The very helpful readers here have suggested a few titles (thanks so much!) and I've tried most of them, some with better success than others. There was one that was a particularly big hit, recommended by Lilian - Charlie Small.
Charlie Small is an 8-year-old boy who goes on a series of wild adventures and has close encounters with crazy creatures like a spitting Spidion (a cross between a spider and a scorpion). Andre was especially taken by Book 2 "The Perfumed Pirates of Perfidy" which featured, surprise surprise, a gang of cut-throat lady pirates!The books are written in the form of a journal, complete with vivid illustrations which heightens the appeal. It's a series, I'm not sure how many books there are at the moment. The last I counted, there were five but I'm sure the author is still adding to the collection.
I was commenting to Lilian not too long ago that it seems like kids' reading levels are so advanced these days. They're reading Roald Dahl at p1 and below, by the time they're in p4, they're already into Artemis Fowl and Percy Jackson. I was slightly concerned when Andre was still into Beast Quest last year but then Lilian and I recalled that when we were in p4, we were still reading Enid Blytons! And we turned out fine in the English department.
So I'm not going to worry too much about the level of Andre's reading. Reading is not a race (the way everything seems to be in Singapore), there really is no compulsion to get to the difficult books in such a hurry. As long as he reads and enjoys it, that's good enough for me.
LOL@ cut-throat lady pirates...wonder why that's so appealing to Andre.
ReplyDeleteActually, at P4, I wasn't STILL reading Enid Blyton books, I was probably just starting to read her books! I remember reading my first Secret Seven book when I was in P3, and I didn't find it easy :)
Lilian: Yalah, times have really changed. I think I read my first Enid Blyton only in p2, was very into Mallory Towers all through upper primary!
ReplyDeleteI love Mallory Towers, but I started with St Clare's; that was what got me daydreaming of going to boarding schools in Singapore! haha, it was all that talk of Midnight Feasts lah...
ReplyDelete""Golly! Pork-pie and chocolate cake, sardines and Nestlé's milk, chocolate and peppermint creams, tinned pineapple and ginger-beer!" said Janet. "Talk about a feast! I bet this beats the upper third’s feast hollow! Come on—let's begin. I'll cut the cake." : The Twins at St Clare's.
As you can see, even way back then, food was always at the top of my priority haha!
You're not the only one! Enid Blyton made boarding school sound so glamorous - for the longest time, I'd always wondered what ginger beer and pork pies tasted like! The only food item I never quite understood how they could like was cucumber sandwiches :P
ReplyDeleteI loved Enid Blyton books in pri sch days too! As the sch library has limited books, i would rent the books at an Indian shop in Serangoon Gardens. I also devoured Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys. Frankly, I never even heard of Roald Dahl till my adult days. I tried to introduce Enid Blyton to my kids but they are just not into it. My son is still into BQ and Wimpy kids/Amos Lee while my daughter is into the Princess series.
ReplyDeleteMrs Cheng
Mrs Cheng: I think our entire generation grew up on a diet of Enid Blyton! You're right, there was a dearth of choices back in our time. These days, very few kids are into Enid Blyton, mine included. I only heard of Roald Dahl when I was in secondary school.
ReplyDeleteAndre has recently gotten into The Wimpy Kid too. How old is your son?
Quite strange that my girls don't like Enid Blyton - maybe there are lots of other choices nowadays.
ReplyDeleteI think all of out generation grew up on Enid Blyton (Famous 5, Secret 7), Hardy Boys, 3 Investigators, Nancy Drew ... I was reading all this up to P6 ! Then in sec sch it was Agatha Christie for me and Arthur C Clarke plus Hitchhikers Guide.
A good friend of mine who spent much of her life in a UK boarding school actually told me Enid Blyton books were frowned upon for her incorrect use of grammar and vocabulary !
Jo: I know lots of purists frown on Enid Blyton, not just because of the English but the politically incorrectness. But I grew up reading about the Faraway Tree, pixies, boarding school and loved it all!
ReplyDelete"But I grew up reading about the Faraway Tree, pixies, boarding school and loved it all!"
ReplyDeleteDon't forget the golliwogs :P
Haha, I wasn't so keen on the golliwogs, too foreign for me! I was an adult before I saw an actual one in an upmarket toy shop :P
ReplyDeleteCame back to look at your recommendations before setting off to the library today. Having difficulty interesting Jared with fiction after he finished all the Enid Blyton,Roald Dahl,Beverly Cleary (he likes Ramona!) few years ago.. He is into humour, and we did find a few hits with him: Cairo Jim series by Geoffrey Mcskimming, Ordinary Boy series by William Boniface, and recently Terry Deary of Horrible Histories also started this Master Crook's Crime Academy series. Keep them coming!
ReplyDelete