''Lone Pine'' is a series of

children's books A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...

written by English author

Malcolm Saville Leonard Malcolm Saville (21 February 1901–30 June 1982)
Retrieved 16 July 2016 was an English writer best known for the ...

. Although they were written over a 35-year timespan, between 1943 and 1978, the characters only age by a few years in the course of the series. The earlier books evoke visions of an outdoor 1940s and '50s childhood reminiscent of

Enid Blyton Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have been tra ...

's ''Famous Five'' books, in which children are allowed to have adventures, explore strange places and encounter villains without adult supervision. These ''Lone Pine'' books were illustrated by

Bertram Prance Bertram Stanley Prance (5 December 1889 – 9 August 1958) was a British artist, poster artist and illustrator who worked as a cartoonist for '' Punch'' magazine among others. Early life Prance was born in Bideford in Devon in 1889, one of five ...

(1889-1958). Bertram Prance - illustrator of the ''Lone Pine'' series - Malcolm Saville website
/ref> The later books adjust to the mood of the 1960s and '70s, as the older characters grow into their late teens and new characters join the Lone Pine Club. Many of the books are set on or around the

Long Mynd The Long Mynd is a heath and moorland plateau that forms part of the Shropshire Hills in Shropshire, England. The high ground, which is common land and designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, lies between the Stiperstones range t ...

and

Stiperstones The Stiperstones () is a distinctive hill in Shropshire, England. The quartzite rock of the ridge formed some 480 million years ago. During the last Ice Age Stiperstones lay on the eastern margin of the Welsh ice sheet. The hill itself was no ...

hills in south

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

, England, but some are based in

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

(centred on

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carb ...

, the

Goathland Goathland is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it is in the North York Moors national park due north of Pickering, off the A169 to Whitby. It has a stati ...

and

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is on the Yorkshire Coast at the mouth of the River Esk, North Yorkshire, River Esk and has a maritime, mineral and tourist economy. From the Middle Ages, Whitby ...

area of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

and the

Southwold Southwold is a seaside town and civil parish on the North Sea, in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It lies at the mouth of the River Blyth, Suffolk, River Blyth in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths ...

and

Walberswick Walberswick is a village and civil parish on the Suffolk coast in England. It is at the mouth of the River Blyth on the south side of the river. The town of Southwold lies to the north of the river and is the nearest town to Walberswick, aroun ...

area of the

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

coast. One book is set in London, the self-explanatory ''Lone Pine London''. The books reflect Saville's

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

and moral values, and the phrase "From Loyalty to Love", which is the Lone Pine Club's motto, is a signifier of his beliefs.

Characters

The Lone Pine Club's members are: David Morton (Captain), Petronella "Peter" Sterling (Vice Captain), Richard "Dickie" and Mary Morton, Thomas "Tom" Ingles, Jenny Harman, Jonathan "Jon" Warrender, Penelope "Penny" Warrender and Harriet Sparrow. Macbeth, or "Mackie", is the Mortons' Scottish terrier and is present in all books.

Books

*''Mystery at Witchend'' (1943) *''Seven White Gates'' (1944) *''The Gay Dolphin Adventure'' (1945) *''The Secret of Grey Walls'' (1947) *''Lone Pine Five'' (1949) *''The Elusive Grasshopper'' (1951) *''The Neglected Mountain'' (1953) *''Saucers Over The Moor'' (1955) *''Wings Over Witchend'' (1956) *''Lone Pine London'' (1957) *''The Secret of the Gorge'' (1958) *''Mystery Mine'' (1959) *''Sea Witch Comes Home'' (1960) *''Not Scarlet But Gold'' (1962) *''Treasure at Amorys'' (1964) *''Man With Three Fingers'' (1966) *''Rye Royal'' (1969) *''Strangers at Witchend'' (1970) *''Where's My Girl?'' (1972) *''Home to Witchend'' (1978)

References

Notes Bibliography * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lone Pine British children's novels Children's mystery novels Series of children's books Shropshire Children's books set in Shropshire