The Swallows and Amazons series is a series of twelve children's books by English author Arthur Ransome, named after the title of the first book in the series and set between the two World Wars. The twelve books involve adventures by groups of children, almost all during the school holidays and mostly in England, but including four sailing trips that go outside England. The stories revolve around outdoor activities, especially sailing.
Literary scholar Peter Hunt said he believes the series "... changed British literature, affected a whole generation's view of holidays, helped to create the national image of the English Lake District and added Arthur Ransome's name to the select list of classic British children's authors".
The series remains popular today. It contributes to the tourist industry in the Lake District and Norfolk Broads areas of England, where many of the books are set. There are also several societies dedicated to the study and promotion of Ransome's work which are largely inspired by the series. The first one to be founded was the Arthur Ransome Club in Japan. There is also the British-based group, The Arthur Ransome Society, which has an international membership.
Swallows and Amazons is the first book in the Swallows and Amazons series by English author Arthur Ransome; it was first published in 1930, with the action taking place in the summer of 1929 in the Lake District. The book introduces central protagonists John, Susan, Titty and Roger Walker (Swallows) and their mother and baby sister, as well as Nancy and Peggy Blackett (Amazons) and their uncle Jim, commonly referred to as Captain Flint.
At the time, Ransome had been working as a journalist with the Manchester Guardian, but decided to become a full-time author rather than go abroad as a foreign correspondent. He did continue to write part-time for the press, however.
The book was inspired by a summer spent by Ransome teaching the children of his friends, the Altounyans, to sail. Three of the Altounyan children's names are adopted directly for the Walker family. Ransome and Ernest Altounyan bought two small dinghies called Swallow and Mavis. Ransome kept Swallow until he sold it a number of years later, while Mavis remained in the Altounyan family and is now on permanent display in the Ruskin Museum. However, later in life Ransome tried to downplay the Altounyan connections, changing the initial dedication of Swallows and Amazons and writing a new foreword which gave other sources. In 2003, the novel was listed at number 57 on the BBC's survey The Big Read.
Andrew Scott (actor) as Lazlow: A new character not present in the novel, Lazlow is a secret agent pursuing Jim Turner.
Rafe Spall as Jim Turner: The Blackett children's uncle, also known as "Captain Flint". Whereas Ransome modelled the character on himself as a novelist, the filmmakers have reimagined him based on Ransome's experiences as a spy in Russia.
Swallows and Amazons is a 1963 BBC children's television series based on the childrens’ novel by Arthur Ransome, Swallows and Amazons, about the holiday adventures of two groups of children, the Swallows (Walkers) and the Amazons (Blacketts), sailing on a lake and camping on an island in the Lake District in the 1930s.
The series of 6 episodes was shot on location on Coniston Water. Arthur Ransome, who lived nearby at Nibthwaite, was not impressed:
The book collects fourteen short stories, novelettes and poems by various fantasy authors, with an introduction by Salmonson and an essay on additional reading by Salmonson and Susan Wood.
In Greek mythology, the Amazons (Greek: Ἀμαζόνες, Amazónes, singular Ἀμαζών, Amazōn) were a race of woman warriors. Herodotus reported that they were related to the Scythians (an Iranian people) and placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia (modern territory of Ukraine). Other historiographers place them in Anatolia, or sometimes Libya.
Notable queens of the Amazons are Penthesilea, who participated in the Trojan War, and her sister Hippolyta, whose magical girdle, given to her by her father Ares, was the object of one of the labours of Hercules. Amazon warriors were often depicted in battle with Greek warriors in amazonomachies in classical art.
The Amazons have become associated with many historical people throughout the Roman Empire period and Late Antiquity. In Roman historiography, there are various accounts of Amazon raids in Anatolia. From the early modern period, their name has become a term for female warriors in general. Amazons were said to have founded the cities and temples of Smyrna, Sinope, Cyme, Gryne, Ephesus, Pitania, Magnesia, Clete, Pygela, Latoreria and Amastris; according to legend, the Amazons also invented the cavalry.
Amazons is an American made-for-television thriller film, first aired on ABC on January 29, 1984. Film directed by Paul Michael Glaser and starring Madeleine Stowe as Dr. Sharon Fields, a doctor framed for malpractice following the death of a patient, an influential congressman.
We Didn’t Mean to Go to Sea by Arthur Ransome Arthur Ransome’s nautical books are another series of children’s masterpieces that every adult should enjoy. Much later than Swallows and Amazons, this is a genuine page-turner ... ....
‘You’d be great to play this part’” ...Without doubt ... In hiding away from an unhappy childhood I read continuously, too many books to pick out favourites, though Chesterton’s Father Brown stories and the Swallows and Amazons series would be on the list ... .
Emerging from beneath the forest canopy after a New Year in the company of spectacled caiman, Amazon boa and swallow-winged puffbirds, I discovered that the series, penned by an old friend, Gwyneth...
The railway has played host to many film crews, the most notable in recent years has been the First World War drama Testament of Youth, the children’s classic, Swallows & Amazons and the successful TV series Peaky Blinders ... Previous Article ... .
