The Complete Collection (Thomas the Tank Engine)

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One thing that did catch me by surprise was that there was such a large array of engines - now again I thought a lot of the engines were creations of the various TV and toy franchises trying to expand and increase their sales of the various characters but no - a very large number of the engines where originals from the various stories. I owned many of these separate story books too, but it's only after finding this collection and rereading them all over again that you realise just how clever these books are. This book comprised a large part of my childhood. My dad would read this to me and my brothers before bed and I think the influence it had is considerable. The language of this book is incredible considering its context as a children's book; the vocabulary level raised that of me and my brothers many years beyond our age, in the most subtle and enjoyable way possible.

Thomas's Christmas Party | Thomas Comes to Breakfast | Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree | Thomas and the Evil Diesel | Thomas and Gordon Off the Rails | Thomas and the Hurricane | Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection | Thomas the Tank Engine: The New Collection | Annuals | Mini Books | Pop-up Books It might seem strange adding this one to my list of 'read' books, but this book was literally my entire childhood. I was an absolute Thomas - and train - fanatic, and these stories were my favourite thing ever. The drawings that are included in with the stories are just an added bonus too, and I spent hours pouring over them as a three- and four-year-old kid. To be clear, the title "The Complete Collection" refers to the fact that these are all of the Reverend Wilbert Awdry's Railway Series books. His son, Christopher, has written several more afterwards. Though the book says "Thomas the Tank Engine" on it, these stories are not only about him, but also the rest of the Really Useful Engines on the Island of Sodor, with No. 1 sometimes not appearing for a full book. The endpaper features Bertie with a yellow face, Harold without rotors, Edward on top and bottom left side without his tender and Percy on the top and bottom right side without his face. The Japanese version was published in commemoration of the 40th anniversary from the publication of the Railway Series in Japan.I can’t really name one favourite book in the series as they all offered different things to me, so will give a list of those that I enjoyed the most. A wonderful collection of stories written by the Rev W. Awdry, focused around the adventures of the various engines and the railways that they run on in the fictional Island of Sodor. Another thing is that people should stop harping about the name "The Fat Controller". Yes, it is referring to a man's rotund stature, but all the same it's a children's book, referring to a fictional controller. If you prefer, while reading this, just say "Sir Topham Hatt" (his actual name) in your mind or out loud, if you are reading it. This elegant slipcase brings together all 26 books from this famous Railway Series in one stunning volume.

On the 1996 edition's dust cover, two illustrations from Gordon the Big Engine and Tank Engine Thomas Again appear twice. The author of the Thomas books was a clergyman, and I'm torn between two thoughts. On the one hand, it's very tempting to believe that they are intended as Christian allegory. On the other, an interpretation along those lines almost inevitably ends with the conclusion that the Fat Controller is God. I'm not a Christian, but even I find this a little blasphemous. Or perhaps it just shows that I will never be a Really Useful Engine. Surely someone has done a detailed exegesis? I'll confess that I am, indeed, very curious about the details. For example, the episode my kids liked most when they were at the appropriate age. They unwisely fill Thomas up with water from the river. He comes over feeling all funny, so they look in his storage tank.I enjoyed all these new railways and the storylines they brought to the series, but especially liked the stories of the Skarloey and Mountain Railways. William Middleton | Reginald Payne | C. Reginald Dalby | John T. Kenney | Gunvor and Peter Edwards | Clive Spong | Stephen Lings