''Swallows and Amazons'' is a

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

novel by English author

Arthur Ransome Arthur Michell Ransome (18 January 1884 – 3 June 1967) was an English author and journalist. He is best known for writing and illustrating the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books about the school-holiday adventures of childre ...

and first published on 21 July 1930 by

Jonathan Cape Jonathan Cape is a London publishing firm founded in 1921 by Herbert Jonathan Cape, who was head of the firm until his death in 1960. Cape and his business partner Wren Howard set up the publishing house in 1921. They established a reputation ...

. Set in the summer of 1929 in the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or '' fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

, the book introduces the main characters of John, Susan, Titty and Roger Walker (Swallows); as well as their mother, Mary; and their baby sister, Bridget (nicknamed Vicky). We also meet Nancy and Peggy Blackett (Amazons); their uncle Jim (James Turner), commonly referred to as Captain Flint; and their widowed mother, Molly Blackett. It is the first book in the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series, followed by ''

Swallowdale ''Swallowdale'' is a children's adventure novel by English author Arthur Ransome and first published by Jonathan Cape in 1931. The book features Walker siblings (The Swallows) and Blackett sisters (The Amazons), camping in the hills and moorland ...

''. At the time, Ransome had been working as a journalist with the ''Manchester Guardian'', but decided to become a full-time author rather than go abroad as a foreign correspondent. He did continue to write part-time for the press, however. The book was inspired by a summer spent by Ransome teaching the children of his friends, the Altounyans, to sail. Three of the Altounyan children's names are adopted directly for the Walker family. Ransome and Ernest Altounyan bought two small

dinghies A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel for use as a tender. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor. Some are rigged for sailing but they differ from sailing dinghies, which ...

called ''Swallow'' and ''Mavis''. Ransome kept ''Swallow'' until he sold it a number of years later, while ''Mavis'' remained in the Altounyan family and is now on permanent display in the

Ruskin Museum The Ruskin Museum is a small local museum in Coniston, Cumbria, northern England. It was established in 1901 by W. G. Collingwood, an artist and antiquarian who had worked as secretary to art critic John Ruskin. The museum is both a memorial ...

. However, later in life Ransome tried to downplay the Altounyan connections, changing the initial dedication of ''Swallows and Amazons'' and writing a new foreword which gave other sources. In 2003, the novel was listed at number 57 on the BBC's survey

The Big Read The Big Read was a survey on books carried out by the BBC in the United Kingdom in 2003, where over three-quarters of a million votes were received from the British public to find the nation's best-loved novel of all time. The year-long survey wa ...

Plot summary

The book relates the outdoor adventures and play of two families of children. These involve sailing, camping, fishing, exploration and

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

. The Walker children (John, Susan, Titty and Roger) are staying at a farm near a lake in the

of England, during the school holidays. They sail a borrowed

dinghy A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel for use as a tender. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor. Some are rigged for sailing but they differ from sailing dinghies, whic ...

named ''Swallow'' and meet the Blackett children (Nancy and Peggy), who sail a dinghy named ''Amazon''. The Walkers camp on an island (which they name "Wildcat Island") in the lake, while the Blacketts live in their mainland house nearby. When the children meet, they agree to join forces against a common enemy – the Blacketts' uncle Jim Turner whom they call "Captain Flint" (after the parrot in ''

Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...

''). Turner, normally an ally of his nieces, has withdrawn from their company to write his memoirs, and has become decidedly unfriendly. Furthermore, when the Blacketts let off a firework on his houseboat roof, it is the Walkers who get the blame. He refuses even to listen when they try to pass on a warning to him about actual real-life burglars in the area. To determine who should be the overall leader in their campaign against Captain Flint, the Blacketts and the Walkers have a contest to see which can capture the others' boat. As part of their strategy, the Walkers make a dangerous crossing of the lake by night, and John is later cautioned by his mother for this reckless act. The Walkers nevertheless win the contest – thanks to Titty who seizes the ''Amazon'' when the Blacketts secretly come to Wild Cat Island in hopes of capturing the Swallow. During the same night Titty hears suspicious voices coming from a different island – Cormorant Island – and in the morning it transpires that Turner's houseboat has been burgled, and his locked sea-chest stolen. Turner again blames the Walkers, but is finally convinced that he was mistaken and penitently reconciles with all the children, also feeling that he was wrong to distance himself from his nieces' adventures all summer. The Swallows, Amazons, and Turner join forces to investigate Cormorant Island, but they cannot find Turner's missing trunk. The following day, there is a mock battle between Turner and the children, after which Turner is tried for his "crimes" (grouchy attitude, neglectful behavior, etc.) and forced to walk the plank on his own houseboat. They agree at the post-battle feast that on the final day of their holidays, Titty and Roger will go back to Cormorant Island while the others go fishing. Titty finds the trunk, which contains the memoirs on which Turner had been working, and is rewarded with the overjoyed Turner's green parrot for a pet. James Turner appears in some ways to be modelled on Ransome himself. The story, set in August 1929, includes a good deal of everyday Lakeland life from the farmers to

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, ...

burners working in the woods;

corned beef Corned beef, or salt beef in some of the Commonwealth of Nations, is salt-cured brisket of beef. The term comes from the treatment of the meat with large-grained rock salt, also called "corns" of salt. Sometimes, sugar and spices are added ...

, which the children fancifully refer to as

pemmican Pemmican (also pemican in older sources) is a mixture of tallow, dried meat, and sometimes dried berries. A calorie-rich food, it can be used as a key component in prepared meals or eaten raw. Historically, it was an important part of indigenou ...

, and

ginger beer Traditional ginger beer is a sweetened and carbonated, usually non-alcoholic beverage. Historically it was produced by the natural fermentation of prepared ginger spice, yeast and sugar. Current ginger beers are often manufactured rather than ...

and

lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage. There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using ...

, which they call

grog Grog is a term used for a variety of alcoholic beverages. The word originally referred to rum diluted with water (and later on long sea voyages, also added the juice of limes or lemons), which British Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon introduced ...

, appear as regular food stuff for the campers; island life also allows for occasional references to the story of

Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' () is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a tra ...

Major characters

Setting

According to Ransome, every place in his book can be found in the Lake District, but he took different locations and placed them in different ways: the lake is a fictionalised version of

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in length, and almost 1 mile (1.5 km) at its wides ...

but the surrounding countryside more closely resembles that around Coniston. Wild Cat Island, the location of the island camp, has elements from

Peel Island Peel Island ( Indigenous, Janday: ''Teerk Roo Ra'', also and more phonetically spelled 'Jercuruba' or 'Jercroobai' ) is a small heritage-listed island located in Moreton Bay, east of Brisbane, in South East Queensland, Australia. The island ...

in Coniston and Blake Holme (or Blakeholme) in Windermere. Holly Howe, the farmhouse of the Jacksons where the Swallows stay, is based on Bank Ground Farm, which exists to this day. It was featured in the 1974 film. The main town on the lake is called ''Rio'' by the children but has a "native name"; it is based on the twin towns of

Bowness-on-Windermere Bowness-on-Windermere is a town in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. It lies next to Windermere lake and the town of Windermere to the north east with which it forms the civil parish of Windermere and Bowness. The town was hist ...

and

on Lake Windermere. They call the main fell or mountain near the Lake ''Kanchenjunga'' (the Amazons' parents and uncle called it the ''Matterhorn''); it is based on the "

Old Man of Coniston The Old Man of Coniston is a fell in the Furness Fells in the Cumbria, English Lake District and is the highest point (county top) of the historic county of Lancashire. It is at least high, and lies to the west of the village of Coniston and ...

" near

Coniston Water Coniston Water in the English county of Cumbria is the third-largest lake in the Lake District by volume (after Windermere and Ullswater), and the fifth-largest by area. It is five miles long by half a mile wide (8 km by 800 m), has a ...

. The branch railway to Rio runs ten miles from ''Strickland Junction'', based on

Oxenholme Oxenholme is a village in England just south of the town of Kendal, with which it has begun to merge. It is best known for Oxenholme Lake District railway station on the West Coast Main Line. Because Oxenholme does not have its own church it ...

near

Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, south-east of Windermere and north of Lancaster. Historically in Westmorland, it lies within the dale of t ...

Illustrations

The artist chosen for the first edition of the book was Steven Spurrier, but Ransome objected to his style and so the first edition did not have any illustrations. Spurrier's drawing for the dust jacket had to be used. The second edition contained drawings by

Clifford Webb Clifford Webb RBA 1936, RE 1948 (14 March 1894 – 29 July 1972) was an English artist, illustrator and writer. He specialised in animal drawings. He was apprenticed as a lithographer, but served in the British Army (Wiltshire Regiment) during ...

but after Ransome successfully illustrated ''

Peter Duck ''Peter Duck'' is the third book in the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series by Arthur Ransome. The Swallows and Amazons sail to Crab Island with Captain Flint and Peter Duck, an old sailor, to recover buried treasure. During the voyage the ''Wildcat ...

'' himself, he decided to do his own drawings for all the books, including those already published, and Webb's drawings were replaced in later editions.

Critical reception

Reviewing the book for the U.K. daily newspaper ''The Manchester Guardian'' (forerunner of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'')

Malcolm Muggeridge Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge (24 March 1903 – 14 November 1990) was an English journalist and satirist. His father, H. T. Muggeridge, was a socialist politician and one of the early Labour Party Members of Parliament (for Romford, in Essex). In ...

wrote:

"Children's books are probably the most difficult of all to write; they are certainly the most difficult to review. For children alone can properly judge their worth, and children, very wisely, never review. An adult has to refer back to his own childhood and ask himself: Would I have enjoyed such a book then? The answer, in the case of ''Swallow and Amazons'', icis very definitely, Yes. Moreover, the book is entirely charming quite apart from its qualities as child literature. This is rare; for, generally speaking, nothing makes drearier reading than the conscious juvenility of adults."

Muggeridge continued,

"Mr. Ransome has the same magical power that
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequ ...
had of being the child in terms of himself. He never talks down; never finds it necessary to be patronising or sentimental. And sentimentality is the most terrible pitfall that besets those who venture into the world of play. ��Captain John and Mate Susan, and Able-seaman Titty, and Ship's Boy Roger are not at all like
Christopher Robin Christopher Robin is a character created by A. A. Milne, based on his son Christopher Robin Milne. The character appears in the author's popular books of poetry and ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' stories, and has subsequently appeared in various Disney ...
. ey are children. And the story of their adventures on a little island in the middle of an English lake is thrilling just because it is not fabulous. ��It is make-believe such as all children have indulged in: even children who have not been so fortunate as to have a lake and a boat and an island but only a backyard amongst the semis of Suburbia."

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

'' commented that "With a few exceptions, adventure in contemporary children’s literature is safely relegated to the past, or the realms of fantasy, facilitated by wizardry (

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at ...

) or demi-gods (

Percy Jackson Perseus "Percy" Jackson is a fictional character, the title character and narrator of Rick Riordan's ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. He is also one of seven main protagonists of the sequel series '' The Heroes of Olympus'', appear ...

). ''Swallows and Amazons'' contains no sorcery; its plot is plausible, its characters ordinary children. Therein lies its enduring magic. A celebration of friendship, imagination, fair play, and exploration, ''Swallows and Amazons'' inspires even the most landlocked kid to dream of messing about in boats, building fires, camping out and navigating by the stars."

Adaptations

Radio

In 1936 the BBC broadcast ''Swallows and Amazons'' as a "dialogue story" in five weekly episodes during The Children's Hour on the BBC National Programme (later known as the

BBC Home Service The BBC Home Service was a national and regional radio station that broadcast from 1939 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 4. History 1922–1939: Interwar period Between the early 1920s and the outbreak of World War II, the BBC ...

). The book was adapted by Barbara Sleigh. From 9 October 1947 up to and including 22 January 1948 ''Swallows and Amazons'' was adapted into fifteen episodes and read by

Derek McCulloch Derek Ivor Breashur McCulloch OBE (18 November 1897 – 1 June 1967) was a BBC Radio producer and presenter. He became known as "Uncle Mac" on ''Children's Hour'' and ''Children's Favourites'' and provided the voice of "Larry the Lamb" in ''Toy ...

(Uncle Mac) during

Children's Hour ''Children's Hour'', initially ''The Children's Hour'', was the BBC's principal recreational service for children (as distinct from "Broadcasts to Schools") which began during the period when radio was the only medium of broadcasting. ''Childr ...

on the

Television

In 1963, the BBC produced an adaptation, '' Swallows and Amazons,'' with John Paul as "Captain Flint" and Susan George as the renamed "Kitty". The series was directed by Peter Saunders.

Film

EMI released a version in 1974, directed by

Claude Whatham Claude Whatham (7 December 1927 in Manchester – 4 January 2008 in Anglesey) was an English film and TV director mainly known for his work on dramas. Early life In 1940, Whatham, a teenage evacuee art student, had been commissioned to paint f ...

and produced by Richard Pilbrow. The film starred

Virginia McKenna Dame Virginia Anne McKenna, (born 7 June 1931) is a British stage and screen actress, author and wildlife campaigner. She is best known for the films ''A Town Like Alice'' (1956), ''Carve Her Name with Pride'' (1958), ''Born Free'' (1966), and ...

(Mrs. Walker) and Ronald Fraser (Uncle Jim), and Sophie Neville (Titty), Zanna Hamilton (Susan), Simon West (John) and Stephen Grendon (Roger) as the Swallows. The 2016 film was directed by Philippa Lowthorpe and written by

Andrea Gibb Andrea Gibb is a Scottish screenwriter and actress. Early life and education Andrea Gibb was born in Greenock, Scotland. She studied drama and sociology at Glasgow University and then did a post-graduate teaching degree at Manchester Polytechnic ...

. The film stars Andrew Scott, Rafe Spall,

Kelly Macdonald Kelly Macdonald (born 23 February 1976) is a Scottish actress. She is known for her roles in '' Trainspotting'' (1996), '' Gosford Park'' (2001), '' Intermission'' (2003), '' Nanny McPhee'' (2005), '' No Country for Old Men'' (2007), ''Boardwa ...

Jessica Hynes Tallulah Jessica Elina Hynes (''née'' Stevenson; born 30 October 1972) is an English actress, director and writer. Known professionally as Jessica Stevenson until 2007, she was one of the creators, writers and stars of the British sitcom ''Spac ...

, and

Harry Enfield Henry Richard Enfield (born 30 May 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer and director. He is known in particular for his television work, including '' Harry Enfield's Television Programme'' and ''Harry & Paul'', and for the creation and ...

Other versions

In August 1999 BBC Radio 4 broadcast a radio adaptation by David Wood with

Jean Anderson Jean Anderson (12 December 1907 – 1 April 2001) was an English actress best remembered for her television roles as hard-faced matriarch Mary Hammond in the BBC drama '' The Brothers'' (1972–1976) and as rebellious aristocrat Lady Jocelyn " ...

as Titty seventy years later narrating. Young Titty was played by Phoebe Phillips, John by John Paul Ekins, Susan by Flora Harris, Roger by Joe Sowerbutts, mother by

Penny Downie A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is th ...

, Nancy by Catherine Poole, Peggy by Jackie Swainson and Uncle Jim by

Nicholas Le Prevost Nicholas Le Prevost (born 18 March 1947) is an English actor. Early life Le Prevost was born in Wiltshire. He was educated at Shaftesbury Grammar School, Shaftesbury, Dorset from 1957 to 1961 and at Kingswood School, Bath from 1961 to 19 ...

. The

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

started developing a musical version of ''Swallows and Amazons'' in 2007.

Helen Edmundson Helen Edmundson (born 1964) is a British playwright, screenwriter and producer. She has won awards and critical acclaim both for her original writing and for her adaptations of various literary classics for the stage and screen. Early life E ...

wrote the book and lyrics while

The Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature an ...

's frontman

Neil Hannon Edward Neil Anthony Hannon (born 7 November 1970) is a Northern Irish singer and songwriter. He is the creator and front man of the chamber pop group The Divine Comedy, and is the band's sole constant member. Hannon wrote the theme tunes for ...

wrote the music. The musical premiered at the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a f ...

on 1 December 2010 and played at the Vaudeville Theatre, in London's West End, from 15 December 2011, prior to going on tour around the UK from January to May 2012. The production features adults playing the children and has been received favourably by reviewers.

Publication details

*1930, UK, Jonathan Cape, Pub date 21 July 1930, hardback (First edition, unillustrated) *1931, UK, Jonathan Cape, Pub date 1931, hardback (First "Clifford Webb" illustrated edition) *1931, US, J.B.Lippincott company, Philadelphia, 1931. Hardback, no full illustrations, front and back plates plus chapter headings by Helene Carter. *1938, UK, Jonathan Cape, Pub date 1938, hardback (First "Ransome" illustrated edition) *1958, US, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (), Pub date ? June 1958, hardback *1994, US, David R. Godine, Publisher (), paperback *1995, UK, ISIS Audio Books (), Pub date August 1995, audio book cassette (unabridged) *1999, UK, Jonathan Cape (), Pub date 1999, hardback *2001, UK, Red Fox Classics (), Pub date 5 April 2001, paperback *2001, UK, Red Fox (), Pub date 5 October 2001, paperback *2005, UK, Gabriel Woolf (), Pub date July 2005, audio book CD *2010, US, David R. Godine, Publisher (), Pub date 16 July 2010, paperback revised edition

References

External links

*
Swallows and Amazons information and news website

TarBoard, the Arthur Ransome and 'Swallows and Amazons' forum
* * *
The 2016 film's official website

The original boats now housed in the Cumbrian museum – BBC photo website
*
The 2014–15 theatrical production's pages at the Bristol Old Vic
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swallows and Amazons Fiction set in 1930 1930 British novels 1930 children's books British adventure novels British children's novels British novels adapted into films Jonathan Cape books Swallows and Amazons series Novels set in the Lake District Novels set on islands