Five on a Treasure Island (Famous Five)

The Famous Five book of Enid Blyton are great adventure stories. Both my daughters love reading them, as well as I did, when I was a child. I wish these books were easier available in the US. However, so far I was only lucky with ordering from England. This book arrived in time and my children were amazed that it came by "Royal Mail". The book is well printed and easy to read for children. It has lovely black & white drawings inside. It is small enough to fit in a handbag.

Many years ago, when I was but a mere lad, I became very familiar with the adventures of Julian, Dick, Anne, George, and Timmy the dog. The Famous Five were my companions as I grew up, and this book is where their story begins. If I had an island of my own, I would call it "Kirrin Island". Of course, I have no island of my own, which makes my observation entirely rhetorical. I don't even have a dog, but if I did, I would likely consider naming it "Timmy". If not "Buster" (after the Five Find-Outers and Dog) or "Looney" (the Barney Mystery stories) or "Lucky" (Mr. Galliano's Circus) or "Shadow" (Shadow the Sheepdog) or "Bundle" (The Family at Red Roofs) or "Mr. Tubby" (Rubadub Mysteries). Thank you, Enid Blyton.

This is a great book, but it is a terrible way to read it. The only reason I didn't rate it five stars, is because of the quality. The quality was terrible! There were spelling errors, and capitalization was rarely used. But the book itself is great. I love it so much, it never goes too over your head, and at the same time, it's hard to keep up with the Famous Five. The details Enid Blyton added made you feel like you were a part of the book. I would recommend it to almost everyone. But the quality I read it in, I would recommend to no one.

I've read many of the Famous Five books, but somehow missed this one. I bought it for my son, and ended up reading it myself as soon as he was done. A great, low-stress read as clean as any mother could wish for, exciting, full of adventure, and written with all the usual inimitable Enid Blyton style. Highly recommended for kids who like good old-fashioned series like The Three Investigators, or other Enid Blyton books.

This story is not for those who are offended by gender stereotypes that were typical of the era (1940s). That said, it is a remarkably good adventure story set in England about 4 children and a dog. (The famous five) These books have been read and re-read by three generations of my family. Lots of camping, cycling, walking, picnics, and no adult supervision, and of course they always solve the mystery with style. There are about 20 in the series, but only the first 10 are worth much re-reading

I was searching for a good book for my daughter that I thought she might enjoy. I came across the one and only Enid Blyton, a name I have not heard of in the longest time! The book arrived and I ended up reading it myself before giving it to my daughter. The style of writing, the storytelling, all brought back wonderful memories of all the Famous Fives I read growing up. Delightful experience!

I loved the series when I was a child. Now my granddaughter does. She is 7 years old. Plrobably a good book for kids6-11

This classic story is an excellent starter for young readers to get them into the idea of enjoying books. Managing the transition from basic stories that teach the fundamentals this takes the next step to encouraging reading for pleasure. This has been a first classic for generations of our family and is as good for the children of today.

Book one of this world famous series of adventures for the younger reader (and Bear, if he is lucky enough to own one) is pure joy to read and experience. The story is somewhat dated, of course, but the book connoisseur (and his cuddly Bear) soon learns to skip over the uncomfortable bits and fall for the brave set of would-be adventurers as they pretend to be as tough as can be in order to conquer their fears, as well as their own individual corners of the world. Three young children - two brothers (Julian, and Dick) and their sister (Anne) - are given the rare and very exciting chance to holiday away from their parents (who are off to Scotland) for a week at the beach, staying with very adorable and utterly trustworthy cousins. Once there, the book’s structure becomes evident. Mission one is to meet, come to grips with, and (hopefully) befriend strange cousin “George”. Mission two is to convince said Cousin George to take them all to George’s mysterious Kirrin Island, so they can explore the equally mysterious looking castle sitting on top of the island. The third mission of the book (I’ll stop soon, I promise) is almost the best so far. The children (and certain bears who can read) meet - and immediately adore - Timothy the Wonder Dog. The strongest and smartest character of the “heroes” appears to be George. She is certainly the most interesting on many levels, certainly the most intelligent and has the most experience when it comes to sea-fare. Each of the characters have their own interesting history, the only real “bad” character in the book is Uncle Quentin. Of course he is not “bad” in the real sense of the word, but I guess every story needs contrast and he is the one to provide it. Even Timothy has got a measurable degree of depth, and he is the family dog! The children, naturally enough, tend to stick together, and little Anne, who is terrified of Quentin, is often seen to be consoled and protected by her brothers. It all starts to come together nicely by the end of chapter seven when the main focus of two prior chapters is merged via a piece of story telling genius from the author. And of course this leads to further adventures, and dangers and achievements for the characters concerned, and it is all written and structured beautifully. And so it goes. Fun times are had by all. Danger is faced, and overcome, with all sorts of morals, and lessons and experiences to be had. The writing is straightforward and easy to devour, which is not surprising given the book’s target audience. The reader may well cringe at the few phrases and scenes that are sadly out of date, but they become virtually invisible as you find yourself swept away by the book’s sense of fun and innocence. And of course the discerning reader (child, adult or bear) will appreciate the book’s subtleties, too. For instance, the rather long epiphany which comes to George at location 1086 of the kindle version. And a smaller version which preceded it at location 705: “For the first time, George began to understand that sharing pleasures doubles their joy.” Looking back, it is no surprise the books are read and adored and re-read by children the world over for generations. Even certain adults and certain bears have enjoyed reading them for the first time and will probably love them as much as anyone else! An obvious full marks for me. This is brilliant stuff. BFN Greggorio!

This was a gift for a little girl who's just beginning to read. I read this series myself as a child and I'm excited to know I'm starting her off on a series of adventures with a group of children she'll be able to relate to. Great book for children! It arrived in good condition but took a long time to get to me.

Je cherchais quelque chose à lire pour asseoir mon tout nouveau niveau intermédiaire en anglais et The famous five est parfait. Il fait parti de ces vieux livres ou faire rêver les enfants et leur faire vivre des aventures n'était pas encore trop niais, ce qui est donc très bien pour les adultes en apprentissage de la langue. Je comprends ce que je lis et les mots que je ne connais pas sont compréhensifs par le contexte. Je ne l'ai pas encore fini mais je m'y sens bien. Et je pense que je prendrai la suite car c'est une série ! :)

Omgosh !! This is the best book series ever !!! The famous Five series is my fav book series from the day i read it !! Before i read dis book , i always took some time to read other books and omg this time it was totally different ! When i started to read , every part came in so interesting n just so fun ! I always wanted a book series like dis to read ! U won't believe that when i ordered dis book with another book of the same series " The Famous Five" i was very unsure n kept thinking that how were these books gonna be like to read ?! ( i never before that read black n white books so..) i even ordered 2 of the same series and never have i ever bought books from dis author -"Enid Blyton"!! Afterwards When it arrived i was surprised , excited , nervous and what not !! I new more about the author n knew how famous she was ! When i started reading it i felt very comfortable and intersting and so excited ! I kept reading it with full interest and i finished it within 3 days ( that was kinda a record because it was first time)..i now read soo many books from one of my fav author "Enid Blyton". i started reading it from 2021 summer n still reading it ( i wanted to go slow because i loved the series soo much that i didn't want to finish it so quick <3♡:) Please do read this awesome series of the "Famous Five" !! Recommend it every single time to bookworms of every age !! (Bloopers : Now it get it that how people write so long about some books n stuff !! If u loved something , u can write pages without stopping , like i kinda did cause i really love dis series "The famous Five") :)<3♡♡♡:D

Se lo dieron a mi hija para leer en el Instituto, la historia es bonita.