Twenty years ago, we produced a supplement to the Abbey Chronicle for September 2000 showing the differences between the full texts and the Children’s Press editions of New Abbey Girls, Abbey Girls Again, Abbey Girls In Town and Abbey Girls At Home. This took the form of four articles – one for each title – that had been specifically commissioned for the supplement, and an extra article on New Abbey Girls, the thrust of which also drew on the changes between the original and abridged editions.
We printed extra copies of this booklet at the time, but the stock is inevitably diminishing, so it seemed useful to add this to the information available on the website. The articles are reproduced in full, with many of the illustrations used then, though where possible we have substituted coloured versions.
Three of the authors of these pieces have died since the booklet came out, so we cannot thank them directly, and have not altered their contributions. We are grateful to Amanda Crawford and Susan Merskey, who have checked over their pieces in September 2020, for allowing us to publish their articles in this format.
Some of the information on the appearance of various editions, which I supplied, was italicised in the booklet. We have retained that distinction to show where my contributions have been added.
Ruth Allen, September 2020
New Abbey Girls, 1923 and 1966 – Monica Godfrey
Joy Shirley: Earth Mother or Principal Boy? – Dorothy Devlin
Abbey Girls Again, 1924 and 1961 – Audrey Morris