The Pine Street Problem

Pine Street #4

by Mabel Esther Allan

128 pages, Hardcover

First published February 26, 1981

About the author

A prolific British children's author, who also wrote under the pen-names Jean Estoril, Priscilla Hagon, Anne Pilgrim, and Kathleen M. Pearcey, Mabel Esther Allan is particularly known for her school and ballet stories.

Born in 1915 at Wallasey on the Wirral Peninsula, Allan knew from an early age that she wanted to be an author, and published her first short stories in the 1930s. Her writing career was interrupted by World War II, during which time she served in the Women's Land Army and taught school in Liverpool, but the 1948 publication of The Glen Castle Mystery saw it begin to take off in earnest. Influenced by Scottish educator A.S. Neill, Allan held progressive views about education, views that often found their way into her books, particularly her school stories. She was interested in folk dance and ballet - another common subject in her work - and was a frequent traveler. She died in 1998.

Reviews

[Capn]

"Trouble is brewing at Pine
Street. Bully Bert Clay is
plotting trouble — his former
crony, Reg Ditton, after saving
Samantha s life, is not only a
member of the Pine Street
Gang, but a hero as well. To
cap it all, Bert's painting is
rejected for the Pine Street
Mural. Bert is determined on
revenge. Samantha saves the
day —but only just!
THE PINE STREET
PROBLEM
by MABEL ESTHER ALLAN
A Blue Grasshopper £1.25
(paperback)
for 8-10 year-olds
ISBN 0200 727400
Also available in hardback
(£3.95)
ISBN 0200 72738 9"
BfK, March 1981