The original books featuring Thomas the Tank Engine and friends by Rev W Awdry are superior to their modern counterparts in every way. It’s not a nostalgia thing, it’s just a fact.
Looking at it objectively, it’s really quite clear to me, just look at the covers (below)
The top one is a 1967 edition from the original series featuring Henry the Green Engine (not quite as big as Gordon the Big Engine), the bottom book in the picture is the 2003 ‘based on the stories of Rev W Awdry’ edition of “James”. The original is a quality hardback with a glossy image whereas the latter is paperback tat in the mould of virtually every other children’s book on the market … the art itself is another issue.
In the original books every illustration is a painting created with care, a ‘masterpiece’ in it’s own right and a delight to look at for adult and child alike. Most modern children’s books, although there are some notable exceptions) are dependent on a mass market feel of computer generated imagery, the modern Thomas books have more in common with the Mr Men series than the original books created by Rev Awdry … not that I’ve got anything against the original Mr Men books you understand, although those penned by Roger Hargreaves descendants leave a lot (grammatically) to be desired.
Here is original Vs modern:
I tried to pick two similar scenes. In each a train rushes by, off in a hurry no doubt to make some essential delivery, but compare the composition and execution. One I would consider hanging on my wall, the other …
And!
Then there’s the text itself. the original book contains a number of stories across some 63 pages whilst the modern usurper has one spread out over 24 pages, of course we shouldn’t assume that quantity is better than quality, so let’s take a look at the text from just one page of each - I’ll just uses the text which accompanies the images above.
“James”, page 14:
“I’ll show them how to pull coaches,” he said to himself, and he set off at top speed. The coaches groaned and protested as they bumped along. But James wouldn’t slow down.
At last, the coaches had had enough. “We’re going to stop, we’re going to stop!” they cried, and try as he might, James found himself going slower and slower.
The Driver halted the train and got out. “There’s a leak in the pipe”, he said. You were bumping the coaches hard enough to make a leak in anything!”
“Henry: The Green Engine”, page 22:
“Hurry, hurry, hurry,” panted Henry. They hooshed under bridges, and clattered through station, green signal-lights showing as they passed.
They were going well, the light grew better and a yellow signal appeared ahead.
“Distant signal-up,” thought Henry, “caution.” His Driver, shutting off steam, prepared to stop, but the home signal was down. “All clear, Henry; away we go.”
They couldn’t know the points from the main line to a siding were frozen, and that that signal had been set at “danger”. A fall of snow had forced it down.
On the face of it there isn’t really a great deal of difference, yet the latter strikes me as being so much more interesting to read, so much more descriptive and far more interesting for the reader and readee (that’ll be the bainr then!).
I’m fed up of seeing children’s reading being dumbed down to make it ‘easier’ for them. How’s it easier for them if they don’t ever learn or take anything from it, I’m not looking for literary masterpieces but we shouldn’t have to dumb things down for children. They’ll get so much more out of something that’s well written and constucted to be interesting, where’s the interest when ‘difficult’ words and sounds are removed.
The worst stories for it are the Mr Men ones. The Roger Hargreaves originals are full of multi-syllabalic words that sometimes, by today’s standards, make you sit-up and say ‘oh!’, don’t expect that from his offspring’s efforts.
Rant over.
