Titles
The School on North Barrule
Mabel Esther Allan
Voirrey and Andreas Qulliam, whose Manx father, now dead, bequeathed them their exotic Manx names, react very differently when told that they are going to Barrule House, a co-educational boarding school on the Isle of Man. Voirrey is thrilled that she will be living in her father's native island; Andreas hates the idea of boarding with girls, and is in no way mollified when he discovers that Barrule House does not play cricket or 'footer'. Both sister and brother tread a dangerous path once on the island: Andreas's rebellious behaviour causes problems, and Voirrey's determination to discover her father's sister, Mona Quilliam, estranged from Voirrey's parents since their marriage, leads her into some difficult situations. Voirrey also has to cope with her attraction to lively, intelligent Christian Brent, who does not seem to reciprocate. How Voirrey learns the truth and how Andreas becomes reconciled to Barrule House form the exciting and entertaining plot of The School on North Barrule.
Preview of Chapter 1.
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Chiltern Adventure
Mabel Esther Allan
The children of the England family were upset when learning that their summer holiday was to be spent, not at the usual seaside hotel, but in the heart of the country. Francesca, the youngest and completely crazy on ballet, is quite irreconcilable. Their parents are prevented from going, so in the charge of the eldest sister, they settle down to life in the cottage. Almost at once the three elder children come under the spell of the lovely Chiltern country, but Francesca remains a problem.
Preview of Chapter 1.
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The School on Cloud Ridge
Mabel Ether Allan
When Pussy and Collie Alleyne go to a co-educational boarding school in the Cotswolds, the other fifty or so boys and girls are new too, for it is the school's first term. Pussy is thrilled when she is elected to the first School Council, but she soon realizes that it is going to be a difficult position, especially as she and the unfriendly and sophisticated Helen cannot get on. But, she make friends with the three Kavanaghs from Ireland, with Myra Drury from Lancashire, and with a boy called Hugo, who is instrumental in starting them off on a very originl treasure hunt...
Preview of Chapter 1.
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Biography
Mabel was an incredibly prolific writer, publishing some 180 books and contributing over 300 short stories and articles to annuals and magazines, both under her own name and the pseudonyms of Jean Estoril, Priscilla Hagon and Anne Pilgrim.
Mabel announced to her family at the age of eight that she planned to be a writer. They took this seriously and when the family moved a few years later Mabel was given a spare room to use as a study. Her father bought a large office desk which she was to use for the rest of her life, and presented her with a typewriter upon which she taught herself to type. Although Mabel had a number of short stories published during the 1930s and had a couple of books accepted by publishers, the war intervened. Mabel joined the land army, and taught in a prep school and in a nursery in a slum area of Liverpool where she taught 48 two- to five- year-olds at a time. It was 1948 before Mabel received from her publisher the first copy of The Glen Castle Mystery, one of three books to be published that year. It was the start of a very successful writing career.
The first book by Mabel Esther Allan that Fidra Books will be publishing is The School on North Barrule. Subsequent titles will include Cilia of Chiltern’s Edge, Swiss School, Lost Lorrenden and Clues to Connemara. Her school stories are particularly interesting in that they are strikingly different from the typical school story of the 1950s. Heavily influenced by the writings of A S Neil, the progressive educationalist who founded Summerhill, Mabel’s schools are unconventional, teaching children self-discipline rather than relying on imposed discipline and many were coeducational. Her non-school stories were often mystery-thrillers for older children set in the places to which Mabel loved to travel: the Scottish islands, Switzerland, Wales, Ireland and New York and her descriptions of settings are evocative and detailed.
Bibliography
Mabel Esther Allan
The Adventurous Summer (1948) |
Behind the Blue Gates (1972) Jean Estoril
Ballet for Drina (1957) Anne Pilgrim
Clare goes to Holland (1964) Priscilla Hagon
Cruising to Danger (1966) |
Links
The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at The University of Southern Mississippi houses the Mabel Esther Allan Papers - a collection of manuscripts, typescripts, galleys, correspondence, and personal items created and accumulated by Mabel Esther Allan between 1915 and 1998.