Product Description

'Well,' said Nancy, 'You know what it's like. Dark at teatime and sleeping indoors: nothing ever happens in the winter holidays.' Nothing - except a polar expedition, full of mountain rescues, blizzards, igloos, ice sailing and heroic work amidst the frozen wastes. For Dick and Dorothea, newcomers to the lake, meeting up with the Swallows and Amazons sweeps them into a wild adventure where they must prove their worth to the team.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8144 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 395 pages

About the Author
Arthur Ransome was born in Leeds in 1884 and went to school at Rugby. He was in Russia in 1917, and witnessed the Revolution, which he reported for the Manchester Guardian. After escaping to Scandinavia, he settled in the Lake District with his Russian wife where, in 1929, he wrote Swallows and Amazons. And so began a writing career which has produced some of the real children's treasures of all time.

Customer Reviews

Wonderful children's winter adventure
"Winter Holiday" is the fourth volume of the "Swallows and Amazons" series. It features the same Lake District setting as the first two but this time, we encounter the lake and its environs in the depths of winter, rather than summer. The book also introduces two new members to the 'gang': the D's. Indeed, the story concentrates more on the newcomers' activities, as they first meet and befriend - and then try their utmost to keep up with - the more experienced (and world-wise) Swallows and Amazons.

Once again, Ransome allows the children's views of the world to dominate over the grown-up, outsider's view. Amongst other inventions, an old barn becomes a signalling station for communicating with Mars; the lower fells the wastes of High Greenland; and the frozen lake a training ground for an expedition to the North Pole.

This is one of the very best of the S&A stories. It combines all of the fine features of the earlier volumes - beautifully simple (and yet never condescendingly simplified) prose, enchanting line drawings and an espousing of honest and open values - with an elegantly crafted plot and some moments of true excitement. It also has some cleverly disguised educational content, in the form of lessons in field communications techniques. (And the dangers of misinterpretation that can result from their use!) As usual, Ransome knows precisely how to build the excitement as the tale progresses. From simple beginnings, the book gradually becomes more and more riveting reading, until it is almost impossible to put the book down.

It is lovely, too, to see how much the Walker children's characters - as well as their relationships with each other -have developed since the earlier volumes. Seeing them from the perspective of the newcomers makes one realise how much they have grown (and come to function as a team) in the 18 months since the first book!

The world was a simpler place when this book was written (1933) and, sadly, the events portrayed within it just could not happen nowadays. But children of all ages can still enjoy tales such as this, to feed their own imaginations and help them to grow into the world as it now is. Who knows? It may yet help lead the world back to times as honest as these.

Childhood Revisited
I live in Maine, USA, on a lake with a small island just off shore (Wild Cat Island?). I live here because of my engagement with Arthur Ransome's books covering the adventures of the Swallows and Amazon's as well as the D's. I own the complete set in hardcover, and I am now giving them to my niece, nephew and grandson. I received my first AR - The Picts and the Martyrs for my 6th birthday, I have been an avid fan ever since.

The stories are set in a timeless world. While the drawings show a prewar style, non of that time really affects the adventures of the eight children. In fact their childhood is what we would wish for our children today.
Looking back I realise how much I learned from these books. In addition to becoming an enthusiastic sailor, I learned how to plan, to be 'pro' active and organized - Susan; that leadership not gender is what counts - Nancy; Research pays off - Dick; it's OK to have fears - Peggy; learning from mistakes - John; taking risks - Titty; dreaming - Dorothea; and just having fun - Roger.
The stories are crafted so that we absorb these lessons over time but are not conscious of our learning. They are entertaining, most adventurous and should be on the 'must read' list of children's literature.

Great introduction to the series
I have always loved this series of books since my Dad gave this one to me when I was about seven.

This book, although fourth in the series, is actually the best one to introduce children, uninitiated in the ways of sailing and camping, to the collection of stories.

The story focusses on the D's, Dick and Dorothea Callum, who are staying at the farmhouse of their Mother's old nurse for the Christmas holidays. Neither of the children know anything about sailing, signalling or any of the nautical pastimes of the other children in the books. So, when they finally meet the Walker and Blackett children, they are taught, along with the reader, all about those subjects.

For a modern child, knowing nothing about boats, the first book in the series, Swallows and Amazons, could be a little daunting, as the reader is introduced to that story through the eyes of the Walker children, who have already learned to sail and have a father in the Navy.

Quite apart from introducing the unusual hobbies of the children well, this book has all the elements of adventure and excitement a reader of Arthur Ransome would expect, as well as having the added magic of snow and ice! A great Christmas present for 7 or 8 year olds!!