Swallows and Amazons

Arthur Ransome

Swallows and Amazons
Format
Paperback
Publisher
Vintage
Country
United Kingdom
Published
1 August 2012
Pages
432
ISBN
9780099572794

Swallows and Amazons

Arthur Ransome

Swallows And Amazons for ever!

The Walker children - also known as Captain John, Mate Susan, Able-Seaman Titty, and Ship’s Boy Roger - set sail on the Swallow and head for Wild Cat Island. There they camp under open skies, swim in clear water and go fishing for their dinner. But their days are disturbed by the Blackett sisters, the fierce Amazon pirates.

The Swallows And Amazons decide to battle it out, and so begins a summer of unforgettable discoveries and incredible adventures.

Review

Before there was Enid Blyton’s Famous Five adventures there was Arthur Ransome’s 1930 classic Swallows and Amazons.

Wild Cat Island has been invaded by the holidaying Swallows (the four Walker siblings) in their dinghy. When they are confronted by the Amazons – the two slightly older Blackett sisters who are the ‘founders’ of the island – the two families of children enter a friendly rivalry, devising a challenge to determine who will be the Commodore of the Fleet. Serious stuff, indeed! But first of all, they have to sort out the dastardly Captain Flint, a.k.a. the Amazons’ Uncle Jim, who finds his nieces annoying and is convinced the Swallows are sabotaging his boat.

Permitted by their parents to camp on the little island, the Walker children must fend for themselves with basic provisions and the occasional delicious delivery from their mother. They must row to the mainland every morning to purchase milk from the farmers (a cunning way for their mother to keep tabs on their safety). They are practical, sensible children who approach island life seriously, offset with imaginative role-playing and a marvelous camaraderie where each child’s strengths contribute to the success of the team. John, the eldest Walker child, is the captain as he knows the most about sailing, and except for a couple of stereotypes, I was struck by Arthur Ransome’s egalitarian approach to the sexes in an era not always kind to girls and women. He is never patronising and portrays the children as self-determining individuals without any sentimentality.

This immensely enjoyable classic doesn’t feel dated except for the freedom the children are allowed. Other than struggling with the nautical nomenclature (a glossary would have helped) I was living the camping and sailing life in all its vivid and charming escapism. For ages 9+.


Alexa Dretzke is the assistant manager and children’s book buyer at Readings Hawthorn.

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