LIST OF SHORT STORIES BY JANE SHAW

Listed below is every known short story by Jane Shaw that was published in Collins annuals (and often reprinted in later annuals or compendiums), with their dates of publication when available.

STORIES FOR COLLINS GIRLS’ ANNUAL

AMANDA’S SPIES (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1941)

SARA’S ADVENTURE (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1953; reprinted in The Crackerjack Book for Girls, Collins, 1959)

THE ADVENTURES OF A SNOWMAN (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1954; reprinted in The Crackerjack Book for Girls, Collins, 1959). This is the only short story for older readers on this list that is not included in Susan and Friends: The Jane Shaw Companion (Bettany Press, 2002).

THE WILSONS WON’T MIND (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1955; reprinted in The Treasure Book for Girls, Collins, 1958, and Ballet Stories, edited by Ian Woodward, 1982). This is the first of four short stories featuring Susan that were published between 1955 and 1960).

SUSAN’S SCHOOL PLAY (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1957; reprinted in The Crackerjack Girls Own Book, Collins, undated)

SUSAN AND THE HOME-MADE BOMB (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1958)

THE MATCHMAKERS (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1959). This is the only short story set in South Africa.

SUSAN AND THE SPAE-WIFE (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1960). Set on Arran, where the author and her husband would later retire in 1978, this is the last of the short stories to feature Susan.

FAMILY TROUBLE (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1961)

CROOKS LIMITED (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1962). This is the only other story featuring Ricky, Julie and Fay, from Crooks Tour, and the only Jane Shaw story set entirely in her native Glasgow.

JUMBLE SALE (Collins Girls’ Annual, 1963)

THE PICTURE (Susan and Friends: The Jane Shaw Companion). This story was found among the author’s papers after her death. Exactly when it was written cannot be established. It is set in Paris and, similar to a scene from Crooks Tour, there are references to Utrillo and a woman struggling to run a restaurant frequented by starving artists, suggesting that it could have been written in the early sixties. The main protagonists are two older English girls, Carol and the unnamed narrator. It is not possible to say whether this book was actually intended for a Collins annual, but since it shares the romantic theme introduced into FAMILY TROUBLE, it has been included in this list.

A GIRL WITH IDEAS (Susan and Friends: The Jane Shaw Companion). More a novella than a short story, this work started life as ADVENTURES OF A MOUSE. The ideas from that story were then expanded to form A GIRL WITH IDEAS. Jane Shaw’s correspondence shows that the story was written at the behest of Collins, beginning in the mid sixties. However, it only appeared in print in Susan and Friends in 2002.

STORIES FOR VERY YOUNG CHILDREN

The exact publication dates of these stories cannot be determined, but they appeared in various Collins Children’s Annuals.

ALADDIN’S LAMP GROWS OLD

THE GIANT’S WASHING (a Griselda story)

TIGER KITTEN

THE MAGIC BASKET (a Griselda story)

THE CAT’S GRANDMOTHER (a Griselda story)

GRISELDA AND THE GOBLIN

GRISELDA AND THE BABY ELF

THE ONION MAN

THE CAT AND THE CABIN BOY (Treasure Trove for Boys and Girls, Collins, undated)

THE DOG WHO COULDN'T LEARN TRICKS (Treasure Box for Boys and Girls, Collins, undated)

GRISELDA AND THE RAIN FAIRIES (Treasure Book for Boys and Girls, Collins, undated)

THE LONELY GIANT (Treasure Book for Boys and Girls, Collins, undated)

VISITING A FAIRY (My Book of Elves and Fairies, Collins, undated)

THE TALE OF THREE PUPPIES (Five Listen With Mother Tales Number 6, BBC Books, undated)

STORIES FOR LUTTERWORTH

The author noted that five of her stories were sold to Lutterworth Press in 1950 and 1951. As far as can be determined, the stories remained unpublished.

A PONY OF YOUR OWN (sold on 10 March, 1950)

NO ROBBERY (sold on 10 March, 1950)

I RODE WITH THE COVENANTERS (sold on 17 August, 1950)

MERE AND MOORLAND (sold in January, 1951)

HEATHER MIXTURE (sold in December, 1951)

STORIES FOR DIE BRANDWAG

Die Brandwag was an Afrikaans newspaper that purchased six of Jane Shaw’s short stories and translated them into Afrikaans for publication. Only one story (Die Man Langsaan) is known to have been published, as a clipping of it was found among the author’s papers.

THE MAN NEXT DOOR (Die Man Langsaan, 10 December, 1954)

THE MATCHMAKERS

BIRTHDAY

PATCHWORK QUILT

TWO’S COMPANY

THE QUARREL

Jane Shaw Bibliography

THE HOLIDAY SERIES

BRETON HOLIDAY (1939)

BERNESE HOLIDAY (1940)

HIGHLAND HOLIDAY (1942)

All titles published by Collins.

These were the author’s earliest works, featuring Scottish cousins Caroline and Sara Storm. The first two books were later slightly abridged and reissued as Adventures. The two Adventure titles are very easy to find and low in price. Highland Holiday, published during World War II and never reissued, is extremely rare. Caroline and Sara would only make one more appearance in the SARA’S ADVENTURE, a short story published in the Collins Girls’ Annual in 1953 and reprinted in The Crackerjack Book for Girls in 1959. The plot of this story would later serve as the basis for the final chapters of one of her most popular books, Crooks Tour. The author often used the same settings and recurring themes in her stories.

THE MOOCHERS

THE MOOCHERS (Lutterworth, 1950)

THE  MOOCHERS ABROAD (Lutterworth, 1951)

A third book, MOOCHERS AND PREFECTS, was written in 1951 but was never published. Lutterworth forwarded the manuscript to West Regional TV, whose staff lost it while considering it for production.

THE SUSAN SERIES

SUSAN PULLS THE STRINGS (1952)

SUSAN’S HELPING HAND (1955)

SUSAN RUSHES IN (1956)

SUSAN INTERFERES (1957)

SUSAN AT SCHOOL (1958)

SUSAN MUDDLES THROUGH (1960)

SUSAN’S TRYING TERM (1961)

NO TROUBLE FOR SUSAN (1962)

SUSAN’S KIND HEART (1965)

WHERE IS SUSAN? (1968)

A JOB FOR SUSAN (1969)

All titles published by Collins.

It is quite likely that the first Jane Shaw book that you read was an early Susan book. The series enjoyed a wide audience right up to the mid 1960s. The last three books are very hard to find, although a limited number were reissued in paperback in 2006 by Bettany Press. There were also four short stories published in annuals: THE WILSONS WON’T MIND, Collins Girls’ Annual, 1955 and reprinted in The Treasure Book for Girls in 1958; SUSAN’S SCHOOL PLAY, Collins Girls’ Annual, 1957; SUSAN AND THE HOME-MADE BOMB, Collins Girls Annual, 1958; SUSAN AND THE SPAE-WIFE, Collins Girls’ Annual, 1960. THE WILSONS WON’T MIND is the only title that does not include the leading character’s name, and SUSAN’S SCHOOL PLAY is the only story narrated in the first person, by Midge. By the late sixties, Jane Shaw’s output was slowing down. Not only was A JOB FOR SUSAN the last book in the series, it was also her last published work. In 1970, she began a twelfth book, SUSAN IN TROUBLE, with Susan and Midge trying to raise money for a trip to America. But the story never progressed beyond a few tentative pages. Susan had gone to live with her cousins in London while her parents were in Africa. By the eleventh book, Mr. and Mrs. Lyle had returned to Britain and everything had come full circle and the time had come to round off the series. However, it is worth pointing out that the quality of the series held firm right to the end. The later books are every bit as good as the earlier ones, perhaps even better.

THE PENNY SERIES

PENNY FOOLISH (1953)

TWOPENCE COLOURED (1954)

THREEPENNY BIT (1955)

FOURPENNY FAIR (1956)

FIVEPENNY MYSTERY (1958)

CROOKED SIXPENCE (1958)

All titles published by Nelson.

These books were something of a departure from the usual Jane Shaw style. Penelope Carter is a quiet girl, in contrast to Susan Lyle and Ricky Andersen, who enjoy madcap banter with their friends. The first three titles are quite easy to come by, but the others are harder to find. CROOKED SIXPENCE, on the rare occasions that a copy comes available, changes hands for over sixty euros on e-bay.

THOMAS

LOOKING AFTER THOMAS (1957)

WILLOW GREEN MYSTERY (1958)

THE TALL MAN (1960)

All titles published by Nelson.

NORTHMEAD

NEW HOUSE AT NORTHMEAD (1961)

NORTHMEAD NUISANCE (1963)

Both titles published by Nelson.

DIZZY AND ALISON

ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN (1964)

NOTHING HAPPENED AFTER ALL (1965)

Both titles published by Nelson.

SINGLE TITLES

THE HOUSE OF THE GLIMMERING LIGHT (Collins, 1943)

MAGIC SHIPS (Collins, 1943)

THE CREW OF THE BELINDA (Collins, 1945)

FARM FRIENDS (Collins, 1953)

PUPPY TALES (Collins, 1953)

VENTURE TO SOUTH AFRICA (Nelson, 1960)

UNCLE REMUS STORIES RETOLD BY JANE SHAW (Collins, 1960)

HEIDI GROWS UP RETOLD BY JANE SHAW (Collins, 1961)

LEFT-HANDED TUMFY (Lutterworth, 1962)

CROOKS TOUR (Collins, 1962)

BRER RABBIT AND BRER FOX RETOLD BY JANE SHAW (Collins, 1969)

CROOKS TOUR was followed up with CROOKS LIMITED, a short story involving the same three characters, Ricky, Julie and Fay, published in the Collins Girls’ Annual, 1962. This story is interesting because it is the only one set entirely in Jane Shaw’s native Glasgow.