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The Five Find-Outers #9
The Mystery of the Vanished Prince
Prince Bongawah goes missing from a camp near Peterswood. His uncle is trying to get control of his country and is trying to remove the heir to the throne. The Five Find-Outers realise that to get away, the Prince had to hide in the bottom of a pram, but the plan is even more cunning.
250 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1951
59 people are currently reading
717 people want to read
About the author
Enid Blyton
5,132 books6,299 followersSee also:
Ένιντ Μπλάιτον (Greek)
Enida Blaitona (Latvian)
Энид Блайтон (Russian)
Inid Blajton (Serbian)
Інід Блайтон (Ukrainian)
Enid Mary Blyton (1897–1968) was an English author of children's books.
Born in South London, Blyton was the eldest of three children, and showed an early interest in music and reading. She was educated at St. Christopher's School, Beckenham, and - having decided not to pursue her music - at Ipswich High School, where she trained as a kindergarten teacher. She taught for five years before her 1924 marriage to editor Hugh Pollock, with whom she had two daughters. This marriage ended in divorce, and Blyton remarried in 1943, to surgeon Kenneth Fraser Darrell Waters. She died in 1968, one year after her second husband.
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.
According to the Index Translationum, Blyton was the fifth most popular author in the world in 2007, coming after Lenin but ahead of Shakespeare.
See also her pen name Mary Pollock
Ένιντ Μπλάιτον (Greek)
Enida Blaitona (Latvian)
Энид Блайтон (Russian)
Inid Blajton (Serbian)
Інід Блайтон (Ukrainian)
Enid Mary Blyton (1897–1968) was an English author of children's books.
Born in South London, Blyton was the eldest of three children, and showed an early interest in music and reading. She was educated at St. Christopher's School, Beckenham, and - having decided not to pursue her music - at Ipswich High School, where she trained as a kindergarten teacher. She taught for five years before her 1924 marriage to editor Hugh Pollock, with whom she had two daughters. This marriage ended in divorce, and Blyton remarried in 1943, to surgeon Kenneth Fraser Darrell Waters. She died in 1968, one year after her second husband.
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.
According to the Index Translationum, Blyton was the fifth most popular author in the world in 2007, coming after Lenin but ahead of Shakespeare.
See also her pen name Mary Pollock
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
April 27, 2016
I'm going to try and review books from my childhood everyday, hopefully, and what better way to start than Enid Blyton, the queen of children's novels. I'm starting with this particular book, because this was the first book of this series I read, and The Five Find-Outers series is my favourite of all of Blyton's works.
Enid Blyton reminds me of a time when the most of my worries was completing my homework on time. I read this book in my summer holidays, and I wanted to be there, in Peterswood, because their summers are so much more amazing, what with lemonade, and macroons, and that little tea shop, and disguises, and of course, the lovable Mr. Goon. Yeah, he's lovable. He's just always in the wrong place at the wrong time. In this particular book, our five friends kind of get into a sticky situation when they disguise themselves as relatives of one, Prince Bongawah, who ends up kidnapped. Mr. Goon, of course, has to turn up when the role-play is happening, as should his utterly daft and gullible nephews Ern, Sid, and Perce. Coo? Coo. What follows is a comedy of errors that ultimately leads to the Prince being found, and everyone being happy. Pretty simple story, you say? Sure, but Blyton is a master of the English language, and her sense of humour is impeccable. With 'pomes' like "The pore old gardener" and "There was a coff that carried him off", delectable dishes a la classic Enid Blyton style, disguises including Princess Bongawee and old John Smith, the humour in this book is on point. Mr. Goon is as mean and goofy as always, and gets himself into the most laughable situations. Ern provides the usual comic relief with his portry, and Fatty acts like "da man". It's all the same, and yet, I absolutely adore this book. My friends and I also spent an more time than necessary "letting our tongues loose to talk foreign", and suffice to say, we got farther than abbledy gabbledy.
Enid Blyton reminds me of a time when the most of my worries was completing my homework on time. I read this book in my summer holidays, and I wanted to be there, in Peterswood, because their summers are so much more amazing, what with lemonade, and macroons, and that little tea shop, and disguises, and of course, the lovable Mr. Goon. Yeah, he's lovable. He's just always in the wrong place at the wrong time. In this particular book, our five friends kind of get into a sticky situation when they disguise themselves as relatives of one, Prince Bongawah, who ends up kidnapped. Mr. Goon, of course, has to turn up when the role-play is happening, as should his utterly daft and gullible nephews Ern, Sid, and Perce. Coo? Coo. What follows is a comedy of errors that ultimately leads to the Prince being found, and everyone being happy. Pretty simple story, you say? Sure, but Blyton is a master of the English language, and her sense of humour is impeccable. With 'pomes' like "The pore old gardener" and "There was a coff that carried him off", delectable dishes a la classic Enid Blyton style, disguises including Princess Bongawee and old John Smith, the humour in this book is on point. Mr. Goon is as mean and goofy as always, and gets himself into the most laughable situations. Ern provides the usual comic relief with his portry, and Fatty acts like "da man". It's all the same, and yet, I absolutely adore this book. My friends and I also spent an more time than necessary "letting our tongues loose to talk foreign", and suffice to say, we got farther than abbledy gabbledy.
May 7, 2017
I think this book deserves five stars for this poem (or pome) alone ...
“A pore old gardener said, ‘Ah me!
My days is almost done,
I'’ve got rheumatics in my knee,
And now it’s hard to run.
I'’ve got a measle in my foot,
And chilblains on my nose,
And bless me if I haven'’t got
Pneumonia in my toes.
All my hair has fallen out,
My teeth have fallen in,
I'’m really getting rather stout,
Although I’'m much too thin.
My nose is deaf, my ears are dumb,
My tongue is tied in knots,
And now my barrow and my spade
Have all come out in spots.
My watering-can is…’ ”
“A pore old gardener said, ‘Ah me!
My days is almost done,
I'’ve got rheumatics in my knee,
And now it’s hard to run.
I'’ve got a measle in my foot,
And chilblains on my nose,
And bless me if I haven'’t got
Pneumonia in my toes.
All my hair has fallen out,
My teeth have fallen in,
I'’m really getting rather stout,
Although I’'m much too thin.
My nose is deaf, my ears are dumb,
My tongue is tied in knots,
And now my barrow and my spade
Have all come out in spots.
My watering-can is…’ ”
Read
December 28, 2017Findouters Challenge: Book 9. Pip and Bets have been without their friends in Peterswood for most of the summer vacation but with two weeks of holiday left, Larry and Daisy and Fatty return. Finding no “mystery” waiting to be solved by them, they decide to try their hand at disguises again this time using costumes Fatty picked up in Morocco. But when Ern surprises them by coming along, they take him in with their disguises, Bets pretending to be Princess Bongawee, the “sister” of Prince Bongawah who is staying at a school camp in Peterswood. They go into town in disguise also taking in poor Mr Goon yet again. But when the real Prince goes missing, suspected to be kidnapped, the Findouters realise their tricks have got them into trouble again. Inspector Jenks, now Chief Inspector is also displeased. They decide to solve the mystery and pass the information on to Mr Goon to make up for what they’ve done. But of course, Goon is unwilling (justifiably) to believe them. But whether or not Goon believes them, nothing can deter the Findouters from solving “a nice juicy mystery” and that’s what they go on to do in this one.
This findouters mystery wasn’t very PC, particularly the sections on their disguises and some of the children’s observations on the Prince. Another negative for me was the children’s attitude towards Ern and his brothers (Sid and Perce, making their first appearance in the series) simply dismissing them as unintelligent, though it is Sid who ultimately supplies them with a valuable clue. Bets’ role was also not as important as in previous mysteries in the series where it is she that finds the key to the puzzle (here Pip does, just like the previous book), and she also doesn’t manage to quite see through Fatty’s disguise at the beginning something she did in earlier books, both through intuition and logic. But that said, the mystery itself in this book was a real corker. In fact, while I had read this book before, I had forgotten that the solution was not very straightforward―even once they’ve solved part of it, there is another surprise reveal. This one certainly does fall within the more “creative” mysteries in the series. Once again Fatty uses not only his disguises but his skills in escaping a locked room in finally resolving it all. On the foodmeter too, this one does pretty well―plenty of icecream, lemonade, sandwiches and pies. We also sample more of Ern’s por’try (the one I remember best, “the Pore Old Gardener” was in this one), and see Sid’s love of stickjaw toffee, which very nearly prevents him from revealing what he knows. So a fun read except for some little things.
This findouters mystery wasn’t very PC, particularly the sections on their disguises and some of the children’s observations on the Prince. Another negative for me was the children’s attitude towards Ern and his brothers (Sid and Perce, making their first appearance in the series) simply dismissing them as unintelligent, though it is Sid who ultimately supplies them with a valuable clue. Bets’ role was also not as important as in previous mysteries in the series where it is she that finds the key to the puzzle (here Pip does, just like the previous book), and she also doesn’t manage to quite see through Fatty’s disguise at the beginning something she did in earlier books, both through intuition and logic. But that said, the mystery itself in this book was a real corker. In fact, while I had read this book before, I had forgotten that the solution was not very straightforward―even once they’ve solved part of it, there is another surprise reveal. This one certainly does fall within the more “creative” mysteries in the series. Once again Fatty uses not only his disguises but his skills in escaping a locked room in finally resolving it all. On the foodmeter too, this one does pretty well―plenty of icecream, lemonade, sandwiches and pies. We also sample more of Ern’s por’try (the one I remember best, “the Pore Old Gardener” was in this one), and see Sid’s love of stickjaw toffee, which very nearly prevents him from revealing what he knows. So a fun read except for some little things.
October 31, 2015
No Find-Outers book is perfect, and this one shows up Enid Blyton's xenophobia at times, though you don't see anything like the full extent of it here. Fatty doesn't really give the others much to do in this one, and I did miss Bets' brainwaves - she only has one, very quick one. Fatty's behaviour towards Mr Goon is pretty disgraceful, especially when he has his bike confiscated whilst riding it in disguise, and then reports it stolen five minutes later. Surely that's not okay! Even so, I have to give this one three stars, because for the first time since book one I didn't once want to slap a healthy dollop of sense into the Find-Outers. They do some of their best detective work here, with a little help from poor looked-down-upon Ern, for whom I do have a soft spot.
April 12, 2019
The ninth installment of Enid Blyton's fifteen-book Five Find-Outers and Dog series, in which a group of British schoolchildren spend their holidays playing detective, The Mystery of the Vanished Prince sees Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip and Bets once again in the midst of a mystery because of a practical joke. When Fatty manages to convince pompous police bobby Mr. Goon that Bets, dressed up in colorful, "exotic" clothing, is actually the sister of an Indian prince known to be at camp nearby, he has no idea that Prince Bongawah will soon disappear, and that Goon will come searching for little "Princess Bongawee." Out of favor with their hero, Inspector Jenks, Fatty and the others are determined to make amends, and solve the mystery...
Of the nine books read thus far in this series, I think I enjoyed The Mystery of the Vanished Prince the least. Featuring a return of Ern, Mr. Goon's hapless nephew, who first appeared in The Mystery of the Hidden House , it has all the obnoxious classism that so irritated me in that earlier title. The children continue to be amused by Ern's pronunciation, his "portry," and his gormless admiration for Fatty. Unfortunately, the characterization of Ern was by no means the worst aspect of this entry in the series, which also contained some regrettable scenes in which the Find-Outers "dress up" as Indians, acting out a little colonial fantasy in miniature. The passages devoted to Fatty's investigations among the "gypsies," who are portrayed as dirty and dishonest, were also quite upsetting. All in all, this is not a title I would recommend to impressionable young children, and can only regret its inclusion in such a popular series.
Of the nine books read thus far in this series, I think I enjoyed The Mystery of the Vanished Prince the least. Featuring a return of Ern, Mr. Goon's hapless nephew, who first appeared in The Mystery of the Hidden House , it has all the obnoxious classism that so irritated me in that earlier title. The children continue to be amused by Ern's pronunciation, his "portry," and his gormless admiration for Fatty. Unfortunately, the characterization of Ern was by no means the worst aspect of this entry in the series, which also contained some regrettable scenes in which the Find-Outers "dress up" as Indians, acting out a little colonial fantasy in miniature. The passages devoted to Fatty's investigations among the "gypsies," who are portrayed as dirty and dishonest, were also quite upsetting. All in all, this is not a title I would recommend to impressionable young children, and can only regret its inclusion in such a popular series.
August 12, 2021
The Five Find-Outers have redeemed themselves with this mystery and now is back to my good grace 😁😁
April 8, 2023
Another good mystery from the Five Findouters and Buster the dog. I like this one, the children had literally nothing to go on at the start and how they went about it was interesting. One thing about these books is that Buster doesn't take much part in the stories unlike Timmy in the Famous Five. It's like he's only in the book to 'dance around Mr Goon's ankles'!
May 25, 2021
Ern Goon’s return in the tale this time is accompanied by his brothers Sid and Perce. My favorite part of this book is the children’s first encounter with Goon. It is one of the most hilarious scenes in the series thus far. It’s a kidnapping mystery this time, and Fatty’s generosity to Goon is good to see. To make up for a wrong done, the children help the policeman, even though he doesn’t seem to appreciate it. Pip once again is at the centre of the turning point, and Fatty follows through, leading to a very exciting end to the mystery.
April 3, 2024
Probably the weakest of the series
December 18, 2016
Ill-conceived, xenophobic nonsense. The number of ridiculous assumptions and coincidences in the Find-Outers' investigation is far too high for me to engage with this story on any level.
July 17, 2022
Cool Nice Mystery
July 20, 2021
this book is one of the best thriller books you might have read, even though it's slow moving
November 23, 2018
It's funny what you remember from a book you read years ago as a child and read again. I remember the toffee eater and the camp site and elements of the vanished prince mystery. Other parts I had forgotten, and I never had picked up on the whole importance of Bets and her differing relationships with people. That's nine of the fifteen mysteries done and dusted, and we are now in the home stretch. Can we get to 100 Blyton's by Christmas?
May 29, 2020
I read the 1968 version and was amazed at the way times have changed
Some of the things written in this book would certainly not be permitted in kids books these days
For example saying half the Eastern islanders were savages and that the kids looked as dark as gypsies
A good story however but definitely not PC
Some of the things written in this book would certainly not be permitted in kids books these days
For example saying half the Eastern islanders were savages and that the kids looked as dark as gypsies
A good story however but definitely not PC
December 24, 2016
Hey Enid Blyton, your xenophobia and racism is showing. As far that kid Fatty, I wholeheartedly agree with Goon there. What a toad of a boy! But of course everyone thinks that sun shines out of his every orifice. Just reading about him makes me want to smack away his sense of entitlement. Gah!
August 20, 2022
had a good laugh at The Five Find Outers's joke at Mr. Goon at always 😂
December 17, 2020
Normally I like Enid Blyton but this one is just a bit too much of its period. The treatment of the policeman just felt nasty.
January 4, 2023
It was really nice and exiting the plan of the stealing of the prince was a really well thought out one
August 30, 2021
The mysteries of 'The Five Find-Outers' and 'The Famous Five' by Enid Blyton were some of my favourite books when I was young. Not only were they well-written books for children with a good detective story, they always had a good sense of humour and comic relief as well. The ninth book in 'The Five Find-Outers' series, 'The Mystery of the Vanished Prince', proves this introductory statement to a tee.
First of all, there are a lot of moments in this book which are perfectly hilarious, like when the brilliant but slightly mischievous 'Fatty' Trotteville (my favourite character in the entire series) torments the irritable policeman of Peterswood (the fictitious village in which the series is set), appropriately named Mr Goon, with the clever use of his disguises. Although boastful by nature, Fatty proves that he is the true leader of the Find-Outers as he shows in this book how brilliant and generous he can be, especially when little Bets is involved, the youngest member of the Find-Outers who shares a special admiration (like most readers) for Fatty.
Like most other books by Enid Blyton, 'The Mystery of the Vanished Prince' is highly recommended as one of the classics in children's Literature. Although it is not the best entry in 'The Five Find-Outers' series as the mystery itself is not as elaborated as some others, it is still a very good detective story for children in its own right.
First of all, there are a lot of moments in this book which are perfectly hilarious, like when the brilliant but slightly mischievous 'Fatty' Trotteville (my favourite character in the entire series) torments the irritable policeman of Peterswood (the fictitious village in which the series is set), appropriately named Mr Goon, with the clever use of his disguises. Although boastful by nature, Fatty proves that he is the true leader of the Find-Outers as he shows in this book how brilliant and generous he can be, especially when little Bets is involved, the youngest member of the Find-Outers who shares a special admiration (like most readers) for Fatty.
Like most other books by Enid Blyton, 'The Mystery of the Vanished Prince' is highly recommended as one of the classics in children's Literature. Although it is not the best entry in 'The Five Find-Outers' series as the mystery itself is not as elaborated as some others, it is still a very good detective story for children in its own right.
January 21, 2021
A nice read overall.
In the beginning, the part with the kids pretending to be foreign royalty, babbling nonsense and fooling Ern and Mr. Goon was just a bit too much to swallow, even for my inner child. Because of that, an otherwise funny incident didn't quite work from me.
From there, it was a pleasant read. The mystery was not the best in terms of clues/deduction. It was driven by some fortunate coincidences for the young find-outers, but it was a fun adventure. Ern, who started as a side character, has almost grown into one of the main cast.
I also liked that the children were less vindictive against Mr. Goon than usual. Sure, Mr. Goon is unpleasant, but sometimes the find-outers go too far. Here, however, they even tried to help him, although of course Mr. Goon did not take advantage of that.
In the beginning, the part with the kids pretending to be foreign royalty, babbling nonsense and fooling Ern and Mr. Goon was just a bit too much to swallow, even for my inner child. Because of that, an otherwise funny incident didn't quite work from me.
From there, it was a pleasant read. The mystery was not the best in terms of clues/deduction. It was driven by some fortunate coincidences for the young find-outers, but it was a fun adventure. Ern, who started as a side character, has almost grown into one of the main cast.
I also liked that the children were less vindictive against Mr. Goon than usual. Sure, Mr. Goon is unpleasant, but sometimes the find-outers go too far. Here, however, they even tried to help him, although of course Mr. Goon did not take advantage of that.
October 6, 2021
Ern, with his brothers Sid and Perce are camping nearby and decide to visit the FFO who are currently in disguise as the Princess Bongawee and her retinue - sister of the visiting Prince Bongwah (hysterical interlude where Bets as the Princess tells Goon that he has a frog face)
The Prince Bongwah is kidnapped, and Sid and Perce have a lead - something that leads the children in search of prams and twin babies and Larry and Fatty disguising themselves as gypsies.
Another laugh out loud moment where Ern explains that they only have two fork as Perce mysteriously lost his while swimming😂😂
The Prince Bongwah is kidnapped, and Sid and Perce have a lead - something that leads the children in search of prams and twin babies and Larry and Fatty disguising themselves as gypsies.
Another laugh out loud moment where Ern explains that they only have two fork as Perce mysteriously lost his while swimming😂😂
December 15, 2024
The story revolves around a visiting prince from a neighboring kingdom who mysteriously disappears after a brief stay at a school camp. The intrepid Find-Outers take it upon themselves to unravel the enigma and locate the missing royal.
While Enid Blyton's books remain timeless classics, a modern reader might notice some plot inconsistencies. The prince's lack of security and the limited involvement of the police character, Goon, raise questions about the story's realism. However, these minor flaws do little to diminish the overall enjoyment of this thrilling adventure.
While Enid Blyton's books remain timeless classics, a modern reader might notice some plot inconsistencies. The prince's lack of security and the limited involvement of the police character, Goon, raise questions about the story's realism. However, these minor flaws do little to diminish the overall enjoyment of this thrilling adventure.
June 25, 2018
I liked this book a lot it was a good book very MYSTERIOUS and fun!I am totally looking forward to read more mysteries books from Enid Blyton he totally inspired me I like how he writes his books and his ideas a total recommended book to read. Hope you enjoy 😉 the booooook and a have fun reading time.❤️❤️❤️❤️👍
August 24, 2025
Este se puede decir que es una obra maestra, siempre me han gustado los misterios y estos libros son los mejores para empezar, más si eres un joven adolescente. Desde pequeña me ha gustado leer y mi genero favorito son los de misterio. Ya veo porque, este libro es increíble en todos sus aspectos, me encantaa.
November 13, 2025
The mystery of The vanished Prince is thrilling and clever detective story Enid blyton creates a perfect balance of suspense humour and adventure for this intelligence and group teamwork make story both fun and inspiring the mystery keeps readers guessing and twist make it impossible to stop reading overall the book shows how curiosity courage and cooperation can solve the hardest mysteries.
April 24, 2021
For young minds, these books proved to be so thrilling, the zest, the tumble into adventures, cracking puzzles, finding clues and finally putting criminals and robbers behind bars!
The mystery series were one of the best series in the Enid Blyton collection.
The mystery series were one of the best series in the Enid Blyton collection.
November 27, 2021
An odd instalment in which the Find-Outers do very little investigating. (Pip finds one lucky clue and they stumble upon people who explain the mystery!) The modern reader cannot help feeling uncomfortable at the children’s casual assumptions of social and racial superiority.
March 9, 2022
The book was interesting enough to not discontinue it. Though I wouldn't complain since it is a middle grade book. The story line is so obvious and you can figure out most of the twists and turns. Thus I wouldn't recommend for anyone above 13 to read the book.
May 21, 2022
It's been years since the last time I read this series. It brings back memories. This is one of the series that makes me into reading. Sure, this book didn't hit as much as when I was a kid, but it brings warmth to my heart and reminds me of how I felt when I first found a wonderland in books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews