![]() ![]() The books just exude this irresistible allure of simple, wholesome living that seems so out of reach for us in modernity, so much so that we ache with longing and a vague sense of loss. Not much stuck with me, but there are two things I still recall from those books: how butter is made, what skimmed milk is, and Tammylan, a “wild man” who acted as the children’s kindly and unconventional mentor, teaching them about rural living and their relationship to nature. There were amazing slice-of-life stories that depicted life in the English countryside, with multiple vignettes into the peculiarities of English wildlife, and British farming as it was in the 1940’s. By this point, I was already deep into Blyton’s Famous Five, the Five Find-Outers and Dog, and her many boarding school books, and I was so delighted to discover hitherto uncharted Blyton territory (for me) that I borrowed all of them and read them. They are called The Children of Cherry Tree Farm, The Children of Willow Farm, and More Adventures on Willow Farm. ![]() ![]() ![]() When I was in school in my tweens, I discovered this series of three books by Enid Blyton about 4 siblings going to live on a farm in my school library. These are the things to fear, said the headmaster. Having eyes, but not seeing beauty having ears, but not hearing music having minds, but not perceiving truth having hearts that are never moved and therefore never set on fire. ![]()
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