This book was published in 1960, so seems a little old-fashioned now. But they were certainly popular at the
time. The letter at the end says there were over 100 000 readers, with some as far away as Australia. Well I'm reading it in Australia 64 years later, so I bet that's something the writer and artist wouldn't have dreamed of back then.
First, some comments on the story. It's a spin on the usual boarding school story, only instead of the daughter being sent off to boarding school initially, the mother goes off to boarding school during the term to teach and leaves the daughter at home with Hannah, the old housekeeper. There is no father on the scene, but also no explanation of what happened to him.
p. 5 - It seemed strange that the mother was so keen to send Julie to the same boarding school where she had been treated so badly. It might have made more sense if Julie had begged to go. But in any case, we needed to get Julie there or there would be no story.
p. 8 - A bit too much of a coincidence that Julie just happens to be sitting in the train compartment next to the compartment that holds the two baddies. But if she hadn't overheard that conversation, she wouldn't have had her first clue.
pp. 14-15 - I haven't heard the expression 'getting a wigging' before (p. 14) or the expression that Miss Molsey is 'a bit of a tartar' (p. 15). I can guess from the context, but if Paw Broon is reading, maybe he can fill us in.
p. 28 - The blue and white vase at the centre of the mystery was made by the former headmistress, who was a master at her art. So it seems pretty unbelievable that Muriel, with Julie's help, could whip up something almost identical, including firing and glazing, in so short a time (p. 40).
p. 61 - Unless I've missed something, it's not really explained who the accomplice is and how the letter fell into his hands.
But in spite of a few problems, it's a good story overall. It's probably the sort of thing I'd read if I was a schoolgirl back then. The story itself is quite well written. I imagine a lot of girls would prefer to read a story in this form rather than a book, so it would have gotten girls reading. The themes of loyalty, bullying and rumour-mongering are just as relevant today. Julie's loyalty to her mother is admirable, as is Muriel's loyalty to Julie. It shows the difference between a true friend and those who'll leave you in the ditch when there's a hint of trouble. I would have liked to know Miss Molsey's fate. Did they lock her up and throw away the key? Perhaps hard labour making bricks in the prison kiln would have been a suitable punishment. Or they could try throwing a bucket of water over her and wait to see if she melted like the Wicked Witch of the West.
The art is also good. The facial expressions are well-drawn and there's some good movement in some of the panels. Also lots of interesting uses of shading.
Overall, an interesting book. Probably not my cup of tea now, but would certainly have fit the bill for schoolgirls at the time.
Thanks Goof
Quirky Quokka
