Five Go Down to the Sea - Enid Blyton

Published as an audiobook by Hodder Children's Books/Hachette Children's Books, 2013.
Narrated by Jan Francis.
Book 12 in the Famous Five Series. Preceded by 'Five Have a Wonderful Time.' Followed by 'Five Go to Mystery Moor.'
First published 1953.

The five go on holiday to Cornwall, where they are booked in to stay on the farm of Mr and Mrs Penruthlan. Mrs Penruthlan is a warm woman with a penchance for over-feeding the children, while Mr Penruthlan is unintelligible to the children due to not wearing his false teeth (though Mrs Penruthlan understands him perfectly). The children are befriended by a small local boy named Yan who follows them around whether they want him to or not. A local theatre troupe - the Barneys - also features, turning up and hosting a few nights' worth of performances in the the Penruthlan's barn.

The mystery this time around involves a light being shone from an old tumble-down tower that was originally used by criminals to trick ships into crashing on the rocks, in order to steal their cargo. As usual, there are mysterious figures, hidden passages, narrow escapes, and one or two people who are not necessarily what they seem. 

The Five have a bad habit of judging those around them quickly, and usually these preconceptions are proved accurate - this book does play with that a bit, although elements of the plot can still be figured out by the attentive reader.

At the end of this book, Elise told me that it hadn't gelled for her as well as some other entries, and as a result it was not her favourite. I didn't mind it. Fun moments, light adventure. 

Fine.

Completed, with Elise, 27 July 2026.



(Elise Books)

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(Famous Five Series)

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