The Secret Series (Enid Blyton) facts for kids
The Secret Series is a collection of exciting adventure books written by Enid Blyton. There are six books in total:
- The Secret Island
- The Secret of Spiggy Holes
- The Secret Mountain
- The Secret of Killimooin (also known as The Secret Forest)
- The Secret of Moon Castle
A sixth book, The Secret Valley, was written by Trevor J. Bolton and published in 2009.
Contents
The Secret Series Books
Let's explore what happens in each book:
The Secret Island Adventure
Meet Peggy, Mike, and Nora. They are siblings living with a strict aunt and uncle. They believe their parents were lost in a plane crash. In their first big adventure, they team up with Jack, a local orphan boy. They decide to run away to a deserted island on a nearby lake.
On the island, they build a cozy house from willow branches. They even bring a cow and chickens for fresh milk and eggs! Life on the island is great, but they face challenges. Day-trippers nearly discover them. The local police are also looking for them.
Jack almost gets caught when he goes ashore to sell their farm goods. But on one trip, he hears amazing news. He learns about the missing parents of the other children. This book was first a serial story. It became a full novel in 1938. It was one of Enid Blyton's first adventure stories. It came before famous series like The Famous Five and The Secret Seven.
The Secret of Spiggy Holes Mystery
The children are now reunited with their parents! Jack has also been adopted into the family. They go on holiday to the rugged Cornish coast. A family friend, Miss Dimity (or "Dimmy"), joins them. She appears in several other books.
The children soon find themselves in a kidnapping case. They discover a boy held prisoner in a nearby castle tower. The boy is Prince Paul of Baronia. Baronia is a small, faraway kingdom. Paul is the heir to its throne. The children rescue him and protect him from the kidnappers.
The Arnold children become close friends with Paul. He appears in all the rest of the books. To escape the kidnappers, the five children hide on the Secret Island. Paul's father, the King, is very thankful. He is so impressed that he sends Paul to an English boarding school. It is the same school Mike and Jack attend.
The Secret Mountain Journey
Captain and Mrs. Arnold are flying their plane, the White Swallow. They seem to have crashed in a remote part of Africa. The children are home from school with Dimmy. They team up with Prince Paul. They fly off in his royal plane to Africa. Paul's loyal helpers, Ranni and Pilescu, go with them.
Their mission is to rescue the Arnolds. But they get caught up with a strange African tribe. This tribe has flaming red hair. They live in secret tunnels and caves inside a mountain. Along the way, they befriend Mafumu. He is a local boy who guides them. Without his help, they might not have succeeded. A total solar eclipse helps them escape.
The Secret of Killimooin Forest
Prince Paul invites his four friends to his palace in Baronia for the holidays. He still attends school with Jack and Mike. It is very hot in Baronia during summer. So, the royal family moves to their castle in the mountains. Bands of robbers are causing trouble in the countryside. They are scaring the local people.
Paul is determined to find the robbers. He wants them to be caught. So, he and his friends set out to do this. They find a secret tunnel in a mountainside cave. This tunnel leads to an underground river. The river flows into a secret forest. This forest is completely hidden. It is surrounded by tall, impassable cliffs.
It turns out the robbers live here. Only they know the secret tunnel. That is why no one has found them for years. Unfortunately, the children fall into the robbers' hands. They have many tense adventures trying to escape. A raging storm makes things harder. The underground river's water level rises. Will they escape the tunnel in time?
The Secret of Moon Castle Mystery
Prince Paul's family visits England. They want to rent a castle for several weeks. Mrs. Arnold helps them find a suitable castle. She knows England much better than Paul's parents. The Arnolds are invited to stay in the castle too.
Soon, strange things happen in the castle. They hear odd noises. Eyes in portraits seem to shine. Lights appear in locked tower rooms. It seems unknown people do not want them to stay. Sometimes, they feel a strange tingling. Odd colored lights rise from the ground. This seems to be from a strange metal. Mysterious men are mining it for unknown reasons.
The Secret Valley Discovery
Paul invites his friends to Baronia again. They camp near a secret airfield. New Baronian aircraft are being tested there. Captain Arnold is helping with this work. But there seem to be enemies. They want to sabotage this project.
This problem seems connected to a remote valley. The children stumble into it almost by accident. This valley is very hard to reach.
