The Folk of the Faraway Tree: 1 (The Magic Faraway Tree)

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And there you have it. These stories all revolve around the central characters mentioned and their adventures both in the Faraway Tree and in the lands above. Like I said, simple adventure based stories for kids to grip onto rather than have to wade through the scene and character formation. The Folk of the Faraway Tree is the third enchanting story in the Faraway Tree series by the world's best-loved children's author, Enid Blyton. Given the recent furore over rewriting Roald Dahl, I wonder if we'll ever get justice for the Faraway Tree?

All across the USA, people are showing up dead. The deaths don't appear to be connected in any way until one particular death occurs and gets the Secretary of Defense's attention. He arranges for a task force to investigate. The Faraway Tree series were particular favourites of mine however, and I had been hankering to revisit them for some time. I knew I was taking the risk of marring my rose-tinted memories of this series but decided to proceed, regardless.

But now grim times are upon them. Troll Thieves are cutting at the roots of the Faraway Tree in search of jewel stones, and the tree is now dying. There are no fruits anymore, and the leaves are old and withered. It's a dim and dark age, and the Folk grow sad and worried. But in this and some other modern editions, the corporal punishment – and any sense of threat – has just been silently removed.

There are a few small quibbles I have with some aspects of the book, though not enough to fully dampen my fondness for it. The biggest one is Connie constantly being referred to as 'curious' as if curiosity is a negative trait. Most of the time Connie is not what I would call curious, but rather nosy and at times spiteful and self-absorbed. The description on Goodreads calls her 'bossy Connie' which I think works better. I don't think curiosity is a trait to steer children away from, though certainly it is a good idea to try and impart how to ask questions in a respectful way.

Blyton was a prolific author of children's books, who penned an estimated 800 books over about 40 years. Her stories were often either children's adventure and mystery stories, or fantasies involving magic. Notable series include: The Famous Five, The Secret Seven, The Five Find-Outers, Noddy, The Wishing Chair, Mallory Towers, and St. Clare's. I will always know Enid Blyton as the author whose name is written so unclear on the books, to my non-English eyes, it could be read as Enicl, Gnid, or Enid. So for many many many years I never actually knew what the name really is. I've had to dig out the original creased, coverless versions of these books that I had as a child so my own kids can get the proper story. Five stars for those; two stars for the neutered rewrite. So I say to anyone, read this to your young kids, it is brilliant. Full of fantasy and adventure but really simplified. There are no in-depth plots, it is just one adventure after another, no slow character build-ups, just in your face - these are the characters, now let's go.