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Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Those crazy Americans

Suggestions for the Silliest Book Cover continue to come in, and there are some corkers! But I think we're only scratching the surface so far. Anyway, I finally received the book that started me off on this. The Secret Seven and the Case of the Stolen Car may be a better title than Good Work Secret Seven, but otherwise I feel nothing but scorn and contempt for this American edited version. Actually, part of what I feel is indignation — the feeling that Americans are so wrapped up in themselves that they always feel a need to Americanize everything. If it's so important to have American kids in an American town saying American things, then why not just stick with American authors?

For instance, are Stateside children really incapable of comprehending such un-American celebrations as Guy Fawkes Night? Within the first few pages, the Britishness of the book has been thoroughly stamped on (not stamped out, just stamped on) and our familiar chilly November the Fifth has been replaced with July the Fourth.

At least they chose a suitable replacement, one where fireworks can still be included in the story. But while we Brits understand that Americans celebrate July the Fourth, apparently American publishers think their children aren't smart enough to figure out that their English cousins have a holiday of their own. Why change such a thing? What's wrong with just letting them learn something new about another country? I'm sure they'd appreciate going to school the next day and announcing to their friends and teachers, "Say, did you know the Brits have a holiday in November, where they build a bonfire and burn a guy?"

Hmm, well, perhaps that's not a good example. "Burning a guy" might invoke shocked expressions in a classroom of imaginative kids. But still, how cool it would be to learn something interesting about a faraway land! I know that when I moved to the States, everyone was startled to hear about our November 5 celebrations. "You build a bonfire?" one relative asked, puzzled. "And put a mannequin on top? And set fire to it?" When I explained that Guy Fawkes was a man who came close to blowing up Parliament with barrels of gunpowder, and the bonfire and fireworks represent a celebration of that close call... Well, in truth, I realized then how silly it is that we commemorate an event that nearly happened. But still, it's part of English tradition and shouldn't be so readily excised from English-written books.

It makes me wonder (again) just how many cultural changes there are in overseas Blyton books, especially those that have been translated. For instance, I know that Blyton's oft-used fall guys, the Gypsies, have in some foreign editions been replaced by other, more relevant "local baddies" that better represent that country's stereotypical butt of "dodgy characters." I can understand why, too; the term "Gypsy" is pretty common throughout Europe and many other parts of the world, usually used in a derogatory way to describe untrustworthy traveling folk. But I doubt the good, hard-working people of Central and Eastern Europe would enjoy reading about "themselves" in this way, and in this sense changes to the text are inevitable and sensible. For instance, I'm fairly certain that Enid Blyton books printed in Romania would include a sordid bunch of traveling lager louts known as Blighties. But aside from these political changes, I think the origins of the book should be left well alone. If kids want to read books about kids from their own neck of the woods, there are plenty of other books on the shelves. If kids want to read books by a famous author, surely they should be allowed to read the books as originally written?

That said, I'm not a publisher and have no idea if what I'm saying makes good business sense or not! Let's move on to some of the Americanisms that have crept into The Case of the Stolen Car...

So the story starts out with Susie being annoying and saying she's going to start her own club, since the Secret Seven don't seem to be having many meetings anymore. Well, as it happens the Seven have a meeting the very next afternoon — but what on earth is the password? Why, it's "Independence," of course. So the Seven show up at the meeting, loaded with decorations to go on their float for the Fourth of July parade. (Jack is very proud of the Uncle Sam costume he's going to wear.) At the meeting the Seven (eight, including Scamper) enjoy chocolate cookies, apples, ginger cookies, doughnuts, peppermint candy, and peanuts. And lemonade. Colin is a little late arriving, and Peter says, "Nuts to him. Say, what a spread we've got!"

Need I continue? Hmm, yes, this is swell...

The reason Colin is late is because he heard a scuffle in the bushes and found a notebook. It contains a list of items such as silver candlesticks and cups, and a cigarette box engraved with the initials A.G.B... and Jack immediately recognizes this list as something his father read in the newspaper that morning — goods stolen from a famous tennis player named Bedwall (as opposed to a famous cricketer).

I think the editors got tired of Americanizing and left the next few chapters alone, apart from mentions of "Mom" and more exclamations of "Say!" But then Peter and Janet go to their Aunt Rose's house for tea. At eight, their father arrives in the car outside to collect them, and off they set for home. On the way, their father makes a slight detour. "I've just got to call at the railroad station for some packages they're holding for me," he says. "I'll leave the car in the parking lot with you in it. I won't be more than a minute."

So follows the most exciting scene in Secret Seven history, when a pair of thieves steal the car and drive across town. After a brief conversation, and a clumsily dropped item down the side of the passenger seat, the thieves ditch the car and make off, leaving the Seven with a case to solve. There's an ample supply of food to scoff during meetings — George's grandmother is an absolute peach for handing out delicious chocolate bars, but there's an even better spread at Colin's house, with hamburgers, hotdogs, french fries, a luscious cherry cake, and more. When the Seven are in the summer house and Peter notices Scamper is missing, the original book says, "He's gone into the kitchen to make love to our cook," meaning he's gone all soppy because the cook is baking something tasty. This somewhat eyebrow-raising line has been replaced in this American edition with, "He's gone into the kitchen to see my grandmother, who's visiting us from California."

It's a shame Scamper didn't stay in the kitchen, because when he returns to the summer house, he knocks over a candle and sets the fireworks alight. Popbang, popbang-bang, pop, whizz! go the fireworks, and the Seven take cover. "My Uncle Sam outfit!" wails Jack. "It cost me five dollars!"

I think that's enough for now. Despite this rant, the book is pretty much unchanged other than the Americanisms. At first glance anyway. Only a direct comparison tells the truth. I was surprised at how many incidental changes there are between the original and this edited version — on the very first page, when Susie asks when their next meeting is, Jack says, "That's nothing to do with you!" whereas the Americans decided it would read better as "That's none of your business!" The phrase "Good gracious!" is changed to "Golly!" in one place but left alone in another. And calling Susie a story-teller apparently isn't as effective as calling her a fibber. Oh, and the sign on the Seven's door reads S7 rather than SS.

So it seems very faithful in a line-by-line study, just tweaked here and there, perhaps a word or two every other sentence — which is a LOT of editing work. But it's not like it's been re-written from the ground up to include a high-octane police chase around the streets of New York. The Seven still hold meetings in a little garden shed rather than an enormous basement, and there's not a single mention of a yellow school bus (although I can't speak for other books in the series, in which certain scenes occur at or on the way home from school). I was also pleasantly surprised to note that none of the names have been changed; I half expected Peter and Janet to be Johnny and Mary-Sue.

A final word, though, about the illustrations. The cover is abysmal, in my opinion, and the internal black and whites aren't great either. Not the worst in the world by any means... but not exactly Blyton either, as you can see by some of the examples on this page!

I'll leave you with this stunning interpretation of Scamper...

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