Elisabeth Beresford (1926–2010)

This starts with Great Uncle Bulgaria reading a story to the Wombles, only they are getting restless. they've heard them all before and they're all old. And so Bulgaria launches them on a plan for 2 pairs of Wombles to travel around the world and collect stories from other lands in order to write the tenth volume of A Womble History of the World. This gives a chance for younger readers to learn something about other countries, with the Wombles visiting the Black Forest, Tibet, Australis, New Zealand, US & Japan. All in clockwork balloons. At times this looks dated, with the Womblex clearly being a version of a fax machine (who has them now?). At others it is ahead of its time with the environmental message, there is even climate change in here. The Wimbledon burrow seems quiet without Tomsk, Wellington, Orinocco & Bungo, with the other Wombles getting tetchy at times and overworked. It concludes with the wanderers returning home to a party, the work of writing the history probably continues after wards. It was interesting that they didn't visit Russia, despite there being a Womble burrow there, we have met Omsk previously, but then this was the 1907s and it was probably politically better to steer clear. It reads as much as a set of short essays with a connected character than a story, but it remains enjoyable, nonetheless.… (más)

The Wombles are back in the burrow in Wimbledon, after the traffic rules in London are changed to prevent the large lorries that were affecting their burrow from passing that way. I can't imagine that was the main aim of the traffic planners.
Bungo and Great Uncle Bulgaria are missing through most of the book, as they are away at a Womble conference in the US. That gives some of the other Wombles a bit more space. We meet Alderney and Shansi (I can't help feeling a bit uncomfortable that a Womble who takes a Chinese name takes on characteristics of that country. Shansi uses an unusual word order, she is speaking as if she were Chinese, when she isn't it's just her name). Apart from that, the Wombles get inventive with various schemes to manage with less rubbish being left on the common. The way that they replace the front door with plastic is interesting, it's litter that is viewed as the problem at this stage, not plastic itself. There is a certain level of mild threat here, life is not certain, even underground.… (más)