Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2008 11:54:56 GMT
Does anybody remember these books, they were published by the Transport publishers Ian Allen. The books were clearly inspried/copied in their design from the Railway Series as they are roughly the same size and shape, I used to read them when i was younger but soon lost interest as they were not realistic at all, as Sammy would often use his buffers like hands I was wondering if anyone else had heard of these stories, or knows when they first appeared, there is very little info on the net apart from people selling them. A few examples of titles are 'Sammy and the Old Engines' 'Sammy Goes to America' and 'Sammy and the Scouts' there quite a few more titles I think
|
|
|
Post by 01Salty on Apr 3, 2008 21:32:26 GMT
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2008 22:43:56 GMT
Tubby looks very similar to Sammy going off that picture on the link, hence the buffers as hands!!! What would the Reverend say!!!! I'm interested to know how soon after the Railway Series started the Sammy book started, interesting point I would add, I was at the Keighly and Worth Valley Railway when I was younger, and I asked my parents if I could buy a Sammy the Shunter book, I came back from the shop with the Twin Engines, and from there my true love of the Railway Series began.
|
|
|
Post by FlyingScotsman on Apr 3, 2008 23:06:55 GMT
I have a few of these, I used to have a few more but the fact that they were literally paperbacks (i.e. the covers were made of the same stuff as the pages) meant that they didn't last long. I currently have Sammy and the Old Engines, Sammy Goes to America and Sammy Joins the Circus. The lack of realism didn't bother me - I didn't see Sammy using his buffers as hands as being any stranger than the Railway Series characters using their smokebox doors as faces... Some were republished in the 1980s - namely Sammy Goes to Sea, Sammy Goes to America, Sammy and the Old Engines, Sammy Joins the Scouts and Sammy Meets Father Christmas. The main characters were: SAMMY, a shunting engine. Kind of a cross between Thomas and Ivor. The adventurous type. MR BUFFIN, Sammy's driver. A meek, easygoing sort of chap. MR PLUM, the bad-tempered stationmaster. All in all, the set-up was pretty similar to Ivor the Engine. The books were very cheaply produced - the printing, for instance, is very much of the pulp type. The illustrations are quite interesting. Although cartoony, it is obvious that Jack Atkins, the illustrator, did use real engines as references. For instance, in Sammy and the Old Engines, the eponymous Old Engines are all based on GWR broad gauge locomotives, and a briefly-glimpsed express locomotive is unmistakeably an LNER P2. Witnesseth: sodor.proboards77.com/index.c.cgi?board=tvbooksradio&action=display&thread=1133844063&page=2Also recommended are Pamela Hawken's Chuffalong books. Much the same, illustrated by Jack Atkins.
|
|
|
Post by Charlie on Apr 29, 2012 23:48:49 GMT
I've never read the books, and have only seen several pictures. (Where would we be without Google Images? ) As a more 'maturely aimed' railway fanatic, it irks me how bendy the locomotives are. Moreso, how Sammy seems to be travelling the world more than actually shunting, as his name would suggest. Engines were built to transport goods and passengers, and do nothing else. Their whole reason to exist is to aid the lives of human industrialists, not travel to the poles or go to 'Fairyland'. I'll admit, while rubbery and unrealistic, the illustrations are rather attractive. All my life, I've struggled to draw locomotives, with little success. I've also only recently stumbled upon 'Ivor the Engine', which while also unrealistic, has a gentle, sentimental feeling that makes you forget all the rule breaking. But, looking at these pictures, gives me an idea of how to draw effectively. The amount of colors is minimal, as well as simple, making it all the more easy to mimick and adapt from. I've also seen Ken Stott's work in the Mini Books. The simplicity of his illustrations has made him a firm favorite of mine. Remember, I've never read the books for myself. But if in the unlikely situation I should discover a copy, you can bet I'll give them a go. If I ever do get to read them, I promise I'll post a review here, whether I like or dislike, so watch this space, (forum jargon). I'll just say I'd take The Railway Series and Ivor over these any day, and as of yet I'm very set in my ways. ... I always have a scene of sorts playing in my head whenever I think about the Sammy books. I'll just place it here. Wilbert Awdry is sitting in his chair in December, 1949. (The time Sammy's first book was published). He looks through a book catalogue for children, to see what he's against. Then, he finds out about Sammy. He notices the annoyingly cheerful and flexible illustrations displayed. He becomes so angry, he causes his chair to fall backwards! (I often picture Wilbert as a kind yet no-nonsense-type man, the way he went on and on about things like Rule 55 and that. I assume he'd call Sammy a cheap, overly fantastical imitation, and have a fit.)
|
|