A New Adventure (The Magic Faraway Tree)

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Dame Washalot, who spends her time washing her clothes and throwing the dirty wash-water down the tree. If she has no clothes to wash, she washes the dirty laundry of other people and even the leaves of the Faraway Tree; The relationship between Silky and moonface could have been improved from what it was. Moonface was possessive of Silky and Silky loved him despite his displays of toxic masculinity and weaponised incompetence for how he acts as if he cannot clean up after himself and pits that responsibility on Silky. Without spoiling too much of the story, in one of the lands JW wrote about this became even more clear when moonface ended up in a physical altercation with another character because of his possessiveness of Silky.

I am glad that some areas of the book were more progressive, such as Mia and how her character is portrayed. Mia's character is so brave and kind. She doesn't care what's meant for boys and girls, she does what she enjoys but she's still always there to make sure her siblings and the friends she has are safe and happy. Why the nerves?' I hear you ask. Well, if your most favourite book in the whole world was being brought into the 21st century by your most favourite author in the whole world, keeping the tree and the trees residents at the heart of the storyline whilst creating a new story at the same time - wouldn't you be a little nervous? I was very unsure as to how it would play out. 'The Magic Faraway Tree' is an iconic book in my opinion, and I was worried that the new version would dilute the magic of Silky and Moonface and end up making me dislike the entire thing. The tree itself looks like an Oak to Milo, but he’s surprised to learn that different fruits and berries grow on the tree. Peaches, apples or berries are there for the taking whenever they are hungry.Mrs Wilson has retained the idea of magical lands at the top of the tree, but included some of her own: the Land of Dragons and the Land of Unicorns. I wasn’t so keen on the Silky / Prince Hunter theme. I don’t think a romantic theme of this type is necessary for this age group. Alexander Antscherl, editorial director at Enid Blyton Entertainment, said: “The book has got some nods to gender equality between girls and boys, which you didn’t always see in the original books. I was a bit disappointed at some parts in the book, the older books by Enid Blyton were rather sexist at some parts and I thought JW's would be more progressive from those times and they were to an extent but in other ways not much had chanced.

Milo, Mia and Birdy are on a countryside holiday when they wander into an Enchanted Wood. Among the whispering leaves, there is a beautiful tree that stands high above the rest. The Magic Faraway Tree is home to many remarkable creatures including a fairy called Silky, her best friend Moonface and more. Little Birdy is only too happy to find that fairies are real. Even her older brother and sister are soon won over by the magic of the Faraway Tree and the extraordinary places they discover above it, including the Land of Unicorns. But not every land is so much fun. Danger looms in the Land of Dragons. Will Moonface's magic work in time to save the children? Apart from breaks to play golf and spend time with her children, Enid's working week was consumed with writing new stories, correcting proofs and answering the hundreds of letters she was, by now, receiving weekly. She explained that her characters evolved organically and her stories seemed to naturally form, she described herself as "merely a sightseer, a reporter, and interpreter."

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Soon the siblings learn that Moonface is muddled and messy, The Sauceman Man loves singing jingles to go with his sales of saucepans as everyone shops online these days, and Dame Washalot is often tossing washing water down the tree on any unsuspecting climbers. Silky makes magical treats that can change flavour depending on the recipient. She even has golden syrup that dances itself into shapes before you eat it! The parents are much more 21st century than in the original, and they do have anxiety about what their children get up to. Enid Blyton was the first author that got me into reading when I was about 8 years old and I would always be found with one of her books in hand. Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million!

The excitement of choosing rooms is soon surpassed by a fairy appearing at Birdy’s window, high on the 3rd floor of the cottage. This fairy is as big as Birdy but flitting delicately in the air and mouthing words to her through the glass. The next morning, her family don’t believe a word, as she has always loved fairies and is prone to tell imaginative stories. Discover the Magic Faraway Tree and explore the amazing lands it can lead to! An irresistible new story by bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson, set in a much-loved world. There was one part where a dragon mistook Milo for a girl because of the length of his hair and a pink top which I felt a bit unnecessary, but we used it as a prompt at home to talk about how anyone can wear anything they want and have their hair however they like it. Apart from that, there really wasn't a whole pile of difference between the actual stories from years ago and this new one. My two youngest children (both 8) really enjoyed it and have asked if we can get more from the series. I hope there will be more. The Faraway Tree is a series of popular novels for children by British author Enid Blyton. The titles in the series are The Enchanted Wood (1939), The Magic Faraway Tree (1943), The Folk of the Faraway Tree (1946) and Up the Faraway Tree (1951).In October 2014, it was announced that the books will be adapted for the cinema for the first time and are being developed for a live action film version by Sam Mendes' production company, Neal Street Productions. [5] As of 2021 [update], the film was still listed as being "in development". [6] Television [ edit ] Reading this as a 37 year old rather than as an 8 year old is obviously very different but I loved the feeling of nostalgia visiting The Faraway Tree and all it's quirky characters. The children are a different set this time round and the storyline has been bought up to date but the things I remember are still there. The magic lands at the top of the tree, the fact that time stops in the Enchanted Wood and the adventures the children experience. In 1997, stories from the novels were adapted into animated ten-minute episodes for the TV series Enid Blyton's Enchanted Lands. The series, entitled Enchanted Lands: The Magic of the Faraway Tree had 13 episodes:

The Magic Faraway Tree: A New Adventure by Jacqueline Wilson was published in May 2022. [4] Adaptations [ edit ] Film [ edit ] One of my two favourite books as a child (the other being The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe), this retelling by Jacqueline Wilson captures all the charm and wonder of the original, while hinting everything is happening in our time. With very little mention of technology and good-old-fashioned adventure the key, this story holds in fact, many adventures for the siblings. We loved the characters of the new children. They were developed well and were each very relatable. Jacqueline is an established and beloved author and this selection has always been a treasured favourite so according to her it was honour to write this book. But when Moon-Face expresses a Blyton-esque sentiment about girls being required to help with domestic tasks, while boys do something more exciting, he is immediately educated on the subject of gender equality.While I’m definitely no longer the target market for this story, I do think that even children deserve better than a story that is basic and surface level. I think children are more intelligent than people give them credit for and this book just does not do them justice. Enid Blyton also wrote the text for a comic-strip story called Up the Faraway Tree (1951). Two picture books have been published set in the Magic Faraway Tree world, with new texts, not written by Enid Blyton: Silky’s Story (2020) and Moonface’s Story (2021). Chapters from the first three original books are also published as individual full-colour editions for young readers, illustrated by Alex Paterson. Entire passages of the original have been rewritten to remove references to fighting. For instance, when the tree is taken over by Goblins in The Enchanted Wood, the Goblins were originally fought off, with descriptions of Mr. Watzisname 'pummelling them as if he were beating carpets' and the Saucepan Man throwing his saucepans at them. These have been replaced with cursory references to 'chasing'. In 2022, we published a brand-new story set in Enid Blyton’s Magic Faraway Tree world but written by a different author: the bestselling Jacqueline Wilson. This book was illustrated by Mark Beech. This story, called The Magic Faraway Tree: A New Adventure, sees three contemporary siblings, Milo, Mia and Birdy, encounter the Enchanted Wood, the Faraway Tree and all its wonderful inhabitants and Lands. In 2023, we will publish a second new adventure set in Enid Blyton’s Magic Faraway Tree world by Jacqueline Wilson: The Magic Faraway Tree: A Christmas Adventure, also illustrated by Mark Beech.