forgot about that, but I can also understand why not conforming to stereotypes was hard for me my entire life, if this is the only representation of the topic I had until I was 25 and read my first proper queer book with a happy end (or even age 29 when I read my first book with a non-binary protagonist).
I know I probably have too strong an opinion on this. I don't hate this book. Maybe I'll re-read one or two more of the series, to see if it gets better as it progresses. But tbh, if I had kids, I probably wouldn't want them to read this.
freddyfinch's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
savii's review against another edition
It's funny how a memory can be hidden so deep down, you forget it even exists. I just saw a kid on the train read this book and I'm IN SHOCK. How could I forget how much I loved reading this as a kid? How is that possible? This series was such a big part of my childhood
mrsmangoa's review against another edition
4.0
Read Blyton books as a teenager and I throughly enjoyed them. I think I especially enjoyed the mystery and relationships of the characters.
saloniporwal's review against another edition
4.0
I have to say, I fell in love with George immediately. I think she is the only character who actually grows during this book. The side characters, especially uncle Quentin brought on a unique layer to the plot. I must mention that ...more