Good Books For Young Souls: A FATHER WHO LOVED TRAINS

Most children in the U.S. and their parents were introduced to THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE through the television series, "Shining Time Station", which aired from 1989 through the 1990's on PBS, FOX FAMILY and NICK JR. What many Americans may not know is that this Britt Allcroft production (which spawned the huge collection of merchandise in toys, dvd's, and books that are so popular with kids today) was based on a hugely popular series of books written by an English clergyman between 1945 and 1972!

Wilbert Vere Awdry was not only a "Reverend", but a railroad enthusiast. In the early 1940's, when his two-year-old son Christopher suffered a bout of the measles, Rev. Awdry began telling him stories about steam engines. His first stories were about Henry, Edward, and Gordon, and were eventually published as The Three Railway Engines in 1945. In the dedication of his second book of the series, Thomas the Tank Engine, Rev. Awdry wrote:

Dear Christopher,
Here is your friend Thomas, the Tank Engine.
He wanted to come out of his station-yard and see the world.
These stories tell you how he did it.
I hope you will like them because you helped me to make them.
Your Loving Daddy

By the time Rev. W. Awdry had stopped writing in 1972, his Railway Series numbered 26 books. He was very involved in railway preservation and building model railways, which he took to exhibitions. A year before his death in 1997 he was awarded the Order of the British Empire. He also lived to see his son Christopher continue his beloved series (books 27-40).

Our own family (back in 1985, before the t.v. series came to the States) was fortunate enough to have been sent a copy of Thomas the Tank Engine (Series No. 2) as a gift from some friends in England for our firstborn son, David - along with a set of children's dishes by Wedgewood, painted with characters from the stories - now regarded as one of our Family Treasures! Our third child, Jonny, knew all about couplings, sidings, "silly" trucks, and "cheeky" engines by the time he was three. (And he wouldn't go to bed each night until he'd pointed out and recited the names of all the engines and cars on his "Thomas Poster".)

I love that the original books are done in a small-format style (reminiscent of Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit books). You can read about the series' illustrators on the Sodor Island Thomas Fan Site. Most of THE RAILWAY SERIES books are now out of print (as is Brian Sibley's excellent biography of Rev. W. Awdry), but many can be found used on Amazon.com. Warning: reading aloud phrases such as, "rubbish", "bother", and "don't stop dawdling, don't stop dawdling" can be addictive to U.S. born Moms and Dads! -peep, peep!
THE THREE RAILWAY ENGINES (RAILWAY SERIES NO. 1) by Rev. W. Awdry