The Magic Clock and other stories by Enid Blyton is a collection of fifteen short stories titled The Magic Clock, The Balloon in the Tree, The Clockwork Steamer, Five Little People, Giggle and Hop Get Into Trouble, The Jumping Bean, The Lost Bus, “Make-Haste” and “Be-Careful”, Mr. Gobo’ Green Grass, The Monkey's Tail, Shut the Gate, The Stolen Shadow, The Voice in the Shed, What a Peculiar Thing! and What’s Happened to Michael?
The Clockwork Steamer is about a little boy named John who had a lovely clockwork steamer. John used to wind it every night and sail it in his bath tub and wished he could sail it in the river. His mother forbids him from sailing the boat in the river because it would sail far away and he might not get it back again.
But the more John thought about it the more he wanted to sail his boat on the river. One day he told his friend Emily about it and she asked him to bring the steamer one morning and they would sail it on the river.
John wound his steamer and took it to the river and set it on the water and it sailed away very quickly and he could not get it back. John and Emily were very upset and sad and went home. A frog who sees the steamer tells an elf who lives on the river bank about it and she goes to inspect it and decides to have the steamer as a mode of transport for the elves who live on the opposite banks of the river.
“Make-Haste” and “Be-Careful” is about two gnomes who live in cottages next door to each other. Make-Haste lives in Apple Cottage and Be-Careful lives in Pippin Cottage and grew plenty of apple tress in their gardens. Make-Haste works fast but he is careless, while on the on the other hand Be-Careful’s work is slow but good.
The story teaches a lesson about the importance of being very careful with one’s work to obtain good results.
Reviewed by Hannah William