RE-READING a book you loved as a child is always a bit scary. Will it be as good as you remember? Lots of them stood the test of time while I was re-reading them to my sons – like Norman Hunter’s The Homemade Dragon or Anthony Buckeridge’s Jennings books.
But Brendon Chase meant SO much to me, growing up, that I bought the book and then waited about three years before I had the nerve to return to its much loved chapters. I was staggering through a nasty virus in February when I finally gave in and started reading it again.
And it was fabulous. 
As Philip Pullman writes in his foreword, this is a book that could not be written today. It’s outrageously politically incorrect. Its three heroes shoot cute furry animals and collect bird’s eggs for a start. To eat – not for fun – but even so… John, Robin and Edward run off to fend for themselves in Brendon Chase – a vast woodland some miles from their stifling home with a maiden aunt. BB – the author – (a country gentleman who preferred to be known by those initials) describes the natural world with such staggering depth that you can pretty much smell it and feel it under foot. It’s a rough nature too, with life and death in all its loveliness and dread – but utterly absorbing.
I don’t go for excessive description in adventure stories but in Brendon Chase the natural world is the adventure, from the blissful dips in the Blind Pool to a death defying tree climb for a prized egg. And anyone who has read the Shapeshifter series (Going To Ground in particular) will see how thoroughly influenced I was by this writer. There is even a chapter called Going To Ground! I had forgotten about that.
Modern fiction is brilliant (you’ve only to flick through the works of my talented fellow captives to see that) but every so often you should give yourself a different kind of treat and try out a classic. If you’re a girl who loves relationship stories go for What Katy Did or Anne of Green Gables – and if you’re a boy (or a girl who thinks a bit like one) go for Brendon Chase. You’ll love getting lost in the woods…
08/04/2010 at 5:10 pm Permalink
I remember reading B.B.’s Little Grey Men books when I was a child. I loved them then, but I can’t imagine, them being published today. Thank heavens for the publishers who keep the lesser known classics in print!