The Otterbury Incident [SEP] illustrator
The Otterbury Incident
The Otterbury Incident is a novel for children by Cecil Day-Lewis first published in the UK in 1948 with illustrations by Edward Ardizzone, and in the USA in 1949. Day-Lewis's second and final children's book, the novel is an adaptation of a French screenplay, "Nous les gosses" (Us Kids), that was filmed in 1941.
Plot.
The novel is set in the immediate post-World War II period in the fictional English small provincial town of Otterbury
"armies" of the war games.
Reception.
The novel has been commended for its style, which is a parody of serious historical writing. One critic commented that "George [the narrator] very much styles himself the official war historian, writing up the history of 'The Otterbury Incident' in the high serious language of an epoch changing event. It is the delightful first person voice of George that gives the novel its humour and charm. Sometimes poor George – who is a just a little bit on