Summer Term at the Chalet School
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#1: Summer Term at the Chalet School Author: Rachael PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 9:20 am


There is a summary for this book here Starters for discussion: Fave / worst scenes? Views on Erica bumping into Joey? Should Joey have taken on Marie-Claire? What do you think of Erica? What do you think of Victoria Wood? (the character, not comedienne!) How does this book rate overall?


#2:  Author: patmacLocation: Yorkshire England PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 10:21 am


I think this is where the coincidences get a bit too much! Joey lives in Switzerland so the likelihood of her walking down Oxford St at the precisely right moment seems slim. The Marie-Claire adoption sounds unlikely too. the school parts and antics of the middles are par for the course and amusing in a mild way. Not a favourite and only revisited on a 'read-through'.


#3:  Author: EllieLocation: Lincolnshire PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 1:38 pm


I've only read it once, when I received the GGB reprint. I thought the train crash was ok, even though it had been used before, it was definitely stretching things to have Joey walking down Oxford Street at precisely that moment - in fact it was stretching things to have Erica's mum entrusting her care to someone who had met for a relatively brief period over twenty years before, and given that Erica was such an annoying brat, I certainly wouldn't have been very happy about it if I was Joey. When Erica fell into the hole I would have been sorely tempted to leave her there.I didn't really mind the adoption of Marie Claire, but having introduced her into the nursery EBD then totally disregarded her for the rest of the series, so there didn't really seem to be much point to it.I'm glad that I've got the book to fill up a space in the collection, but it's not one that I'm going to read very often.


#4:  Author: DonnaLocation: Liverpool PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 3:50 pm


This could possibly be my least favourite book of the series. I've also only read it once, when I bought the GGBP reprint, and I struggled to keep going wth it. The train crash itself was ok, but the whole Marie-Claire adoption didn't ring right at all. Neither did Joey taking Erica under her wing just like that - maybe it was ok from Joey's point of view (after all, it wasn't an unusual occurrence for her!), but as Ellie said, what was Erica's mum thinking of?! Didn't really like any of the characters that the book revolved around, and I was really disappointed with the book as a whole.


#5:  Author: AllyLocation: Jack Maynard's Dressing Room!! PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 3:51 pm


Yes, the Oxford thing just does not wash. Ok, so Jo is allowed to go sh0pping there whilst in England (though we never tend to hear of her in London) but for Erica to be there at the exact same time is pushing it but, for her to also recognise Joey just makes it ridiculous! Though I do like finding out a bit more about Joey's time in India as we never hear much about that.The train crash seems far too dramatic and I don't like Jo's thoughts that her family would be ok if she died as they had Len, poor Len!! What a burden (though this has good drabble potential! Wink )I don't mind Erica that much but the whole book seems to be a chapter of accidents involving her. The train crash, the bees, the hole, the thunderstorm at the sale etc and this seemed to prevent a proper story developing. I do quite like Marie-Claire but agree that she completely dissapeared from the family, which seems such a shame.


#6:  Author: claireLocation: South Wales PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 6:42 pm


I can, just (and a big just) accept the Oxford Street (I explain it to myself that Erica had read an article about Jo and her books in a magazine and there was a photo - lets face it, how many dark haired women with earphones are there going to be?) What I can't accept is Erica's mother leaving her to Jo's care - she doesn't even know if Jo was still alive (also how binding would that be? To leave custody of your child to someone without asking them, could you leave your children to your favourite celebrity and would they be obliged to look after them?


#7:  Author: EllieLocation: Lincolnshire PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 8:04 pm


I'm no lawyer, so I may well be wrong, but someone I know did look into this when making a will. Apparently you can't actually leave your children to anyone as such. You can say who you would like to entrust them to, but it caries no legal weight. In practice I would imagine that if you wanted your parents or siblings to care for the children this would usually happen, providing it was in the best interests of the child, and your relatives actually wanted the children, but your favourite celebrity would certainly have no legal obligation to bring them up.


#8:  Author: KateLocation: Ireland PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 8:13 pm


It'd be so funny if they did... but would cauuse utter chaos... And can you imagine if people left their kids to Michael Jackson? Shocked


#9:  Author: SusanLocation: Carlisle PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 9:13 pm


My sister made a will in case anything happened to her when my niece was small. She designated me as her legal guardian - we all knew it would probably be Mum and Dad that would have brought her up but as I was younger would probably have been accepted more easily.


#10:  Author: KateLocation: Ireland PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 9:52 pm


I'm named as guardian to my two brothers. Which is a bit scary. Also I'm executor of mum's will - I don't even know what that means... and hope I don't find out!


#11:  Author: JennieLocation: Cambridgeshire PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 9:56 pm


Executorship means that you go over things with the solicitor, and make sure that your mother's wishes are carried out as much as possible.


#12:  Author: KateLocation: Ireland PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 10:01 pm


Oh, that sounds easy enough.... Still, I hope I don't have to do it for a LONG time.


#13:  Author: ellendLocation: Bow, London PostPosted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 11:17 pm


Worse scene is the one about the cakes in Paris, which for some reason is the one they've picked to illustrate in my hardback. I also dislike Joey's tirade on the train against beatniks, which strikes me as that of a much older person (Joey can only be in her late 30s) and rather narrow minded and intolerant. Since I swear a lot, I'm sure I would have been disapproved off by EBD. I agree with others this is an endless succession of incidents, without any real character development. All in all it is one of the weaker Swiss books, but then the successive ones are only marginally better. It is one I read when re-reading the series, rather than to relieve specific incidents. Ellen


#14:  Author: VikkiLocation: Sitting on an iceberg, freezing to death!!! PostPosted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 1:22 am


Kate wrote:
It'd be so funny if they did... but would cauuse utter chaos... And can you imagine if people left their kids to Michael Jackson? Shocked
Who in their right mind would do so?????


#15:  Author: KateLocation: Ireland PostPosted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 1:55 am


Exactly! He has fans though... who might be crazy enough to!


#16:  Author: JoeyLocation: Cambridge PostPosted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 1:42 pm


This is the other rival for my least favourite book. One of the things that annoys me most is that there's no mention of Phil's polio, but in Challenges she's obviously been ill for a while.Also, although Joey taking on Erica & Clairs is just like her, it's woefully irresponsible of their families. Claire's are shockingly unconcerned, and I'm sure Dacia leaving Erica to a complete stranger is illegal. It also irritates me a bit that Adrienne & Erica are so close together - three new wards from different backgrounds in two terms!I do like most of the books, honest - it's just that you're discussing two I don't like at the moment!


#17:  Author: RuthLocation: Lincolnshire, England PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 11:57 am


This is not one of my favourites but I do like it. The meeting of Joey and Erica is very coincidental. My favourite scene would have to be the train smash and I am glad the Joey is able to keep Maire-Claire (I am surprised that EBD didn't make her a surprise relation to somebody at the school!). I like the hornets!


#18:  Author: KatethLocation: Heidelberg PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 1:23 pm


I rather like Summer Term, if only because it was one of the first ones I read. My original copy was an Armada edition, though, and I remember getting incredibly confused because on P31, it says "ßcoutez" for "Écoutez" ('scuse if the accent's wrong gave up French years ago and am having to scrape my memory for this!) and this was back in the days when I thought if something was in print, it had to be true!! My favourite scene is from the GGBP edition - I rather loved Joey's rant about beatniks, as I hadn't managed to grasp just what she had against them from the Armada edition. Doesn't mean I sympathise with her, though - it just made me laugh! As for her bumping into Erica on Oxford St... I always view this through my usual CS-glasses. They're very useful articles, as they mean you can read even the most improbable bits in a non-questioning manner! Seems somewhat unlikely: bumping into someone you know on Ox St is one thing, but the one person who would be most useful at that precise moment? Meh, probably not. I agree with Ellie and Ally about Marie-Claire - where does she go after Summer Term? Seems to disappear into thin air. That annoyed me. I was also annoyed when I finally re-read the last few books and discovered that Phil's illnesses only seem to get mentioned sometimes - it's very hard to follow her progress. Oh well, it was all getting a bit bizarre by this stage in the series...


#19:  Author: Rachael PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 1:38 pm


Quote:
I always view this through my usual CS-glasses. They're very useful articles, as they mean you can read even the most improbable bits in a non-questioning manner!
ROFL!! ROFL ROFL ROFL I guess we must all have a pair of those - standard issue!!


#20:  Author: Kathy_SLocation: midwestern US PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 1:41 pm


Well, my cat left fang marks on both corners of the front cover of my GGBP the other night (The gnawing woke me up.) Does that mean she liked it? I finished this 2nd read last night, and it still didn't leave much impression other than to confirm that my guess on those quiz vegetable sausages was way off. I actually enjoyed the meeting in Oxford St., but the train wreck/random adoption was a bit much. Actually, though, the things that most irritate me in this book are the places in which EBD starts something and doesn't finish. Why spend 2 pages introducing Emilia Casabon if she doesn't play a role later? What did Professor Fry say if he actually turned up "tomorrow"? I enjoyed Hilda having to be hauled away from the book sale -- very realistic Very Happy . And toboganning on tea trays (well, cafeteria trays) can be quite fun, though I don't think I'd try it on stairs, even the carpeted front stairs.


#21:  Author: jenniferLocation: Sunny California PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 7:12 pm


I can see the converstation.... Jack Manyard: "Honey, I don't care if it followed you home, you can't keep it." I think this is the book where the cliches really add up. Someone leaves their kid to Joey (Flora, Fiona, Carola, Jo Scott, Adrienne, the Richardsons) New girl is bullied by jealous girl (Jane, Adrienne, Ruey...) Girls make up after some sort of accident (Jane, Grizel, Anne, Lavender,.....) Girl berates other girl for presumed cowardice (Lavender) The school has an anniversary and must decide what to do about it (Coming of Age) Girl wanders where she shouldn't and falls down a hole (This happens a lot). At least the sale being wrecked by a storm is new. I don't strongly object to the book, it's just one of the less memorable of the late Swiss books.


#22:  Author: claireLocation: South Wales PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2004 8:04 pm


I wonder if someone had pointed out to her how the chaletians always got nice weather for sale days


#23:  Author: MiriamLocation: Jerusalem, Israel PostPosted: Sat Sep 25, 2004 11:43 pm


The meeting on Oxford Street had to happen. Grizel states in 'Reunion' that "...if you walk down Oxford Street you're safe to meet at least one person you know." Erica didn't know anyone else in England, so the only option was for her to meet Joey. Thus it was ordained from above that Joey should walk down Oxford Street at that exact moment! Wink


#24:  Author: Kathy_SLocation: midwestern US PostPosted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 12:14 am


Love the reasoning, Miriam! Laughing


#25:  Author: AlexLocation: Manchester PostPosted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 9:05 pm


There are several incidences of tea tray tobogganing throughout the series and I've never really understood the attraction. Joey and the beatniks always makes me laugh out loud. "Beatnik" is such a perculiar word.

Last edited by Alex on Tue Sep 28, 2004 4:48 pm; edited 1 time in total


#26:  Author: patmacLocation: Yorkshire England PostPosted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 9:32 pm


Alex wrote:
There are several incidences of tea tray tobogganing throughout the series and I've never really understood the attraction. Joey and the beatniks always makes me laugh out loud. "Beatnik" is such a persuliar word.
1. Has anyone tried it? I have a nasty feeling that the tray would catch on one of the treads and cause a nasty 'base over apex' tumble? 2. I was a beatnik for a short period in the late 50's Shocked Think long black or grey straight dress with no waist, black stockings. Long straight hair (came a bit unstuck there because I was pale blond and you really needed black hair to carry it off Laughing ) By the middle of 1959, it seemed as though you could hardly open a magazine without encountering a photograph or a caricature - in the fashion department as much as in the feature pages - of the typical beatnik: loose-fitting hooped T-shirt, beret, goatee beard, sunglasses, poetry book in hand for chicks, subtract the beard and add deep fringe and heavy eye make-up. for a description see :http://www.richmondreview.co.uk/features/campbe01.html (I never managed the goatee beard!) 'Respectable people', including my parents were most unimpressed!


#27:  Author: MiriamLocation: Jerusalem, Israel PostPosted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 11:16 pm


Quote:
1. Has anyone tried it? I have a nasty feeling that the tray would catch on one of the treads and cause a nasty 'base over apex' tumble?
I've not actually tried it, but I have witnessed it (or at any rate the local equivalent - a large plastic tray, designed for delivering yohurts), and I can assure you that it does work. I think that the theory is that the tray is large enough that it is covering two or three steps at once, and if they are evenly spaced that maintains the angle of the tray. As long as the friction is fairly low, there should be no problem.


#28:  Author: ChelseaLocation: Your Imagination PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 12:02 am


I've used sleds to slide down the staircase. They were flimsy plastic ones that probably weren't much bigger than a large tray.


#29:  Author: claireLocation: South Wales PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 7:16 pm


Matresses always came in handy for sliding down stairs when moving house (the only way my brother and I could justify it to our parents) as long as the tray was long enough it would do fine


#30:  Author: catherineLocation: Newcastle upon Tyne PostPosted: Sun Oct 03, 2004 4:04 pm


They do say that you are more likely to bump into people on Oxford Street that you haven't seen for years, than you are anywhere else! I did wonder how you'd see a complete stranger amongst all those people - and how on earth did she get across the road without being run over?!! I know London is very much busier nowadays but still! EBD comments on how Astrid and co. had all started at the same time and grown up through the School together but the last time we saw Gretchen she was a member of Jack's form - i.e. the form ahead! And who was Miss Smith?!!! Where on earth did she come from?!! And what exactly did she teach?! Latin? English?


#31:  Author: MiriamLocation: Jerusalem, Israel PostPosted: Sun Oct 03, 2004 11:41 pm


Miss Smith (and I want to know why such a boring name was selected) seems to have been an unmentioned staff apointment. This isn't so unusual. With the exception of Miss Ferrars, most of the staff in the later books just turn up, unless they arew an old girl, in which case they merit a special welcome. Miss Olroyd (who only ever appears once), Miss Bell, Miss Slater, Miss bertram and MissCarey all just appear when required (and I'm sure there were more). She seems to have been a junior english mistress, teaching mainly lower forms, though she is form mistrss for Samaris form (one of the fourths)during Two Sams. Her first name, by the way, is Deborah.


#32:  Author: catherineLocation: Newcastle upon Tyne PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2004 10:50 am


But there is a mention of her taking a Latin lesson and then later a mention of her marking the 'parsing efforts' of a form, which made me wonder whether she was Latin or English mistress! (and they seem to have a neverending number of English mistresses!)


#33:  Author: AllyLocation: Jack Maynard's Dressing Room!! PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2004 1:12 pm


Miriam wrote:
Miss Smith (and I want to know why such a boring name was selected)
Unfortunately there are some of use who bear that name! And for me its even worse, I'm Miss A. Smith, a total non-event of a name!!! :laughing:


#34:  Author: AnnLocation: Newcastle upon Tyne, England PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2004 5:34 pm


Al's also an A. Smith and whenever he books tables in restaurants he gets very funny looks from the staff. They always seem to think it's a pseudonym and, presumably, that I'm some sort of floozie...


#35:  Author: MiriamLocation: Jerusalem, Israel PostPosted: Mon Oct 04, 2004 10:40 pm


Teaching two subjects wasn't unheard of. I suppose Latin and English could be as sensible as maths and geography. I apologize to all the Smiths on the board. No personal insult was intended to anyone. My comment was only based on the fact that EBD normally chose slightly more unusual names, and I wondered why she had abandoned her normal habbit in this case.


#36:  Author: MissPrintLocation: Edinburgh PostPosted: Tue Oct 05, 2004 12:20 am


A schoolfriend's little brother knocked his front teeth out on the front door whilst trying out tea tray tobogganing. He knocked himself out on the level crossing gate toboganning for real outside. I'm amazed he survived into adulthood with his good looks intact. Their mother taught English and Geograpy which I always thought was a very peculiar combination.


#37:  Author: CazxLocation: Swansea/Bristol PostPosted: Sun Oct 10, 2004 12:05 pm


I like Summer Term, think it's cause it was one of the first Chalet School books that I got. I like Erica and would have liked to see her progress further in the school. Maybe there are a few too many coincidences in the book but it is a book and it is by EBD, so... I wish we'd heard more about Marie Claire in the other books, I think she gets one other mention in prefects and that is it!


#38: meeting on Oxford St Author: kathy PostPosted: Tue Nov 02, 2004 2:45 pm


Just a thought - have to agree that I don't know what it is about Oxford Street, but random meetings just seem to happen there! I worked just off it for a few weeks last summer and in that time ran into a girl I knew from my old school in the West Country who was working on Tott Court Road AND more weirdly a girl from the school I went to in Australia as a teenager who'd only just arrived in the UK and had been intending to look me up but wasn't sure where I was living! So maybe it's not quite that far-fetched...!! Sumer Term is one of the books I had as a child, now all sadly lost apart from my copy of In Exile, so I've had to start again from scratch!

 




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