I have it on my shelf next to 1066 And All That, both guaranteed to make me laugh and laugh. I agree that most of the cultural references are probably illegible to later generations. But… we still get ruled by the likes of Cameron and Johnson and whatever he’s called from the Reactionary Party. And whatever we might hope about history education, history remains “what you can remember”. An awful lot of people think that what happened in history is roughly what was being sent up in 1066 - published in 1930. It was also based on Punch pieces. What was already thought ridiculous then - and Punch was never a radical magazine - is still taken seriously now. And when these people rail against “wrong” or “woke” history, it’s this they want to get back to. But the joke’s on us for letting them get away with it.
The wonderful thing about the Molesworth oeuvre is that it's a rare example of books that have to be read. Most of the jokes are visual - both the illustrations and the speling - so it can't be read to you, and it can't be made into an animation or film, like a comic book.
They're also in that genre of supposedly children's stories that are really for adults - Just William, The Wind In The Willows, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh.
I first encountered Nigel in a compendium of school stories I was given as a birthday present in the 80s. The cover illustration was of two very hip 80s teens, but the book was all excerpts from classic literature. I sought out the full length novels from my favourites - What Katy Did, Cider With Rosie, Just William, and Molesworth.
Searle and Willians do capture that era, the decline of the British Empire and the societal structures that went with it, as deftly as Le Carré (but less bleakly). And yes, well-observed that Molesworth-speak is as clubbable as Private Eye, Wodehouse and G&S - all things I also love, despite being a vagina-haver (they tend to be male-coded, by and large).
I have it on my shelf next to 1066 And All That, both guaranteed to make me laugh and laugh. I agree that most of the cultural references are probably illegible to later generations. But… we still get ruled by the likes of Cameron and Johnson and whatever he’s called from the Reactionary Party. And whatever we might hope about history education, history remains “what you can remember”. An awful lot of people think that what happened in history is roughly what was being sent up in 1066 - published in 1930. It was also based on Punch pieces. What was already thought ridiculous then - and Punch was never a radical magazine - is still taken seriously now. And when these people rail against “wrong” or “woke” history, it’s this they want to get back to. But the joke’s on us for letting them get away with it.
Crumbing institutions are surely reminiscent of Bakeoff, not St Custard's?
The wonderful thing about the Molesworth oeuvre is that it's a rare example of books that have to be read. Most of the jokes are visual - both the illustrations and the speling - so it can't be read to you, and it can't be made into an animation or film, like a comic book.
They're also in that genre of supposedly children's stories that are really for adults - Just William, The Wind In The Willows, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh.
I first encountered Nigel in a compendium of school stories I was given as a birthday present in the 80s. The cover illustration was of two very hip 80s teens, but the book was all excerpts from classic literature. I sought out the full length novels from my favourites - What Katy Did, Cider With Rosie, Just William, and Molesworth.
Searle and Willians do capture that era, the decline of the British Empire and the societal structures that went with it, as deftly as Le Carré (but less bleakly). And yes, well-observed that Molesworth-speak is as clubbable as Private Eye, Wodehouse and G&S - all things I also love, despite being a vagina-haver (they tend to be male-coded, by and large).