I hope you all enjoyed my last book on the Blyton books you should be reading this winter. Here are five more titles in my list of winter and Christmas must reads by Blyton. If you missed my first post you can see it here.

Warning; May Contain Spoilers

Now for those wintry titles:

1. I’m going to start with maybe a not so obvious winter title: In the Fifth at Malory Towers. Published in 1950 and the penultimate book in the Malory Towers series it sees the girls in the beginning of the fifth year, the winter term. Over the course of the novel we have references to winter sports and to make the Fifth the most interesting book yet, the run up to the Christmas Pantomime that our heroine Darrell Rivers gets to write and the whole form performs. This book isn’t quite as wintry as some of the others on this list, but it certainly helps you get into that Christmas spirit!

!In the Fifth at Malory Towers!, 1957 reprint, illustrated by Lilian Buchanan

2.  The Christmas Book is my second title – and in the run up to Christmas what could be a better book to curl up and read. It follows four children, Benny, Susan, Ann and Peter in the run up to Christmas, with the story ending on the big day itself. Its filled with interesting facts about traditions at Christmas. Its a good one for topping up your Christmas knowledge and makes you feel very Christmassy.

“The Christmas book”, 1944, illustrated by Treyer Evans

3. The Mystery of the Strange Bundle is the 10th book in the Five Find-Outers series, and even though we can call it a wintry book, we can’t go as far as to say that it’s a Christmas book. This mystery takes place after Christmas, when the children are just recovering from the flu that Bets gave them all when they came home from school. Most of the Five Find-Outers – Bets being the exception – have been in bed over Christmas (rather like Five Get Into a Fix). Anyway this mystery is rather a change for the Five Find- Outers as things become clear that they are dealing with a much more national problem. Not a particularly Christmassy read, but still good when you consider the children wrapped up warm against the cold and snow!

“The Mystery of the Strange Bundle”, 1952, illustrated by Treyer Evans

4. Five Get Into a Fix The 17th Famous Five novel is in a way is one of Blyton’s most blatant Christmas stories, being one of the two only Famous Fives to be set around Christmas. Like the Mystery of the Strange Bundle, the Five spend Christmas in bed with coughs and colds, but this time at the house of Julian, Dick and Anne’s parents.  We are treated to wonderful post Christmas snowy scenes as the Five are sent to Magga Glen in Wales to build their strength up again after their illness. Needless to say, they manage to find themselves in the middle of a rather thrilling adventure.

“Five get into a Fix”, 1958, illustrated by Eileen Soper

5. Shock for the Secret Seven is the 13th Secret Seven novel. During the Christmas break, fights break out amongst the Seven because of Jack not being able to remember the secret password and his sister Susie always knowing it. For a while the Seven cease to exist, but then dogs start to go missing, including Scamper. We’re treated to scenes of the Seven sketching footprints in the snow and stomping about in Wellington boots in the cold. A proper winter tale!

“Shock for the Secret Seven”, 1962, illustrator unknown

So there you are! Another five wintry books for you to try out! Which one’s your favourite? Or have I missed any out? Let us know in the comments below!

All pictures taken from The Cave of Books.