Swallows and Amazons series Swallows and Amazons series The "Swallows and Amazons" series is a series of twelve children's books by English author Arthur Ransome, named after the title of the first book in the series and set between the two World Wars. The twelve books involve adventures by groups of children, almost all during the school holidays and mostly in England, but including four sailing trips that go outside England. The stories revolve around outdoor activities, especially sailing. Literary scholar Peter Hunt said he believes the series "... changed British literature, affected a whole generation's view of holidays, helped to create the national
Swallows and Amazons than go abroad as a foreign correspondent. He did continue to write part-time for the press, however. The book was inspired by a summer spent by Ransome teaching the children of his friends, the Altounyans, to sail. Three of the Altounyan children's names are adopted directly for the Walker family. Ransome and Ernest Altounyan bought two small dinghies called "Swallow" and "Mavis". Ransome kept "Swallow" until he sold it a number of years later, while "Mavis" remained in the Altounyan family and is now on permanent display in the Ruskin Museum. However, later in life Ransome tried to downplay the