Enid Blyton's Adventure Series
Philip, Dinah, Jack and Lucy-Ann are four friends who, together with their parrot Kiki, fall headlong into adventure no matter where they go. (See the individual book reviews below)
There are eight books in this series (in reading order):
1) The Island of Adventure
2) The Castle of Adventure
3) The Valley of Adventure
4) The Sea of Adventure
5) The Mountain of Adventure
6) The Ship of Adventure
7) The Circus of Adventure
8) The River of Adventure
BOOK REVIEWS
Book I: The Island of Adventure
Philip and Dinah Mannering are staying with their aunt and uncle in their derelict old mansion by the sea, Craggy-Tops. When Philip brings his friends, Jack and Lucy-Ann Trent (together with Jack's pet parrot, Kiki) to stay at Craggy-Tops, they discover mysterious goings-on on the deserted Isle of Gloom. Is their new friend Bill Smugs really who he says he is?
Book 2: The Castle of Adventure
The children and Mrs Mannering go on holiday in the English countryside, near an abandoned castle. The children make friends with a wild local girl, Tassie, and find a way into the castle, which is the nesting place of the rare Golden Eagle. But the children soon discover that the castle has a more sinister secret ... it is being used as a base by spies!
Book 3: The Valley of Adventure
When they board the wrong aeroplane, the children are spirited away to an uninhabited valley, completely enclosed by mountains. The children rescue a prisoner, who gives them a map that leads to the hidden store of church treasures. However, the children are not the only ones on the trail of the treasure...
Book 4: The Sea of Adventure
Bill has to 'disappear' because he is being hunted by criminals. He takes the children along with him on a sailing trip to a deserted archipelago. However, it isn't as peaceful as it seems, for the islands are being used by the very same criminals Bill is fleeing from! When Bill is abducted, it is up to the children to save him from the dangerous gun-runners ...
Book 5: The Mountain of Adventure
The children are hiking in the Welsh mountains, when they become lost in the woods after their guide flees in terror. They come across a strange mountain, where a sinister experiment is being carried out by a scientist. Soon the children are captured and taken prisoner, and Philip has to try out the 'wings' that have been invented by the scientist. The children's fate hangs in the balance, and only Bill can save them!
Book 6: The Ship of Adventure
While cruising on the Mediterranean Sea, the children find a treasure map that leads them to the long-lost treasure of the Andra. However, they aren't the only ones on the trail of the treasure; the unscrupulous collector Mr. Eppy is also searching for it, and he will resort to any means necessary in order to own it!
Book 7: The Circus of Adventure
Bill is forced bring the young and spoilt Crown Prince of Tauri-Hessia, Gus, along on holiday with his wife and children to protect him from kidnappers. Unfortunately, the kidnappers discover their location and abduct all the children except Jack. Now Jack (and Kiki) have to venture into Tauri-Hessia and rescue them before the kidnappers are successful in deposing the Tauri-Hessian King.
Book 8: The River of Adventure
The final adventure in the series. The children are enjoying a river cruise in the Middle East when Bill and his wife are abducted by the villainous Raya Uma. The children are stranded with Tala, who is in charge of their boat, and Oola, a local boy who Philip rescued from his cruel uncle. The children journey down the river and discover the ruins of an ancient temple and its fabulous treasure. But Raya Uma is also searching for the same treasure, and the children must see through his disguises, rescue their parents and save the ancient treasure from looters like Uma.
[more detailed reviews coming soon]
This series has been adapted for television in 1996 by Cloud 9 Screen Productions. Each book was made into three half-hour episodes, with The Castle of Adventure being retitled as The Woods of Adventure. The storyline has also been modified and updated for the 21st century.
CAST
EPISODE GUIDE
1) The Island of Adventure
Philip and Dinah Mannering meet Jack and Lucy-Ann Trent, who are brother and sister. Jack has a talkative pet parrot, Kiki. They all go to live at Craggy-Tops, an old hilltop house by the sea belonging to Philip and Dinah's widowed mother, Allison. The children meet Bill Smugs, who seems to have sinister motives for hanging around Craggy-Tops. Unknown to Allison, her art gallery is being used to distribute counterfeit notes. Bill is actually working with the Secret Service to uncover the forgers' base. The children stumble across the criminals' hideout on the supposedly deserted Isle of Gloom. When the boys and Bill are caught by the forgers, it is up to the girls to discover a secret passage beneath the sea that leads from Craggy-Tops to the Isle of Gloom. The children manage to flee the flooding mines on the island and the forgers, led by Joe, are arrested.
2) The Woods of Adventure
Jack and Lucy-Ann are spending their holidays at Craggy-Tops together with Philip and Dinah. They stumble across an abandoned castle in the middle of the nearby woods. Meanwhile, Bill has been assigned to investigate the death of a fellow secret service agent who had been investigating the supply of irradiated weapons to terrorists. The abandoned Woods Castle is in fact home to an elderly woman and her mentally-unstable son, Gary. They have let Mr Bright use the castle's subterranean radiation pool to produce the terrorists' weapons. When Kiki flies into the castle and is caged by Gary, nothing will stop Jack and the others from venturing into the castle to rescue her.
3) The Valley of Adventure
Philip, Dinah, Jack, Lucy-Ann and Kiki are in Bill's aeroplane when it is hijacked by two kidnappers searching for the lost treasure looted by the Nazis during the World War. They land in an inaccessible valley in the Black Mountains of Germany, where the children rescue an old man who holds the key to the treasure's location, Otto, from the kidnappers. They manage to locate the treasure which is hidden in a secret cave, but the two kidnappers catch up with them.
4) The Sea of Adventure
Bill takes the children bird-watching to Penguin Island in New Zealand. Bill is kidnapped by Perez, a master criminal who steals museum treasures. The children have to try and rescue him before Perez feeds him to his pet sharks.
5) The Mountain of Adventure
The children are on a hiking holiday in the Welsh Mountains when they are separated from their guide. They venture into the mysterious Mountain of Kings, where a secret experiment is being carried out by a scientific genius. He is inventing an anti-gravity suit, and unfortunate men are being used as guinea-pigs to try out the invention. When the children are caught, it is up to Bill to discover their location and rescue them before Philip is forced to try out the anti-gravity suit.
6) The Ship of Adventure
The children are on a cruise in the Channel Islands when they learn the legend of Andrea's lost treasure. When they discover a map leading to the treasure, they must outwit a criminal mastermind who is also after it. The children discover the treasure and capture the criminals. Bill and Allison get married.
7) The Circus of Adventure
Bill has to protect Gus, the young Crown Prince of Tauri-Hessia. However, the prince, along with Philip, Dinah and Lucy-Ann are kidnapped by an unscrupulous gang who are plotting to depose the King of Tauri-Hessia. Jack and Kiki have to rescue them, even if it means venturing into the unknown country of Tauri-Hessia, where the children are being held captive in Borken Castle. Meanwhile, Bill discovers that a fellow secret service agent is in fact working for the enemy. The children escape and their abductors are arrested.
8) The River of Adventure
The final adventure in the series. The children go on a river cruise with their parents in Turkey. Bill is on the trail of a dangerous criminal named Uma, who has gotten hold of a biological weapon. Bill and his wife are kidnapped by Uma. Meanwhile the children discover the hiding-place of the biological weapon in a ruined temple. The weapon is recovered, Uma is caught and the children's parents are rescued.
To watch the promotional video for the Adventure Series, click on the link below:
http://www.cumulusdistribution.com/programmes/adventureseriespromo.html
[Last edit: 2/9/2005]
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