Recent Purchases

My copy of SKH was the paperback published by Bettany Press in 2006. It is a good clean edition with illustrations, but it's not the same experience as reading one of the original hardbacks. So, when I came across a mint condition original at a reasonable price, I snapped it up, along with a first edition of Where is Susan? with DJ.

Where is Susan? (full dj)

A complete and very well preserved dust jacket of Where is Susan? Click on the image for a much enlarged view. On the left are ads for the Jean series.

Quote of the Day

Peregrine glanced down at the heaving paper-bag. "It's a kitten," he said. "I rescued it."

"What do you mean, you rescued it?" said Midge suspiciously. "You don't perhaps mean that you stole it?"

"Of course not," said Peregrine, "the grocer said I could have it. It'll be much happier at the Palazzo Fandola than with the grocer."

"I doubt it," said Midge, "I can't imagine a nicer place for a kitten than a grocer's shop, all that delicious ham and cold meat. Besides, the Venetians love cats - that's why there are so many in Venice."

From WHERE IS SUSAN? Chapter 15, V.I.P. Treatment.

Quote of the Day

When Midge and Charlotte and the beautiful spy reached the hotel they found Susan in the foyer, the centre of an admiring throng. She was sipping a glass of lemonade whle she recounted the story of her adventures for about the fifth time, this time to a journalist, whose English was a bit shaky, which might have accounted for the rather lurid version of the incident which appeared in the Gazettino next day.

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 13, Susan Takes Some Photographs.

Places in Jane Shaw: Venice (The Tetrarchs)

On the way out of St. Mark's in Chapter 4 of Where is Susan, Miss Thornton introduces Susan to the Tetrarchs. Susan describes these porphyry figures as "such dear little chaps".

Jane Shaw Encyclopedia: Miss Thornton

Miss Thornton is an artist who appears in Where is Susan? When Susan and Midge are entering St. Mark’s, the “beautiful Russian spy” is turned away by the beadle. A tall Englishwoman carrying painting gear explains to the girls that the spy’s entry is barred due to her inappropriate backless dress. Susan decides that this woman is a schoolmistress. On the way out, in an attempt to avoid being detected by the mysterious spy, Susan and Midge separate and Susan latches on to this tall woman and borrows her stool to use as a “hat”. Her suspicion that the woman is a teacher is apparently confirmed when the woman corrects Susan’s grammar. The woman thinks that her new companion’s behaviour is rather odd but takes a liking to her and offers to see her safely to the pier where she has arranged to meet Midge. She is surprised by Susan’s knowledge that the horses at St. Mark’s are Greek and gives her a charcoal sketch that she has made of the statues. Susan is delighted and grateful as they part company. Later, when Charlotte sees the drawing she informs her cousin that her new friend is no school teacher. She recognizes the signature, Thornton, as being that of a very famous artist, a woman far above the class of the Gascoignes’ stepfather, Sam Pilkington. At Selina Gascoigne’s party, Miss Thornton is happy to see Susan again and describes her as a friend, which has Gabrielle seething with jealousy. Miss Thornton is important to Susan because of the drawing (which she cherishes and has framed) and the fact that she provides Susan with one of the few opportunities she has to get the better of Gabrielle.

Quote of the Day

Midge wondered if she was Italian, but her neighbour, when she asked him, said not. Russian, he thought, but he spoke so slowly and oddly that Midge turned sharply to look at him. He was slumped forward in his seat, his arms dangling. Oh help, she thought, what next? With quite an effort she heaved him up again. "Aren't you feeling well?" she asked him.

"I think I've been poisoned," he said, slurring his words.

"Oh, go on with you," said Midge, "I thought the snacks were delicious.

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 1, Sunday, September the Third. 

Quote of the Day

"Taking photographs! Really, Susie, of all the cheek! Bad enough searching the girl's room without stopping to take photographs!"

"It was lucky I did," said Susan. "If I hadn't been taking photographs, I wouldn't have been on the balcony when this dreadful little man came in. Actually I was scared stiff, it was awful, and then hangning onto that door like Kate Bar-lass in the history books-!"

Midge and Charlotte had never heard of Kate Bar-lass, and promptly assumed that she appeared in Scottish history, everybody knew that the Scots were a wild and barbaric lot, like Susan, catching hotel-thieves single-handed.

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 13, Susan Takes Some Photographs.

Quote of the Day

A pretty woman, chattering Italian with an English accent, accompanied by a young girl and a small boy, all chattering, asked, "Where is Susan Lyle?" The small boy was fidgeting with pens and register on the desk all the time that they chattered and finally knocked over a bottle of ink, so the reception clerk had the greatest pleasure in telling the whole chattering crew that no one of that name was staying in the hotel.

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Prologue. The crooked desk clerk throws the Gascoignes out of the Hotel Soldati.

Where is Susan?

The Squero

When Antonio, the gondolier who comes to Susan and Midge's rescue in Venice, justifies the high price of a gondola ride, he tells the girls that one day he will take them to the squero so that they can see how much the upkeep of a gondola costs. Susan accepts this invitation, although she has no idea what a squero is. The girls learn later that it is a sort of workshop for gondolas and they visit the Squero San Trovaso with Pea-green later in the story.

Places in Jane Shaw: Bridge of Sighs

Susan and Midge cross the Bridge of Sighs several times in Where is Susan? One of the things I like most about Jane Shaw's writing is that she manages to create a cosy feeling for any location, even a big city. This is done subtly, but also in a very simple way: she merely reduces distances. In Starting From Glasgow: Jane Shaw's Scotland, Alison Lindsay points out that in The Crew of the Belinda, "the Macfarlanes' morning row up to Tarbet and Inveruglas would have taken several hours more than the book suggests." Distances also seem to be cut in Anything Can Happen, where I get the impression that Paris is made out to be smaller than it really is. Everywhere seems to be just a minute's walk from everywhere else. On the other hand, in Crooks' tour, Paris comes across as much larger, bustling and confusing, as it would have to be to meet the exigencies of the plot. But in Venice, Midge and Susan cover a lot of ground and water in a very short time. The same goes for Wichwood Village, which also comes across as very small and cosy, although the actual walking that the children do would take much longer in real life. The only true exceptions to this rule are the two books set in South Africa (Venture to South Africa and Nothing Happened After All). In these stories, the author goes out of her way to make sure that the reader understands the huge distances involved in driving from place to place. In the other story that involves a lot of driving, Bernese Adventure, the distances seem to be reduced a little, as the characters zip around Europe in the battered old Major Morris.  

Places in Jane Shaw: Venice

In Venice, Susan's favourite attraction is the horse sculptures at St. Mark's. She takes endless pictures of them. Here we can see the horses and the bell tower or Campanile. This photo links to a site here, where you can purchase this print by Tom Wurl in a number of forms, from a framed print to greetings cards. Very nice.

Quote of the Day

"Susie, don't look now, but can you see what I see?"

"Not the spy!" said Susan, losing interest in her ice-cream.

"Worse---"

"It couldn't be worse---"

"Well, it is. The Gascoignes."

Susan shut her eyes. That was a sight that she didn't want to see.

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 7, Venetian Plumbing.

The Vaporetto

I'm currently rereading Where is Susan? In Venice, Midge loves riding up and down the river on the vaporetto, the water bus. She thinks it's a great way to go sightseeing because it doesn't involve walking. The girls go up and down the river three times before Susan manages to persuade her to get off and go to St. Mark's. I came across this photo from 1965, so I imagine that this is the model of water bus that they took.

Quote of the Day

Susan felt rather uncomfortable at the thought of switching patron saints... but she had to admit that the Venetians had made a gorgeous job of St. Mark's... and perhaps St. Theodore hadn't really minded... he probably wouldn't, seeing that he was a saint...

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 3, Refuge.

Quote of the Day

They settled themselves at Quadri's for a change, all ready for another good gaze at the fabulous façade of St. Mark's; in fact, so intent was their gaze, that the tall girl with red hair and a very pretty green frock was standing by their table before they were aware of her.

"Why, hullo," said the beautiful Russian spy, "how nice to see you again!"

From WHERE IS SUSAN?, Chapter 5, Capture.

Quote of the Day

Susan bounced out of bed next morning at a shockingly early hour. The stamp was safe; with any luck there would be news of her parents from their prison-ship that day... how could anyone sleep on such a wonderful, happy morning?

Well, Midge could, for one. She hunched the blankets round her shoulders, closed her eyes firmly and turned her back on Susan.

"Och, Midge," wailed Susan. "I want to talk!"

"Later," mumbled Midge. "About two hours later."

From WHERE IS SUSAN? Chapter 15, V.I.P. Treatment. Another example of a theme that permeates the series: Susan, the early riser, hauling Midge out of a deep sleep. This type of running gag provides the answer to a frequently asked question: why are so many of Jane Shaw's characters cousins? Caroline and Sara, Susan, Midge and Charlotte, Fiona and Katherine, Dizzy and Alison, and Jennifer and Eleanor are all cousins. The answer would seem to be that by making them cousins you can have contrasting characters relating to one another when they otherwise would not. It's hard to imagine Midge wanting to be friends with a girl like Susan if they weren't related. The same goes for the practical Alison and the eccentric Dizzy. But unlike friends, you have to take your family as they are; you can't choose them. It's a convenient plot device.

Where is Susan? (Bettany Press edition)

Now available for the Kindle on amazon.co.uk.

Where is Susan? (blurb)

I bought a new scanner this week and am taking advantage of this rainy bank holiday here in Brazil to get a few things into digital form. This is the blurb for Where is Susan? My copy has no DJ, but someone had cut out the blurb and tucked it inside the book. This was Jane Shaw's only book set in Venice.