Coot Club facts for kids
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| Author | Arthur Ransome |
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| Cover artist | Arthur Ransome |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | Swallows and Amazons |
| Genre | Children's books |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
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Publication date
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1934 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover & Paperback) |
| ISBN | 978-0-87923-787-5 (David R. Godine, Publisher: 1990, paperback) |
| Preceded by | Winter Holiday |
| Followed by | Pigeon Post |
Coot Club is an exciting adventure book for young readers, written by Arthur Ransome. It's the fifth book in his popular Swallows and Amazons series. Published in 1934, this story takes place during the Easter holidays. In Coot Club, you'll meet Dick and Dorothea Callum. They visit the Norfolk Broads in England, hoping to learn how to sail. Their goal is to impress the famous Swallows and Amazons when they meet up later. With new friends, Dick and Dorothea explore the Broads and become skilled sailors.
Contents
Discovering the Coot Club's Adventures
The Callum children, Dick and Dorothea, spend their Easter break on the Broads. They are with a family friend, Mrs Barrable, who is staying on a small yacht called the Teasel. It's docked near the village of Horning.
Meeting the Coot Club Members
There, they meet the Coot Club. This is a group of local children. The group includes Tom Dudgeon, twin girls named 'Port' and 'Starboard' (Nell and Bess Farland), and three younger boys: Joe, Bill, and Pete. These younger boys are known as the "Death and Glories." The Coot Club was created to protect local birds and their nests. They wanted to stop people from collecting eggs or disturbing the birds. Protecting wild birds was a new idea at that time.
Facing the Hullabaloos
A loud group of city visitors, called the 'Hullabaloos' by the children, rent a motor cruiser named Margoletta. They moor their boat right in front of an important coot nest. This nest belongs to a coot with a white feather, which the Coot Club watches closely. The Hullabaloos refuse to move when asked politely.
Tom Dudgeon, despite warnings not to get involved with outsiders, secretly unties the Margoletta's ropes. He does this to save the nest. Then, he hides behind the Teasel. He is afraid of embarrassing his father, who is the local doctor. Untying boats is seen as a very serious act on the Broads. This is because the local economy relies so much on boating. Mrs Barrable doesn't tell the Hullabaloos where Tom is. Instead, she asks Tom to teach Dick and Dorothea how to sail.
Sailing and Escaping on the Broads
Tom, Port, and Starboard join the Teasel's crew. Along with Mrs Barrable and her pug dog, William, the children teach Dick and Dorothea how to sail. They learn the basics of sailing up and down the Broads. The women sleep on the Teasel. Tom and Dick share Tom's small sailing boat, the Titmouse.
Dick's Bird Interest and Dorothea's Story
Dick shares the Coot Club's strong interest in local bird life. Dorothea uses their journey as inspiration for her new story. It's called "Outlaw Of The Broads." Her story is about the Hullabaloos' promise to catch Tom. The Hullabaloos chase the Teasel's crew all over the Broads.
Stranded on Breydon Water
Because of a small mistake by Mrs Barrable, the Teasel and Titmouse get caught on a falling tide. They run aground on Breydon Water. They are too far apart to pass things between their boats. William the pug becomes a hero. He carries a thread across the mud, which helps them pull a rope between the boats. This allows them to share food. Without it, some of the group would have gone hungry for 12 hours.
They are still stuck in the mud when the Margoletta arrives. There is no escape. But the Hullabaloos, excited to have found their targets, crash the Margoletta into a wooden marker post. This makes a hole in their boat. The Hullabaloos are now in danger of drowning.
A Dramatic Rescue and Reward
At that moment, the Death and Glories appear. They have rowed all the way from Horning to warn Tom about the Hullabaloos. They perform a dramatic rescue. The owners of the Margoletta reward them for saving their boat. This reward helps the Death and Glories fix up their own vessel. The Hullabaloos leave without thanking their rescuers. Tom can now go home knowing his family's good name is safe.
It turns out that George Owdon, a young man from Horning, told the Hullabaloos where Tom was. George makes money by selling birds' eggs to collectors. So, he doesn't like the Coot Club. This rivalry continues in the next book, The Big Six.
Other Boats in the Story
The Thames Barge Welcome
In the book, the twins sail on a fictional Thames barge called the Welcome of Rochester. Arthur Ransome researched this book in 1933. He learned about a real barge, SB Pudge of Rochester. He wrote to its owners to get details about the cargo Pudge carried and its routes. He also asked which bridges it could pass under. The book describes the cabin and engine of the Welcome. Ransome's descriptions have even helped in restoring the real Pudge today.
The Norfolk Wherry Sir Garnett
Another boat mentioned in the story is the Norfolk wherry Sir Garnett. This boat gives the twins a ride when they need to catch up with Tom.
TV Adaptations of Coot Club
The BBC made a television series called Swallows and Amazons Forever! in 1984. This show was based on Coot Club and The Big Six.
