The Twins at St Clare's (by Enid Blyton)

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Like so many of my generation, I grew up reading Enid Blyton books. She appealed at so many levels, and wrote for both younger and older children as well as young teens. I started when I was about four or five with the ‘Faraway Tree’ series. I moved through Brer Rabbit, and books of short stories about fairies, and brownies and dolls that came to life. And then I discovered the school series books. I read and re-read them many times as a child, and in my teens. 

As an adult I didn’t dip into them so often; indeed, I sometimes forgot about them entirely for a while. But now I have a seven-year-old granddaughter who listens to the ‘St Clare’s’ series on audio books as she goes to sleep. I was staying with the family, and kept hearing tantalising snippets of the stories. So I decided to re-read the series again once I was back home. 

It’s ten years since I last read ‘The Twins at St Clare’s’, which is the first in the series. I remembered the overview of the story, of course. Pat and Isabel O’Sullivan are fourteen, and have had to leave the boarding school they had been attending for several years. Their friends are going to an expensive and rather snooty boarding school; but their parents have been concerned that the twins are getting a bit snobby. So they’re going to send them to St Clare’s, a down-to-earth school with a good reputation for academics.

Pat and Isabel are determined to hate St Clare’s, and do as badly as they can. But, inevitably, they start to make friends and realise that it’s not so bad after all. By the end of their first term, they love their new school and are already looking forward to returning after the Christmas holidays. Not exactly a new or unique theme, but each author does it differently, and it works quite well.

As an adult, I can see that Enid Blyton’s writing style is not the greatest. There’s quite a bit of repetition, and some author input that really isn’t necessary. Writers are told to ‘show not tell’, and Blyton does well at the ‘showing’: the individual incidents and subplots are well done. But she ‘tells’ as well. Perhaps she thought her young readers wouldn’t understand if she didn’t explain. 

However, it’s a relatively minor gripe. The people are believable, the characterisation good. Pat and Isabel are identical, but their personalities are not exactly the same. Pat is more hot-tempered, and Isabel sometimes calms her down. In their class, the girls also have distinct characters. Janet is brusque and outspoken, but doesn’t want to hurt anyone. Doris is a bit of a clown, who loves making people laugh. But she’s not at all academic. Hilary, head of the form, is responsible and mature, but also has a sense of humour. 

Then there’s Kathleen who is shy and a bit reserved. Nobody really gets to know her until an incident blows up which Pat handles with some maturity. And there’s Sheila, who is rather boastful about the mansion where she lives with its many bathrooms. There are others, but they don’t have major roles to play in this book. Lessons are learned (not just academic ones), and there is encouragement towards honesty, courage and generosity. 

There are a couple of senior girls who are involved in the story: the wise head girl, Winifred, and the sports captain, Belinda. We also get to know Miss Theobald, the Head, somewhat. She’s kind, and understanding, and usually available to everyone. Miss Roberts, the first form mistress, is quite strict but very fair, and Mamzelle, the French teacher, is unpredictable but kind-hearted. 

There are tricks played on a rather timid mistress, a midnight feast, and an end-of-term concert. There’s also a visit to a circus, with a nod to another series by Enid Blyton, ‘Mr Galliano’s Circus’.  It’s a full and busy term, and I liked the blend of storylines involving different girls, and sometimes the staff too. Naturally there are some caricatures (Mamzelle is one of them, as is the strict but kind Matron), but it doesn’t matter. 

‘The Twins at St Clare’s’ was first published in 1941, so inevitably it’s rather dated. There’s no technology more complicated than a radio or record player, and all the girls write letters weekly. Currency is in the form of shillings, and a few pennies go a lot further than they did even twenty years later. And yet, the characters of the girls seem fresh and quite modern, albeit more focused on everyday life, rather than caught up with life online. 

I’m very pleased that these books are regularly reprinted (albeit with some modifications, apparently) and that they still appeal to young people. Ten years ago a nine-year-old friend liked them; more recently her younger sister read them. My granddaughter is thoroughly enjoying them now, and I am already looking forward to reading the second in the series some time next month. 

I suspect that adults will only appreciate these books if, like me, they read them as children. Despite the twins being fourteen, these were written for ages 9-11. They’re more likely to appeal to girls than boys, since this is an all-girls’ school. But some boys like them too. They’re good as read-alouds, and also good for fluently reading children to try for themselves from about age six or seven upwards. There’s plenty of action, and most chapters are complete in themselves, although there’s an overall story arc too.

Recommended.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews