Children’s Literature and National Consciousness: Bruno Vincent’s Five on Brexit Island (2016) and Five Escape Brexit Island (2017), Text by Enid Blyton

Abstract

Children’s literature focusses on the process of identity formation of its young readers and for this reason it has always been connected with models of social behaviour. By imaginatively engaging with the proposed narratives, the child experiences society’s and the nation’s embodied practices. However, there are also instances of resistance to accepted worldviews through unconventional characters who foster a critical perspective on the issues at the centre of the narrative. The re-reading of Enid Blyton’s successful Famous Five series of the 1950s by Bruno Vincent focuses on Brexit’s narrative space to reflect upon the changes we are witnessing in our contemporary society and try to understand their sociocultural, economic, and political implications.