(DLA Las Piñas GS LRC) March Author of the Month - Enid Blyton

This month we're honoring the first Enid Blyton Day held at Rickmansworth, a small town in south-west England situated approximately 20 miles northwest of central London and inside the perimeter of the M25 motorway, on March 6, 1993.

Enid Mary Blyton, an English children's writer whose books have been among the world's bestsellers since the 1930s, was born on 11 August 1897 in London, the eldest of three children, to Thomas Carey, a cutlery salesman, and his wife Theresa Mary Harrison.

A few months after her birth Enid almost died from whooping cough, but was nursed back to health by her father, whom she adored. He ignited her interest in nature; in her autobiography she wrote that he "loved flowers and birds and wild animals, and knew more about them than anyone I had ever met".

Thomas also passed on his interest in gardening, art, music, literature and the theatre, and the pair often went on nature walks, much to the disapproval of Enid's mother, who showed little interest in her daughter's pursuits. And so Enid was devastated when he left the family shortly after her thirteenth birthday to live with another woman. She wrote on a wide range of topics including education, natural history, fantasy, mystery stories and biblical narratives.

During the months following her husband's death, Blyton became increasingly ill and moved into a nursing home three months before her death. She died in London on November 28, 1968 at the age of 71. As of today, her books have sold more than 600 million copies. They are still enormously popular and have been translated into almost 90 languages.

The British-American CGI-animated series for children named Make Way for Noddy which aired in GMA Network was based on Enid's Noddy character. You may check out some of her books that are currently on display at the Grade School Learning Resource Center at the Divine Light Academy Las Piñas.