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Biggles #74
Biggles Takes it Rough
Voor de Schotse kust liggen ontelbare kleine en minder kleine eilandjes. Sommige zijn bewoond, andere niet. Een ervan heet Tola en is het eigendom van Rod Macaster, die het van zijn vader heeft geërfd.
Vroeger is Tola bewoond geweest en er staat zelfs een oud kasteel. Maar de mensen zijn er om de een of andere reden weggetrokken en bet kasteel staat er verlaten en verwaarloosd bij. Rod wil zijn eiland weer leven inblazen, maar er is iets dat hem niet bevalt. Er broeit iets op Tola, hij weet alleen niet wat. En de Hooglanders op de vaste wal zwijgen als het graf. Zo staan de zaken als bij ten einde raad besluit een beroep te doen op Biggles' hulpvaardigheid. Inderdaad is hij aan het juiste adres, want Biggles interesseert zich voor het geval en gaat met Bertie, Algy en Ginger per helikopter naar het eiland.
Dat schijnt toch niet zo onbewoond te zijn als het er uit ziet, want Rods boot blijkt door iemand tot zinken te zijn gebracht. Iemand die zelfs de rechtmatige eigenaar als pottenkijker beschouwt en die alles in het werk stelt om hem weg te werken.
Maar Biggles laat zich niet zo gauw wegwerken; zelfs niet door een opzettelijk veroorzaakte brand, die hen in hun slaap moest verrassen. Zoiets maakt hun eerder nieuwsgieriger en nog vaster besloten de zaak tot het einde toe uit te pluizen. Dat gebeurde dan ook, zodat het mysterie van het verlaten eiland met recht aan de serie Biggles-avonturen kon worden toegevoegd.
Vroeger is Tola bewoond geweest en er staat zelfs een oud kasteel. Maar de mensen zijn er om de een of andere reden weggetrokken en bet kasteel staat er verlaten en verwaarloosd bij. Rod wil zijn eiland weer leven inblazen, maar er is iets dat hem niet bevalt. Er broeit iets op Tola, hij weet alleen niet wat. En de Hooglanders op de vaste wal zwijgen als het graf. Zo staan de zaken als bij ten einde raad besluit een beroep te doen op Biggles' hulpvaardigheid. Inderdaad is hij aan het juiste adres, want Biggles interesseert zich voor het geval en gaat met Bertie, Algy en Ginger per helikopter naar het eiland.
Dat schijnt toch niet zo onbewoond te zijn als het er uit ziet, want Rods boot blijkt door iemand tot zinken te zijn gebracht. Iemand die zelfs de rechtmatige eigenaar als pottenkijker beschouwt en die alles in het werk stelt om hem weg te werken.
Maar Biggles laat zich niet zo gauw wegwerken; zelfs niet door een opzettelijk veroorzaakte brand, die hen in hun slaap moest verrassen. Zoiets maakt hun eerder nieuwsgieriger en nog vaster besloten de zaak tot het einde toe uit te pluizen. Dat gebeurde dan ook, zodat het mysterie van het verlaten eiland met recht aan de serie Biggles-avonturen kon worden toegevoegd.
184 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1963
53 people want to read
About the author
W.E. Johns
613 books113 followersInvariably known as Captain W.E. Johns, William Earl Johns was born in Bengeo, Hertfordshire, England. He was the son of Richard Eastman Johns, a tailor, and Elizabeth Johns (née Earl), the daughter of a master butcher. He had a younger brother, Russell Ernest Johns, who was born on 24 October 1895.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 16, 2018
Biggles is trapped on a deserted island
10 October 2013
I just discovered that my dad owns the first edition of this book (which means that I inherit it) but unfortunately it does not have the cover, so it is not worth all that much. I am tempted to see if I can locate the cover on Ebay, but if I were to do that, the value of the cover will need to increase the value of the book to a point that it will be worth selling (though a quick check on Ebay has indicated that it is not). Of course that is also working on the assumption that the value of first edition Biggles books remains at such a level that it is worth selling.
Anyway, I enjoyed this book but it pretty much read like a Famous Five book that is aimed specifically at boys. In a way there was little difference between your standard Famous Five adventure and this book, and in fact you could pretty much switch the characters around and you would have a Famous Five book. However, it is interesting to note that the Famous Five books are enjoyed by children of both genders, whereas the Biggles books tend to be enjoyed predominantly by boys.
I'll give you a a brief run down of the plot: a Scot who has inherited a lot of money decides that he wants to retire to an island to the North of Scotland which is his family's home, however when he gets there he finds that despite it apparently being deserted, there are people there that do not want him there. However, the only reason that Biggles gets involved is because the Scot hears a plane at night, which means it appears that because there is a plane involved the Special Air Police (this is very much a post World War I novel) can have jurisdiction.
I won't say to much more about it, but I suspect that most people who like the Biggles books may have read this, though when I did a search on Wikipedia to find out the date of the book I discovered that there are actually a huge number of Biggles books out there. My Dad only has a few of them, but I am sure that I will get some more enjoyment from them as I make my way through them. Hey, I may even try a Hardy Boys book one day, despite the fact that they are pretty much a form of cookie-cutter book.
10 October 2013
I just discovered that my dad owns the first edition of this book (which means that I inherit it) but unfortunately it does not have the cover, so it is not worth all that much. I am tempted to see if I can locate the cover on Ebay, but if I were to do that, the value of the cover will need to increase the value of the book to a point that it will be worth selling (though a quick check on Ebay has indicated that it is not). Of course that is also working on the assumption that the value of first edition Biggles books remains at such a level that it is worth selling.
Anyway, I enjoyed this book but it pretty much read like a Famous Five book that is aimed specifically at boys. In a way there was little difference between your standard Famous Five adventure and this book, and in fact you could pretty much switch the characters around and you would have a Famous Five book. However, it is interesting to note that the Famous Five books are enjoyed by children of both genders, whereas the Biggles books tend to be enjoyed predominantly by boys.
I'll give you a a brief run down of the plot: a Scot who has inherited a lot of money decides that he wants to retire to an island to the North of Scotland which is his family's home, however when he gets there he finds that despite it apparently being deserted, there are people there that do not want him there. However, the only reason that Biggles gets involved is because the Scot hears a plane at night, which means it appears that because there is a plane involved the Special Air Police (this is very much a post World War I novel) can have jurisdiction.
I won't say to much more about it, but I suspect that most people who like the Biggles books may have read this, though when I did a search on Wikipedia to find out the date of the book I discovered that there are actually a huge number of Biggles books out there. My Dad only has a few of them, but I am sure that I will get some more enjoyment from them as I make my way through them. Hey, I may even try a Hardy Boys book one day, despite the fact that they are pretty much a form of cookie-cutter book.
Read
October 7, 2022Biggles is Captain William Earl Johns most famous creation. Apart from Biggles he created several other series, mostly involving former servicemen but he did create one science fiction series as well as other novels and several non ficiton books about various subjects.
Biggles Takes it Rough was originally published in 1963 and involves mysterious goings on on a Scottish Island that was leased for a hundred years from the British Government by a man who died and the lease passed on to his son. He decides that he wants to do something with the island but finds he is being discouraged in his pursuit. Biggles, with Algy and co, of course, are brought in to investigate.
This is an average Biggles book but it is Biggles so still enjoyable regardless. One thing is he does seem to be even more curt than usual, which is saying something.
Biggles Takes it Rough was originally published in 1963 and involves mysterious goings on on a Scottish Island that was leased for a hundred years from the British Government by a man who died and the lease passed on to his son. He decides that he wants to do something with the island but finds he is being discouraged in his pursuit. Biggles, with Algy and co, of course, are brought in to investigate.
This is an average Biggles book but it is Biggles so still enjoyable regardless. One thing is he does seem to be even more curt than usual, which is saying something.
August 25, 2019
Sometimes I suspect that there's an inverse relationship between the quality of a Biggles book and the amount of time he spends in the air. In this case, the amount of time would be 'very little' and I'm not sure that a helicopter even counts. The rough wasn't terribly rough by Johns standards, the plot made little sense, the villains were of the faceless sort, and Biggles surpassed his sarcasm quota.
December 22, 2025
I am reviewing the series as a whole, rather than the books individually
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
June 28, 2016
Dit is weer een van de betere Biggles boeken.
Op een van de vele eilandjes voor de Schotse kust blijkt van alles aan de hand te zijn. Rod, die het beheer van het eiland had geerfd, merkt dat er vreemde dingen gebeuren. Vliegtuigen landen er, schepen zonder verlichting leggen er aan.. etc.
Om een en ander uit te zoeken neemt hij contact op met Scotland Yard, en niet veel later arriveren Biggles en zijn vrienden om poolshoogte te nemen.
Na vele avonturen lukt het ze om de bandieten te grijpen.
Op een van de vele eilandjes voor de Schotse kust blijkt van alles aan de hand te zijn. Rod, die het beheer van het eiland had geerfd, merkt dat er vreemde dingen gebeuren. Vliegtuigen landen er, schepen zonder verlichting leggen er aan.. etc.
Om een en ander uit te zoeken neemt hij contact op met Scotland Yard, en niet veel later arriveren Biggles en zijn vrienden om poolshoogte te nemen.
Na vele avonturen lukt het ze om de bandieten te grijpen.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews