Are you ready for the all new Famous Five? Author Enid Blyton was the most borrowed author from British libraries in 2008-09. But her Famous Five series will undergo a change, to make it more appealing to Generation Next. The aim of the project is to update the books, which were published in 1942, by removing the dated language, especially in some dialogues.
The books have been revised line by line, leaving the plots intact, but cutting many old-fashioned expressions and replacing numerous words like “Mom and Dad” with “Mommy and Daddy, “bathing” with “swimming” and jersey with jumper and so on. There will be photographs of characters posing as Julian, Dick, Anna, George and Timmy the dog rather than the original illustration by Eleen A. Sopar.
GenY pick their favourite books and characters from the British writer’s collection and discuss whether her work should be rewritten.
Nandini Pruthi, a student and Enid’s avid fan, feels that change is good and will attract more readers. “Changing times have shifted reading interests to things like play stations and outdoor activities. While kids have no time to read, books are dying. So, at a point like this, there’s no harm in altering the text to attract a larger audience,” she adds.
Seconds Chetna Shrivastava, teacher, Springdales School, Dhaula Kuan, “In my view, there is nothing wrong in it. It’s for kids and there should be some changes to make it a fun reading. Youngsters nowadays don’t like stuff which is beyond their understanding. So, it’s better to modify the content to make it interesting and readable. As far as changing the language and not the story goes, it’s a good move.”
Some fans believe that one shouldn’t touch something as sacrosanct as Blyton. “Enid with her books has taken readers on an adventurous ride. Her characters have always been realistic. So, touching something so established like this seems unfair for the worldwide audience who has long followed her books and will continue to read them,” says Karmini Sharma, a student.
Shikha Rawat, a media professional opines, “Famous Five is like the Bible for Blyton fans. Rewriting it will change the essence. It’s like changing the language of masterpieces, it wouldn’t be advisable to do this as these books are very expressive, beautiful, simple, lucid.”