Raymond Sheppard and the Crusader series - Part Three

"And that's the Giant's Finger, the peak that's never covered"
Frontispiece for p.9

I have finally acquired two of the Crusader series for schools that are illustrated by Raymond Sheppard. I must thank the Cotswolds Dogs and Cats Homes for selling them to me via eBay They had some others at the time of writing - check their shop and search for "Crusader"

The Men o' the Mists was written by John Hornby in 1951 (and published by Blackie and Son). It is number 5 in the Crusader Series. I've previously covered others in Part One and Part Two

"That will stop anyone getting in" said Neil
p.14 for p.15

In a minute the boys had pulled out into the darkness
p.31 for p.37

"There's a boat on the horizon!" called Neil
p.49 for p.45

The story is a lovely spooky tale of three men who visit the island looking for a missing man. They encounter difficulties but finally triumph.

John Hornby - bibliography

The church came into view
Frontispiece for p.7

The next one I obtained is called The Riddle of Monk's Island by T[homas] F[rancis] Maher. He appears to have been active around 1935-1965 but he's a bit of a mystery.

The story is about  Jim and Dick and their Uncle Victor who takes them out to explore the small islands off "Perros". There is a Perros-Guirec on the Cotes-d'Armor which is described as having pink granite rock along the coast, and looks to be a great hiking area. But the coastline only slightly matches the map in the book and does not have lots of islands as drawn in the book. But i suspect this is where the book is based. The three find an underwater way through one of the islands and this helps them later during World War Two, but I can't find any proof this incident actually occurred. It looks like inspiration might have come from Keroman Submarine Base which was a German U-boat base located in Lorient during World War II - Lorient being on the same peninsula. Anyway enjoy Sheppard's artwork from this book

The beams form the torch made rings of light on the water ahead
p.12 for p.20

"Lieutentant Kurth" he announced
p.29 for p.36

   

There was a blinding flash
p.47 for p.45

Thomas Francis Maher select bibliography

Novels (for children)

Echoes from Long Ago. Cardiff; Wrexham: Educational Publishing Co, [1940]
Brave Days of Old. Cardiff: Educational Publishing Co, [1948]
The Riddle of Monk's Island, illus. Raymond Sheppard. London & Glasgow: Blackie, (Crusader Series. no. 4.), 1952.
The Smugglers of Loch Shee. illus. R. G. Campbell. London & Glasgow: Blackie (Kingfisher Books), 1952
The Valley of Lost Footprints, illus. L. M. Woy. Leeds: E. J. Arnold & Son, (Adventure Stories. no. 24.), 1952
Whispering Island, illus. A. R. Clark. Leeds: E. J. Arnold & Son, (Adventure Stories. no. 20.), 1952
The Swoop of the Falcon, illus.Ellis Silas. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1953.
The Secret of the Screes, illus. Gilbert Dunlop. London & Glasgow: Blackie & Son, (Kingfisher Books) 1954


There are lots of educational textbooks for children written under this name and in the same time period from 1940s to the 1970s but whether this is the same man, I have no idea