Swallows and Amazons

Arthur Ransome

Softbound

$14.95

Swallows and Amazons is the first title in Arthur Ransome's classic series, originally published in 1930. Here you can meet the Walker family - especially the Walker children! - and accompany them through wonderful adventures, both real and imaginary on Wild Cat Island. The setting is filled with boats, islands, fishing and camping and is the sort of children's literature that never cloys but only delights - no matter how old the "child." These classics remind me of the work of E. Nesbitt and C. S. Lewis - children's worlds where what is imagined often holds more truth than the more "factual" world. Unlike both Nesbitt and Lewis, Ransome's focus is on the wonders of the natural world and the real, practical skill and ingenuity that life requires of us to both survive and to live fully. As with Nesbitt and Lewis, the children are all upright, resourceful, and creatively self-sufficient. And did I mention that the entire series is an awfully good read? And really well-written? Great as a read-to-me for children 6 and older; for children 9 and older to read to themselves (but hopefully you can talk them into sharing their copies with you!). This is a series that you will probably want to read in order as the children, dogs, parents, and parrots all grow older (and smarter and more daring) as the series progresses. Have fun!

Swallowdale

Arthur Ransome

Softbound

$14.95

In this second book of Arthur Ransome's beloved Swallows and Amazons series, the Walker family (and all their many and various friends) discover a shipwreck, investigate a camp on the mainland (islands being their preference, this is a very new experience for them), find a secret valley and a mysterious cave, and journey through the mountains.

"Anyone over seven and under seventy* who loves the real country will enjoy the book." - The Boston Transcript

A great read-aloud for ages 6 and over - ages 9 and older can read for themselves.

*We are pretty sure that most folks over seventy would also love this book - but we don't want to argue with the press. <g>

Peter Duck
A Treasure Hunt in the Caribbees

Arthur Ransome

$14.95

Peter Duck, the third book in Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series, takes intrepid explorers John, Susan, Titty, and Roger Walker and fearsome Amazon pirates Nancy and Peggy Blackett onto the high seas. Under the command of the infamous Captain Flint (Nancy and Peggy's Uncle Jim), the children brave a real-life pirate and his cutthroat crew, fog, sharks, and the ravenous crabs of Crab Island in search of buried treasure. This is one of the best books of the series.

In many ways Peter Duck is the best of the series.

- The Guardian

A great read-aloud for ages 6 and over - ages 9 and older can read for themselves.

Coot Club

Arthur Ransome

$14.95

The Coot Club all started with a coot's nest. Dorothy and Dick meet Tom Dodgeon, Port and Starboard, and three pirate salvagers - all members of the "Coot Club" Bird Protection Society. When one of hte coot's nests is disturbed by a shipful of "hullabaloos" - rude holiday boaters - trouble begins. Frantic chases, calamitous boat collisions, and near drownings fill the pages of this exciting fifth addition to Ransome's classic children's series.

Pigeon Post

Arthur Ransome

$14.95

This, the sixth delightful volume in the classic Swallows and Amazons series, finds our crew on holiday, turning their energies to mining for gold, aided by pigeon messengers Homer, Sophocles, and Sappho. The adventurers comb the nearby hills for a fabled lost claim, while being shadowed by a mysterious figure they dub "squashy hat." Undeterred by drought, sudden brushfires, and the continuing presence of Squashy Hat, the young prospectors persevere in their quest - with surprising results. Full of hte dangers and dark adventures of old mines and forgotten claims, Pigeon Post has an irresistable appeal to the persistent explorer in every child.

We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea

Arthur Ransome

$14.95

In this seventh adventure, the Walker family has come to Harwich to wait for Commander Walker's return. As usual, the children can't stay away from boats, and this time they meet young Jim Brading, skipper of the well-found sloop Goblin. But fun turns to high drama when the anchor drags, and the four young sailors find themselves drifting out to sea - sweeping across to Holland in the midst of a full gale! As in all Ransome's books, the emphasis is on self-reliance, courage, and resourcefulness. We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea is a story to warm any mariner's heart. Full of nautical lore and adventure, it will appeal to young armchair sailors and seasoned salts alike.

Perhaps the best of all . . . Told with all the wealth of practical detail and satisfying sense of reality which make Mr. Ransome so unfailingly successful.

- Punch

A great read-aloud for ages 6 and over - ages 9 and older can read for themselves.

Secret Water

Arthur Ransome

Softbound

$14.95

In this eighth book of the Swallows and Amazons series, the five Walker children are left on a "desert island" by their parents with provision for a long stay and a blank map to fill in. What fun - and adventure!! Like all Ransome's books, this is at once a real adventure and a lesson in the practicalities of exploring - in this case, of surveying the inlets, coves, mudflats, and estuaries of "Walker Island." Naturally, there are enemies to overcome (another clan named "The Eels") and friends to meet (who else by the intrepid "Amazons"?). And, as always, the children do it all solo, with not a parent on the horizon. A great story! Read aloud for 6 and older, age 9 and older can read by themselves.

The Big Six

Arthur Ransome

Softbound

$14.95

The Coot Club is back and better than ever in this ninth volume of Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series. When Joe, Pete, and Bill are wrongly accused of casting boats adrift in the middle of the night, the young crew of the mighty Death and Glory vow to find the real culprits and prove their innocence. Together with their fellow Coot Club members, they form the Big Six, modeled after the greatest detective group in the world, and embark on a fast-paced, hilarious hunt that will thrill Ransome enthusiasts and young fans of nautical adventure.

The adventure, though engrossing, is only part of the book in which the cry and flight of birds, the smell of water and tarry ropes, and the jargon of men and boys brought up to use their hands and senses are all delightfully plain to us.

- Times Literary Supplement

Outstanding read-aloud for ages 6 and older, ages 9 and older can read for themselves.

The Picts & the Martyrs

Arthur Ransome

Softbound

$14.95

The 11th book in the Swallows and Amazons series, The Picts & the Martyrs finds that the two Blackett sisters are back at it again, and Nancy is right there in the thick of it. Their mother (doubtless suffering from exhaustion) has gone off sailing in the North Sea with Captain Flint on a rest cure, but she as allowed her two daughters to stay a fortnight at Beckfoot on the lakeshore with their trust cook. She's also permitted their two old friends, Dick and dorothea Callum to come up for a visit. But when their redoubtable Great Aunt (a.d.a. G.A.) hears of their abandonment, she's horrified and off on the next train. The Amazons are dismayed; not only will their solo holiday be ruined, but now they'll have to hide their two guests in the woods in an abandoned shepherd's cottage (where they'll be forced to live off the land like savages (ergo "The Picts"), while they'll be required to dress up in white pinafores, practice the piano, and recite reams of parlor peotry aloud (ergo "The Martyrs"). Not much stretch here; no one dares trifle with the G.A.

As usual with Ransome, the fun is gentle, the action nonstop, and the instructions on everything from tickling trout to setting anchors are precise and informed. Even the formidable aunt proves to have virtues not the least of which is her ability to say she's sorry.