This is the second in the Famous Five series. The book gripped me from the very beginning and I loved the concept of it and it was different from the first book! I still say that Enid is still one of my all time favourite authors to this day! What I love about her novels is that she makes the mysteries not as easy to solve (but most of the time I solved them!).PLOT!It's the Christmas holidays and Julian, Dick and Anne can't go back to their house due to their mum being ill and their dad being quarantined because of it. So the three of them go to their cousins house. The people living there are Uncle Quentin, Aunt Fanny, George, Timothy and Joanna the Cook. Over the Christmas holidays the kids have to have a tutor (all accept Anne but later on still joins in) because Julian and Dick where ill during the term there and needed to catch up and George needed to do extra work due to the poor report card she got. Uncle Quentin hires a man named Mr Roland but beforehand already knew about Uncle Quentin's work and was intrigued to find more about him. While there Mr Roland becomes friends with Anne, Dick and Julian but does not become friends with George or Tim. George and Tim are alone, they dislike him and think he's up to something but will they ever discover what he's up to? The Characters:George: At first I started to fall in love with the character but I don't like it as much as the first novel. Her character is somewhat more annoying then the first one. I hate that her character always mons and gets in moods really easily. At first I really disliked the character but I started to like her because she was in the right and the rest of the family was in the wrong. Julian: The character gets really annoying in this novel because he or George wants to be in charge when there investigating and sometimes it can be annoying. His character isn't as bad as the first novel but I don't like how he takes charge of the situation. Dick: He has a massive leap because in the first one he had a good role but in this one he has a bigger role and contributes more. I like his bond with George, its a lot better then the first one (its like she replaced Julian a bit).Anne: In the second book she has a bit of a smaller role in this novel compared to the first one. Anne in this one sucks up to tutor Mr Roland! Anne dislikes Mr Roland along with the rest of the kids after they find out the truth! I feel sorry for her because her siblings get annoyed with her because she can't hold her water (which I can totally relate with). Timothy: The character is an okay character at the start but all the way through the novel he can sense something wrong with Mr Roland, not being friendly with him for a start and then him catching him sneaking around on Christmas night. He is still loyal to all of the kids, mostly George of course. I kind of felt sad for Tim when he was kicked outside to live out there :( I love how Tim saves the day at the end of the book! Mr Roland: The character is a very mysterious character. All the way through it I sense something wrong with him. He is the tutor for the kids (apart from Anne) and is a really strange character because you don't know if he's up to something. I absolute hate his character, at first he becomes friends with most of the kids and then after Christmas he becomes this mean person. Anne starts to dislike him straight away after him stating that Tim should stay outside (all because of Mr Roland). He starts to be mean to Anne because she knows things about Uncle Quentin's things gets broken and stolen! Mr Roland is revelled alongside Mr Thomas and Mr Wilton that steal the papers from Uncle Quentin. Uncle Quentin: The character is very odd. I don't understand why this character isn't nice anymore. At the end of the first one he seemed to change but for some reason he's gone back to square one. He's mean to the kids and only cares about work! Once again he becomes happy at the end of the novel when the kids and Tim save the day! Aunt Fanny: The character is believable and all but I want her to have more of a role. I want to see more of her but any how the bits she's in I really like her in them. I love her bond with the children and I like how she's like every single mother or aunt, she's super at that concept of the story! Other characters: Joanna the Cook. Mr and Mrs Sanders. The two artists Mr Wilton and Thomas. The two artists are actually key characters in the novel. At first you think there going to be minor characters but they are actually important characters and without them in it it wouldn't really work without them! I also like how they didn't just make random characters to be the bad guys! In this book they introduced a new location which is Kirren Farmhouse which was one of the main locations throughout the novel. The two artists live there and that's where the secret way leads from Kirren Cottage!The story is great and I loved reading it. I don't think it's better then the first one but its still a really good sequel and I can't wait for the next book in the series.
- FAMOUS FIVE 2012: CHILDHOOD REVISITED -Book two: Five Go Adventuring AgainBeing a follow-up to the first book, "Five Go Adventuring Again" still has a more introductory character to it than the rest of the books in the series. And it is, maybe because of that, a bit bland.The second adventure of the Famous Five occurs almost entirely indoors, partly because it's set during a snowy Christmas, but also because the main characters have to be tortured with extra-curicular holiday-lessons from a stern tutor who may or may not have some very suspicious ulterior motives. For that reason alone, I think one must give credit to Ms. Enid; it's not the easiest of tasks to come up with a satisfactory storyline to a children's adventure story that takes place inside a house. And still, she manages to do so, incorporating some more original elements into the story (when compared against the Treasure-Island-esque plot of the first book).However, this comes at a cost: repetition. Though still largely undescriptive, the book does tend to drag on a bit, and is not at fast-paced as its predecessor. Another problem was, at least for me, some of the content. As much as you have to put aside some degree of logic and credibility when reading adventure books (and more specifically: when reading adventure books for children as an adult), the whole mysterious underground tunnel no-one had heard of just doesn't do it for me. It's too easy a plot solution point, even for children.As a whole, the book is just that: bland. What happens is dragged and even slightly boring, and pales in comparison to most of the other books in the series. It wasn't, in any case, an unpleasant read; and out of respect for my 7 year old self, I am rating it 3/5. Flawed as it may be, it's still more exciting than many other things I've read (here's looking at you, José Rodrigues dos Santos).
Do You like book Five Go Adventuring Again (2015)?
In the book "Otra aventura de los cinco" by Enid Blyton, the five friends go on many adventures. They need to find the thief that is trying to steal their prized possession that can be found by following the treasure map. Their language teacher helps them pursue their search of finding the treasure. This book was boring at times, but was a good teaching story. The most interesting part of the book was when they found the map to find their treasure. This event had many details and can be enticing to readers who like mystery.
—Leila K.
I am by no means the target audience for these books anymore so wasn't sure what re-reading this would be like. I was most happy to find I still enjoyed this! This is the second book in the Famous Five series, they were never my favourites (I much preferred the Secret Seven) but are still pretty good reads. It may also help that I haven't read the books for 10 years but I didn't remember the plot details in the way I thought I would (and as I did with the Redwall books).I can certainly see why these books are so popular, and I really love how old they are and the era they represent - if only we could be as carefree as the children in these books in this modern world!
—Carina
I have read the whole series over and over again. I never tire of it. This book is the second in the series and the George, Anne, Julian and Dick along with Timmy the dog return to Kirrin Cottage for the Christmas break. Sadly the boys and George have not done too well at school so George's father arranges for a tutor, and so Mr Roland arrives. George takes an instant dislike to him when he insists on calling George by her rightful name, Georgina, and announces he hates dogs. Despite having to spend their mornings studying the five manage to have a marvellous adventure as they track down a thief and race along secret passages!I love the innocence of these stories and the fact that children don't need TV and computer games to exist. The children are aged from 10 to 12 and they act their age. They aren't little adults kicking backside as many kids in fiction are portrayed today, they are children having a jolly good adventure :)
—Sally906
