Masefield’s first volume of oetry, Salt-Water Ballads, was published in 1902, however, it was not until the publication of The Everlasting Mercy in 1911 that he made his mark on the literary scene. The success of his second book was followed by the publication of several long narrative poems, including Dauber (1914) and Reynard the Fox (1919). Caroline Louisa is installed as Kay's guardian at the end of The Midnight Folk, having appeared earlier in the novel as one of Kay's supernatural helpers. She remains Kay's guardian throughout The Box of Delights. John Masefield was in his last year as Poet Laureate when I was born in 1966. I remember copying out his poem ‘Cargoes’ in primary school – ‘Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir . . .’ – and wondering what all these strange, beautiful-sounding words meant as I laboured over my ascenders and descenders. That John Masefield, stiff and distant, seemed already to be from a long-dead past.

The Midnight Folk (Kay Harker): Masefield, John, Hilder

John Masefield threaded a number of common themes through a series of his books; even those novels aimed at children shared places, people and storylines with some of his adult novels. One key recurring theme is the nautical visit of a member of the Harker family to the fictional islands of Santa Barbara. In The Midnight Folk, Kay's great-grandfather is endowed with a great treasure there; in other novels the actual nature of the seafaring Harker's relationship to Kay is less clear. A great many incidental characters and places are shared across Masefield's novels, although the fine details of such recurrences are often contradictory from novel to novel.Or Was It a Dream?: Played with all through the book. All the supernatural events end with Kay waking up, but the "mundane" adventure story (where he's definitely awake) only makes sense if the things he learns on these expeditions are true. Masefield the children’s writers is unbeatable… The Midnight Folk is a truly remarkable book.”– Daily Telegraph (London) When I Was Your Age...: Kay's governess and Mrs Tattle have a session of complaining about what young people these days are coming to, and how none of them are "what we were when we were girls". "Which," the narrator drily notes, in the case of Kay "was very likely true." The Midnight Folk is written as one piece. There are no chapter divisions. Division within the text is obtained by moving from prose to verse or even song in some places.

The Midnight Folk, First Edition - AbeBooks The Midnight Folk, First Edition - AbeBooks

Niugini Niugini: A Trilogy of Folk Operas - Sail the Midnight Sun; My Tide Let Me Ride; The Dance of the Snail

John Masefield (1878-1967) was born in Herefordshire, England. After being orphaned at an early age, he was sent to sea aboard the school-ship HMS Conway in preparation for a naval career. Masefield’s apprenticeship was disastrous—he was classified as a Distressed British Seaman after a voyage around Cape Horn—and he soon left the ship. Arrangements were then made for him to join another ship in New York. But Masefield had other plans: he deserted ship vowing “to be a writer, come what might.” A little boy, Kay Harker, finds himself in a race against the evil Abner Brown. Abner has the Pouncer Seven, his witch friends, and their dark magic but Kay has the very special Midnight Folk to help him - Nibbins, the cat, Bitem, the fox and Blinky, the owl. But which side will find the treasure first?

BBC Radio 4 Extra - John Masefield - The Midnight Folk

The Midnight Folk is a children's fantasy novel by John Masefield first published in 1927. It is about a boy, Kay Harker, who sets out to discover what became of a fortune stolen from his seafaring great grandfather Aston Tirrold Harker (in reality, Aston Tirrold is a village in Oxfordshire). The treasure is also sought by a coven of witches who are seeking it for their own ends. Kay's governess Sylvia Daisy Pouncer is a member of the coven. The witches are led or guided by the wizard Abner Brown.

In 1958, John Keir Cross wrote a radio adaptation of the book for the BBC. It was broadcast on Children's Hour in five parts during the lead up to Christmas that year. Patricia Hayes played Kay Harker and the narrator was Richard Hurndall. [4] But not all the creatures that haunt the night are friendly: a coven of witches is also after the treasure, led by the scheming Abner Brown and the sinister Mrs Pouncer, and woe betide anyone who gets in their way. By day Kay Harker is under the eye of his governess, but at night he escapes into a world where good and evil are pitted against each other.

The Box of Delights by John Masefield, Quentin Blake The Box of Delights by John Masefield, Quentin Blake

Roper Bilges the gamekeeper shares the name of his grandfather, one of the mutineers on Captain Harker's ship. Deserted Island: What with all the mutinies and maroonings, the history of the treasure includes several, each more bleak and inhospitable than the one before. John Masefield became Poet Laureate in 1930, a position he held until his death in 1967. His well-known poems include Sea Fever.Cunning Like a Fox: One of Kay's allies is Rollicum Bitem Lightfoot, a fox who relies on his wits to keep one step ahead of the local gamekeeper. Meaningful Name: Meaningful to the author, at least. "Caroline Louisa" was the name of Masefield's own mother, who died when he was six. Young Kay Harker has a variety of adventures in search of the truth about a famous treasure that his great-grandfather, a merchant captain, was given for safe-keeping then lost when his crew mutinied. He is aided in his quest by the Midnight Folk, an association of Talking Animals, Living Toys, and other fantastic creatures.