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The Five Find-Outers #15
The Mystery of Banshee Towers
Ern is back visiting Mr Goon, which gives him and the Find-Outers the perfect chance to explore Banshee Towers. But there's more secrets to the towers than the screaming banshees. Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip, Bets and Buster the Dog have one last case to solve...
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1961
68 people are currently reading
800 people want to read
About the author
Enid Blyton
5,133 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 82 reviews
April 29, 2018
Findouters challenge: Book 15. The final book of the findouters series, this marks the end of my findouters challenge which I began last October. This one opens a little differently from the rest as while the children are setting out to receive Fatty as usual, this time around he comes by bus rather than train. There is no mystery waiting for Fatty to solve at the start, and as the childrens’ parents want them out of their hair, they suggest the children go on expeditions to different places around Peterswood. Meanwhile Ern has also come to the village, staying once again with Mr Goon, as one of his sisters has the measles, and this time around he’s brought with him his very own dog Bingo, who not only the children but also Buster takes to instantly. Ern gets into a bit of trouble with Mr Goon and moves into Fatty’s shed thereby also getting the time to join them on their expeditions. So almost Famous-Five-like, their first ‘trip’ takes them to Banshee Towers, an old house that now houses a gallery of sorts for sea pictures. Ern and Bets are awfully keen on seeing these and it is their interest, and Ern’s keen eye that gives them the first hint of mystery. On their very first trip they find some mysterious and rather unfriendly characters in Banshee Towers, the owner included, and also that a banshee actually wails there at a certain hour. Not only that, there is a mysterious trap door, and also a secret path from the outside, which Buster and Bingo have discovered, When Fatty and Ern return a second time to investigate, Ern notices something wrong with one of the paintings he was admiring the previous day. While the other children are not inclined to believe him at the start, Bets has noticed the same thing, and so begins their ‘investigation’ to discover what’s really going on in Banshee Towers.
This one lacked quite a few of the ‘trademark’ elements of the findouters stories, Fatty not disguising himself even once, and the children not pranking Mr Goon (the second bit was more welcome, because as I’ve been noticing this time around, they do tend to unnecessarily bother him, and do interfere with his work), except one little trick at the end. Mr Goon too, though wanting the findouters out of his hair, isn’t at his worst, and by the end is even ready to extend a friendly hand to the children, and one begins to wonder if this will work, but of course…. In this one also, the children are in no direct ‘competition’ with Mr Goon to solve the case, which makes things somewhat smoother. But this doesn’t mean Fatty doesn’t get to use some of the tricks he’s learnt or that the mystery is any the less dangerous or exciting, or the villains, any the less menacing. Ern, as has been the case in the last few titles in which he appears, plays a much more active role, and shows that he too is very bright (he’s proved himself enterprising too before―the children unfortunately still have that somewhat arrogant opinion of Ern’s brains not perhaps being as good as their own), even if not as much so as Fatty, who as usual pieces together the puzzle and works out the answers in what seems like no time at all, leading Chief Inspector Jenks to remark that they would both make good policemen. In fact, he can’t wait for Fatty to grow up and join the force. Ern’s is still at his portry as well, of course, but for a change, his pome does begin with ‘The poor old…’ . The mystery while not overly complex did have some interesting elements to it, and it was nice to see how Fatty worked out some parts of the puzzle. On the foodmeter, this was above average, though the children don’t go to the tea shop as often as usual, there are teas, toffee, and biscuits in the shed, breakfasts and suppers for Ern, and also some treats for Buster and Bingo. Buster and Bingo I thought made a fun pair of crazy dogs who also played their part in the mystery, besides snapping away at poor Goon’s ankles. This was a fun read and a good close to the series, though if one reads the last lines, it reads like any entry in the series anticipating another mystery, though in this case, no other comes. Which means of course, that one simply has to start back at the beginning
This one lacked quite a few of the ‘trademark’ elements of the findouters stories, Fatty not disguising himself even once, and the children not pranking Mr Goon (the second bit was more welcome, because as I’ve been noticing this time around, they do tend to unnecessarily bother him, and do interfere with his work), except one little trick at the end. Mr Goon too, though wanting the findouters out of his hair, isn’t at his worst, and by the end is even ready to extend a friendly hand to the children, and one begins to wonder if this will work, but of course…. In this one also, the children are in no direct ‘competition’ with Mr Goon to solve the case, which makes things somewhat smoother. But this doesn’t mean Fatty doesn’t get to use some of the tricks he’s learnt or that the mystery is any the less dangerous or exciting, or the villains, any the less menacing. Ern, as has been the case in the last few titles in which he appears, plays a much more active role, and shows that he too is very bright (he’s proved himself enterprising too before―the children unfortunately still have that somewhat arrogant opinion of Ern’s brains not perhaps being as good as their own), even if not as much so as Fatty, who as usual pieces together the puzzle and works out the answers in what seems like no time at all, leading Chief Inspector Jenks to remark that they would both make good policemen. In fact, he can’t wait for Fatty to grow up and join the force. Ern’s is still at his portry as well, of course, but for a change, his pome does begin with ‘The poor old…’ . The mystery while not overly complex did have some interesting elements to it, and it was nice to see how Fatty worked out some parts of the puzzle. On the foodmeter, this was above average, though the children don’t go to the tea shop as often as usual, there are teas, toffee, and biscuits in the shed, breakfasts and suppers for Ern, and also some treats for Buster and Bingo. Buster and Bingo I thought made a fun pair of crazy dogs who also played their part in the mystery, besides snapping away at poor Goon’s ankles. This was a fun read and a good close to the series, though if one reads the last lines, it reads like any entry in the series anticipating another mystery, though in this case, no other comes. Which means of course, that one simply has to start back at the beginning
August 22, 2020
The last book of the Five Find-Outers series, The Mystery of Banshee Towers has a slightly different tone. For one thing, Ern figures prominently in this book. He is the person who discovers the mystery and insists that they find the solution. This is also mostly a Fatty show. The others are pretty much in the background, except Ern. The children also seem to be more grown up (probably because they are)!
Long holidays stretch ahead and the children's fathers are already tired of them. So they suggest a few trips around the village. One of the suggestions include visiting Banshee Towers, known to display lovely sea pictures. Bets and Ern, both with a nautical bent of mind, insist on going there, so they all go and fall directly into a mystery. Wailing banshees, boats mysteriously disappearing from paintings, an unruly French artist, all come together into a mystery - the last one of the Five!
The story was interesting, and frankly, slightly more believable than most of the other adventure stories featuring the Five. But it's still one of my least favourites. It's not so much the plot or the writing, it's just that these children are growing up and there would be no more mysteries. Also, I think Blyton got a bit bored of her characters in this book, which is probably why she concentrated so much on Ern.
Not a bad ending to the Five Find-Outers saga. I read these in succession for the first time, and quite enjoyed it!
Long holidays stretch ahead and the children's fathers are already tired of them. So they suggest a few trips around the village. One of the suggestions include visiting Banshee Towers, known to display lovely sea pictures. Bets and Ern, both with a nautical bent of mind, insist on going there, so they all go and fall directly into a mystery. Wailing banshees, boats mysteriously disappearing from paintings, an unruly French artist, all come together into a mystery - the last one of the Five!
The story was interesting, and frankly, slightly more believable than most of the other adventure stories featuring the Five. But it's still one of my least favourites. It's not so much the plot or the writing, it's just that these children are growing up and there would be no more mysteries. Also, I think Blyton got a bit bored of her characters in this book, which is probably why she concentrated so much on Ern.
Not a bad ending to the Five Find-Outers saga. I read these in succession for the first time, and quite enjoyed it!
April 25, 2023
The last book in the series and it was definitely time to end it. This was a very light weight story. The mystery was simple in the extreme. There was a secret passage and an underground room in this one giving it shades of the Famous Five.
Ern is with the gang again and spots a vital clue. He spends more time with Fatty than the others of the gang do. I don't know why she didn't do a book with Fatty on his own. A lot of the time the others were just padding for the story.
One of my least favourites of the series.
Ern is with the gang again and spots a vital clue. He spends more time with Fatty than the others of the gang do. I don't know why she didn't do a book with Fatty on his own. A lot of the time the others were just padding for the story.
One of my least favourites of the series.
July 18, 2015
ένα από τα 2-3 καλύτερα της αγαπημένης μου παιδικής σειράς, παραμένει δροσερό και πλακατζίδικο μετά από τόσα χρόνια. ο Φρέντυ ήταν άνετα ένας από τους ήρωες της παιδικής μου ηλικίας
April 11, 2024
Been an interesting series this one some books better than others overall an average of 3.5/5 for the whole series
April 16, 2019
The final 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 Banshee Towers sees Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip, and Bets involved in a case of art forgery and fraud. When the children, together with their friend Ern Goon, go to nearby Banshee Towers to see an exhibit of sea paintings, they have no idea that they are stepping into a mystery. But when Ern notices a slight change in one of the paintings, on their second visit, Fatty knows something isn't right...
It seems a shame that the series should close with The Mystery of Banshee Towers, as it provides a rather weak finale. The shortest book of the lot, it seems the least developed, and has one of the most obvious resolutions. Although the entire series features Fatty as the "star," the other four Find-Outers almost disappear here. I did enjoy the scenes involving the two dogs, Buster and Bingo, but I was otherwise unimpressed, and I got the sense that Blyton didn't intend for this to be the conclusion.
It seems a shame that the series should close with The Mystery of Banshee Towers, as it provides a rather weak finale. The shortest book of the lot, it seems the least developed, and has one of the most obvious resolutions. Although the entire series features Fatty as the "star," the other four Find-Outers almost disappear here. I did enjoy the scenes involving the two dogs, Buster and Bingo, but I was otherwise unimpressed, and I got the sense that Blyton didn't intend for this to be the conclusion.
September 6, 2018
The last in the Five Findouters and Dog series and sadly, it seems that dear old Enid has run out of plot. Nothing really happens. Ern is over visiting Goon again, the crew are bored so determine to visit local attractions (they're that type of child) and settle on Banshee Towers as it has a 'great collection of sea art'.
No Fatty in disguise, no real winding up of Goon, nothing really apart from Fatty and Ern decide to investigate a painting that seems to have a small boat in it one day, and not the next. Even the banshee is nothing but a mechanical device used by the turnstile operator in order to slope off home early.
Ern and Fatty somehow end up trussed like two chickens by the nasty foreign owner, but of course Fatty manages to release them and the stolen painting is recovered. And that's it. Very little action, very little involvement of the other Find Outers and hardly the best way to end a very enjoyable (even as an adult re-reading the collection) series. Shame.
No Fatty in disguise, no real winding up of Goon, nothing really apart from Fatty and Ern decide to investigate a painting that seems to have a small boat in it one day, and not the next. Even the banshee is nothing but a mechanical device used by the turnstile operator in order to slope off home early.
Ern and Fatty somehow end up trussed like two chickens by the nasty foreign owner, but of course Fatty manages to release them and the stolen painting is recovered. And that's it. Very little action, very little involvement of the other Find Outers and hardly the best way to end a very enjoyable (even as an adult re-reading the collection) series. Shame.
June 3, 2016
ENID BLYTON NEVER GETS BORING!!
Reading an Enid Blyton's novel is like revisiting the childhood days. Every time i delve into Enid Blyton's world,i feel a longing to be one of her characters.Even after having read so many authors,i still feel she is among the most vivid authors i have come across.
Even this recent novel of hers that i read,didn't disappoint me a bit.It was enthralling from the beginning to the end.This is about five kids apparently headed by Fatty,who has recently returned from his cousin's house.Somehow this group of five find-outers (and a Dog-Buster) always seem to get themselves into a mystery which they then try to unravel.In this latest case of theirs,they are accompanied by Ern and his dog -Bingo.The mystery lies in the tower containing sea pictures where a Banshee wails on a particular day of the week.Weird.Isn't it? This story is all about how they work out the case!I especially cherished the character of Fatty for his wit and humor.Overall it was a very content read!
Reading an Enid Blyton's novel is like revisiting the childhood days. Every time i delve into Enid Blyton's world,i feel a longing to be one of her characters.Even after having read so many authors,i still feel she is among the most vivid authors i have come across.
Even this recent novel of hers that i read,didn't disappoint me a bit.It was enthralling from the beginning to the end.This is about five kids apparently headed by Fatty,who has recently returned from his cousin's house.Somehow this group of five find-outers (and a Dog-Buster) always seem to get themselves into a mystery which they then try to unravel.In this latest case of theirs,they are accompanied by Ern and his dog -Bingo.The mystery lies in the tower containing sea pictures where a Banshee wails on a particular day of the week.Weird.Isn't it? This story is all about how they work out the case!I especially cherished the character of Fatty for his wit and humor.Overall it was a very content read!
July 21, 2017
Ini pertama kali saya membaca buku karangan Enid Blyton dan rasanya langsung jatuh cinta. Dibandingkan dengan Misteri Nuri Gagap yang kasusnya sudah jelas dari awal (hilangnya burung nuri), buku ini justru memancing pembaca untuk mencari tahu apa kasusnya: pasti sesuatu yang berhubungan dengan Banshee Tower. Dan tiap lembarannya membuat saya makin ingin tahu dan ikutan menebak: apa kasusnya, kenapa dan siapa? Dan lagoi-lagi tebakan saya tidak tepat benar hahaha...
Dari sisi teknis, sinopsis belakangnya menjebak nich... tujuh orang anak dan dua ekor anjing! Sampai akhir saya menunggu anak ketujuh kok ga nongol-nongol hahaha... Dan saya agak dibuat mengernyit di beberapa bagian. Ada penulisan percakapan yang terasa janggal (entah memang dimaksudkan seperti itu oleh EB atau ada Mas penerjemah sedikit kepleset saat mengalihbahasakan)
Dari sisi teknis, sinopsis belakangnya menjebak nich... tujuh orang anak dan dua ekor anjing! Sampai akhir saya menunggu anak ketujuh kok ga nongol-nongol hahaha... Dan saya agak dibuat mengernyit di beberapa bagian. Ada penulisan percakapan yang terasa janggal (entah memang dimaksudkan seperti itu oleh EB atau ada Mas penerjemah sedikit kepleset saat mengalihbahasakan)
November 13, 2012
This was a book I bought a few months ago and never read before putting it away. I always enjoy stories about Fatty and the others, but I guess I assumed I'd already read this one when I in fact hadn't. I liked how quickly the mystery was wrapped up, and the story behind it all. Ern is a delight, with his Coos and whatnot. Goon is as loveable a bungler as ever. The Mystery of Banshee Towers, like all Enid Blyton books, five stars!
May 31, 2018
Seri Enyd Blynton kayaknya disusun berurutan sesuai kadar gawat-tidaknya. Sapta Siaga menurut saya yang paling ringan. Disusul dengan Pasukan Mau Tahu, lalu serial Lima Sekawan, kemudian dipuncaki oleh seri Petualangan. Sungguh beruntung mereka yang berkesempatan membaca semua seri ini di masa kecil dan remajanya. Buat yang belum, tidak ada kata terlambat untuk berkelana ke lembah rahasia, menelusuri lorong bawah tanah, dan mengejar kereta api hantu bersama Dinah, Bets, dan Fatty.
July 28, 2023
Judul: Misteri Rumah Setan
Author: Enid Blyton
Tebal: 192 hal
Tahun terbit: 1961
Penerbit: @bukugpu
Seri terakhir dari Pasukan Mau Tahu ini lumayan seru dibaca. Bacanya ringan dan mengalir, gaya ceritanya juga enak banget. Khas Enid Blyton.
Di seri terakhir ini mereka tampaknya mulai dewasa. Kali ini Fatty baru saja kembali dari liburan. Ern pun akhirnya kembali lagi ke desa itu dan tinggal bersama Pak Goon bersama anjing barunya Bingo.
Bersama Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip dan Bets mereka ingin melihat pameran lukisan di dekat Menara Banshee. Namun Ern melihat ada yang aneh dengan lukisan tersebut. Dan di kunjungan kedua Fatty tau betul bahwa ada sesuatu yang tidak beres.
Di sini la petualangan para detektif cilik dimulai kembali :)
Author: Enid Blyton
Tebal: 192 hal
Tahun terbit: 1961
Penerbit: @bukugpu
Seri terakhir dari Pasukan Mau Tahu ini lumayan seru dibaca. Bacanya ringan dan mengalir, gaya ceritanya juga enak banget. Khas Enid Blyton.
Di seri terakhir ini mereka tampaknya mulai dewasa. Kali ini Fatty baru saja kembali dari liburan. Ern pun akhirnya kembali lagi ke desa itu dan tinggal bersama Pak Goon bersama anjing barunya Bingo.
Bersama Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip dan Bets mereka ingin melihat pameran lukisan di dekat Menara Banshee. Namun Ern melihat ada yang aneh dengan lukisan tersebut. Dan di kunjungan kedua Fatty tau betul bahwa ada sesuatu yang tidak beres.
Di sini la petualangan para detektif cilik dimulai kembali :)
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December 10, 2010 i like this book i want read once more !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
November 27, 2015
A great story (well, all the books in the series are). One of my absolute favourite Enid Blyton stories. Ever.
August 15, 2011
Liked it!!!!
May 3, 2012
The first ever novel that I read. This one sparked my interest in reading fiction. Nothing like a nice warm Enid Blyton novel, when you're in high school!
July 29, 2013
nice book to read
June 13, 2015
The Mystery of Banshee Towers was the best novel in all of the five find outer series...worth reading..cheers!!
January 29, 2011
last part
noooooo
i want more
noooooo
i want more
June 22, 2020
Read Full & Detailed review: https://cynthology.blogspot.com/2020/...
The last and only Five Find-Outers book by Enid Blyton I read was when I was 10. Back then, I’d been quite impressed with the book, even more so than her Famous Five and Secret Seven series of books, which tended to display a certain sameness after a while. But I hadn’t managed to lay my hands on the other books in the series. We just didn’t have access to many books then. Very soon I moved on to Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys and left Blyton behind.
Recently La Niña picked up some books from the Five Find-Outers series at the library, and I decided to read it soon after she had finished, for old times’ sake. The first one I picked up was The Mystery of Banshee Towers. The characters are siblings Bets and Pip, siblings Larry and Daisy, and only child Fatty.
In later years, we read critique about Blyton being racist, but back then we just didn’t latch on to that. We hadn’t assumed a racist mindset as a result of reading the books and so we vociferously defended the long-dead Blyton when this accusation was hurled at her. But the truth is we simply weren’t paying attention.
We were so naïve then. We let ourselves get carried away by this enormously exciting world, where kids were left on their own, allowed to have exciting adventures without having to account for every moment of their day to their parents. And then there were the picnic baskets with scones, profiteroles and things like that, foods that we just couldn’t put a mental image to, but they excited us all the same.
The mystery of course was rather tame, looked at from an adult standpoint, although the child-me found it great, and La Niña was duly impressed.
In this book, we have Ern, nephew of Mr Goon, or Clear Orf, as the kids call him. Ern’s family has the measles and so he and his dog, Bingo, have been sent to his uncle’s house. Offended by his uncle’s ill-treatment of him and Bingo, Ern leaves his uncle’s house and moves into Fatty’s workroom. This is how he becomes a temporary member of the Five Find-Outers.
Clearly something isn’t right about the place. Also, the banshee wails every Thursday and the owner insists that it is real. Then Ern learns that a red boat painted in one of the paintings has been painted over. The investigation into the missing boat catapults them into yet another adventure.
The last and only Five Find-Outers book by Enid Blyton I read was when I was 10. Back then, I’d been quite impressed with the book, even more so than her Famous Five and Secret Seven series of books, which tended to display a certain sameness after a while. But I hadn’t managed to lay my hands on the other books in the series. We just didn’t have access to many books then. Very soon I moved on to Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys and left Blyton behind.
Recently La Niña picked up some books from the Five Find-Outers series at the library, and I decided to read it soon after she had finished, for old times’ sake. The first one I picked up was The Mystery of Banshee Towers. The characters are siblings Bets and Pip, siblings Larry and Daisy, and only child Fatty.
In later years, we read critique about Blyton being racist, but back then we just didn’t latch on to that. We hadn’t assumed a racist mindset as a result of reading the books and so we vociferously defended the long-dead Blyton when this accusation was hurled at her. But the truth is we simply weren’t paying attention.
We were so naïve then. We let ourselves get carried away by this enormously exciting world, where kids were left on their own, allowed to have exciting adventures without having to account for every moment of their day to their parents. And then there were the picnic baskets with scones, profiteroles and things like that, foods that we just couldn’t put a mental image to, but they excited us all the same.
The mystery of course was rather tame, looked at from an adult standpoint, although the child-me found it great, and La Niña was duly impressed.
In this book, we have Ern, nephew of Mr Goon, or Clear Orf, as the kids call him. Ern’s family has the measles and so he and his dog, Bingo, have been sent to his uncle’s house. Offended by his uncle’s ill-treatment of him and Bingo, Ern leaves his uncle’s house and moves into Fatty’s workroom. This is how he becomes a temporary member of the Five Find-Outers.
Clearly something isn’t right about the place. Also, the banshee wails every Thursday and the owner insists that it is real. Then Ern learns that a red boat painted in one of the paintings has been painted over. The investigation into the missing boat catapults them into yet another adventure.
November 13, 2022
The 15th and last book in the Five Find-Outers series. I personally do not enjoy this mystery series as much as several of her adventure series. Nevertheless, it's always a bit sad reaching the last book and knowing there will be no more stories with these characters. Goodbye Fatty, Pip, Bets, Larry and Daisy. And Buster, of course. Also goodbye Mr. Goon, Ern, Superintendent Jenks and all the other recurrent characters. It's been a fun journey reading this series.
Fatty is perhaps one of the most memorable characters Blyton created, although he overshadowed the other children a bit too much in these books. I remember someone commenting that in any other story, Fatty would be a prime target for bullying, being fat and nerdy, but Fatty instead was admired and treated like a hero. Then again, I suppose he had too much charisma and self-confidence to be an easy target.
Coming back to this last book, it's not at the same level as the others. It's shorter, with a simpler plot. Instead of all the children having tasks to do, as usually happened in the series, here Fatty and Ern do all the job by themselves. It's just that this is one of the books Enid Blyton wrote near the end of her life, when she was starting to show the first signs of her disease. The same happens with the last book in the Famous Five series and the last book in the Secret Seven, which are also simpler and not at the same level as the rest. This one was not as bad as that (it wasn't written quite as late as those others). It's readable and contains some nice moments with Ern, but it's just not on the same level as the others as a mystery. It defaults to the standard adventure tricks of a secret passage, which is a first in this mystery series, but nothing much comes out of it. Just pleasant to read, but not as good as the others.
Farewell, children. Farewell, Fatty.
Fatty is perhaps one of the most memorable characters Blyton created, although he overshadowed the other children a bit too much in these books. I remember someone commenting that in any other story, Fatty would be a prime target for bullying, being fat and nerdy, but Fatty instead was admired and treated like a hero. Then again, I suppose he had too much charisma and self-confidence to be an easy target.
Coming back to this last book, it's not at the same level as the others. It's shorter, with a simpler plot. Instead of all the children having tasks to do, as usually happened in the series, here Fatty and Ern do all the job by themselves. It's just that this is one of the books Enid Blyton wrote near the end of her life, when she was starting to show the first signs of her disease. The same happens with the last book in the Famous Five series and the last book in the Secret Seven, which are also simpler and not at the same level as the rest. This one was not as bad as that (it wasn't written quite as late as those others). It's readable and contains some nice moments with Ern, but it's just not on the same level as the others as a mystery. It defaults to the standard adventure tricks of a secret passage, which is a first in this mystery series, but nothing much comes out of it. Just pleasant to read, but not as good as the others.
Farewell, children. Farewell, Fatty.
October 13, 2025
Lo leí dos veces: de adolescente y ahora de adulto para un experimento (conseguí el original en inglés en una librería de usados y fui comparando similitudes y diferencias porque me enteré que se hacían recortes y censuras).
Misterios fue mi primera serie de Blyton y favorita. Peterwood muestra un paisaje similar al Pinamar en el cual devoraba estos libros y resulta más familiar que la Isla Kirrin de la serie Los cinco, por ejemplo. En la relectura no puedo dejar de notar que los únicos personajes son Fatty con su inteligencia superlativa, su contraparte Goon, el policía estúpido y malhumorado y Bets con su inocencia. El resto, Larry, Pips, Daisy son extras, relleno sin sustancia -NPC, como se dice ahora- casi como los padres, cocineros y jardineros. Hasta Ern, el sobrino de Goon que aparece en algunos de los misterios como éste tiene mayor desarrollo y profundidad: sabemos que es tartamudo, que le gusta improvisar poesía aunque lo haga mal y que es de buen corazón pero medio corto.
En cuanto a la trama, como leí por ahí es de las más pobres de la serie. Más allá de la fórmula clásica de Blyton para todas estas colecciones (niños, mascota, misterio, final feliz) éste me pareció muy rebuscado pero lineal a la vez, con sólo un momento de tensión y no mucho más. Quizá Blyton notó su falta de inspiración y por eso es el último de los quince (1961, casi quince años después del primero). O, viendo su biografía, ya es la época en la que el Alzheimer la acechaba y es esperable un bajón en la calidad de su producción.
En resumen, recomiendo otros libros de esta serie que tienen una trama más interesante y verosímil. Más allá de eso Enid Blyton, con todo lo que podemos criticarle, raramente defrauda al joven lector.
Misterios fue mi primera serie de Blyton y favorita. Peterwood muestra un paisaje similar al Pinamar en el cual devoraba estos libros y resulta más familiar que la Isla Kirrin de la serie Los cinco, por ejemplo. En la relectura no puedo dejar de notar que los únicos personajes son Fatty con su inteligencia superlativa, su contraparte Goon, el policía estúpido y malhumorado y Bets con su inocencia. El resto, Larry, Pips, Daisy son extras, relleno sin sustancia -NPC, como se dice ahora- casi como los padres, cocineros y jardineros. Hasta Ern, el sobrino de Goon que aparece en algunos de los misterios como éste tiene mayor desarrollo y profundidad: sabemos que es tartamudo, que le gusta improvisar poesía aunque lo haga mal y que es de buen corazón pero medio corto.
En cuanto a la trama, como leí por ahí es de las más pobres de la serie. Más allá de la fórmula clásica de Blyton para todas estas colecciones (niños, mascota, misterio, final feliz) éste me pareció muy rebuscado pero lineal a la vez, con sólo un momento de tensión y no mucho más. Quizá Blyton notó su falta de inspiración y por eso es el último de los quince (1961, casi quince años después del primero). O, viendo su biografía, ya es la época en la que el Alzheimer la acechaba y es esperable un bajón en la calidad de su producción.
En resumen, recomiendo otros libros de esta serie que tienen una trama más interesante y verosímil. Más allá de eso Enid Blyton, con todo lo que podemos criticarle, raramente defrauda al joven lector.
June 18, 2020
I read this as an adult, over 50 years after my obsession with "all things Enid Blyton" and it was fascinating to see the book through an adult's eyes. It was a lot shorter than I remembered and achieved the size of a normal paperback only because of a large font and double spacing between lines. There was also a lot of moral instruction built into the story, with children being encouraged to respect their elders, be kind each other etc. Also, and somewhat bizarrely there is the occasional use of a word which seems entirely inappropriate for the target audience - in this particular book the one I noticed was "stentorian". I am a fairly widely read adult and I have to confess that I don't know what the word means so it seems unlikely that a child is going to have any idea whatsoever. However, overall I really found it very enjoyable. It was quite gripping and quite exciting. Maybe I'll try a Mallory Towers one sometime...
November 18, 2023
When the Five Find-Outers - and Ern - visit Banshee Towers with its priceless collection of paintings, they hear an uncanny wailing. But is it a banshee - or is there a mystery to be solved?
A Five Find-Outers book is never improved by Ern’s presence IMHO, but Enid Blyton is surprisingly not bad at an art mystery. There is actual detecting and although there’s no formal end-of-series moment, maybe there is a foretaste of a future where Chief Inspector Frederick Trotteville and Sergeant Ern become another Morse and Lewis. I’d love to see this series get the treatment of today’s Agatha Christie adaptations, including a darker feel that leans against Blyton’s 1950s view of gender, race and class.
A Five Find-Outers book is never improved by Ern’s presence IMHO, but Enid Blyton is surprisingly not bad at an art mystery. There is actual detecting and although there’s no formal end-of-series moment, maybe there is a foretaste of a future where Chief Inspector Frederick Trotteville and Sergeant Ern become another Morse and Lewis. I’d love to see this series get the treatment of today’s Agatha Christie adaptations, including a darker feel that leans against Blyton’s 1950s view of gender, race and class.
February 28, 2024
The second best five found outers book I read so far.(The best according to me is the mystery of the disappearing cat) Not because the mystery was difficult to solve. I saw it from the beginning. I read some of the five found outers books as a kid (Translations) and loved them! I started re reading the series as an adult and the first few books weren't my favourites due to the discriminative language used.(and the translations did a way better job coz I didn't see how bad it was when I read the translations. They had no discrimination whatsoever. So good job translators!) However this book is balanced and made me nostalgic!
August 22, 2018
Kisah petualangan yang berakhir menjadi kisah penyelidikan ala- ala detektif dari pasukan mau tahu. Ini novel pertama yang gw baca dan kyknnya novel- novel berikutnya menyajikan cerita penyelidikan dari pasukan mau tahu.
selain cerita tentang penyelidikan anak- anak tersebut ada pesan yang menurut gw menarik untuk dicermati yaitu, mengenai etika. Bagaimana membaca surat orang walaupun dia penjahat menjadi hal yang tak baik untuk dilakukan. Kemudian Keteraturan dari peraturan yang sada dalam wilayah tersebut meneurut gw menarik untuk dicermati.
selain cerita tentang penyelidikan anak- anak tersebut ada pesan yang menurut gw menarik untuk dicermati yaitu, mengenai etika. Bagaimana membaca surat orang walaupun dia penjahat menjadi hal yang tak baik untuk dilakukan. Kemudian Keteraturan dari peraturan yang sada dalam wilayah tersebut meneurut gw menarik untuk dicermati.
May 25, 2021
I love the book because it takes the Five Find-outers a bit out of their way, not in Peterswood. Like Chief Inspector Jenks says, it is a mystery that only children might have found out, because adults barely, and rarely, observe that much details, even if they are very interested in art. Ern and his dog Bingo are a hilarious addition to the tale, and there's a mini battle with Goon, though not as regular because the mystery doesn't happen in Peterswood. This felt like a Fatty & Ern mystery, because the other kids aren't as involved in the action!
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 English highlands, and moors, the prolific city life and the extremely enigmatic children finding their way around, made for some of the best reads as a kid.
The mystery series were one of the best series in the Enid Blyton collection. The English highlands, and moors, the prolific city life and the extremely enigmatic children finding their way around, made for some of the best reads as a kid.
December 29, 2024
Enid Blyton's 'Find Outers' series, another timeless classic, sadly concludes with its fifteenth book. This series holds a special place among my favorites. However, I must confess that I found the final installment somewhat disappointing. The story, in my opinion, contains numerous plot holes and instances where the advanced syndicate's actions appear amateurish, which seems out of character.
Regardless, it is a fun and light read!
Regardless, it is a fun and light read!
October 6, 2021
The children and Ern decide to visit Banshee Towers where Bets and Ern are captivated by the sea paintings, while the others are more interested in the wailing Banshee. On a return visit, Bets and Ern notice that a little red boat has disappeared from their favourite painting, and the children are soon on the trail of international art thieves
Not a brilliant book, but still enjoyable
Not a brilliant book, but still enjoyable
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