Initially, while waiting for snow to fall, the children embark on a series of adventures ranging from rebuilding an igloo to building an ice sled. The holiday is extended when leader Nancy Blackett catches mumps and the group is quarantined and cannot return to their boarding schools. They become part of the group, and join in their play of Arctic expeditions. Whilst observing the stars from an isolated barn, Dick and Dorothea encounter the other children and shortly become firm friends. Another major influence is Fridtjof Nansen's books about his crossing of Greenland in 1888 and his Arctic expedition from 1893 to 1896 in the Fram and by sledge, which are extensively referenced in the novel.īrother and sister Dick and Dorothea Callum meet the Swallows and Amazons during the winter beside the lake. Ransome draws on his schoolday memories of the Great Frost of 1895 when Windermere froze completely. Instead, the children's activities focus on ice skating, signalling with semaphore and Morse code, and sledging. The series' usual emphasis on boats and sailing is largely absent, as the story is set in the winter. In this story, the third set of major characters in the series, the Ds - Dick and Dorothea Callum-are introduced. Winter Holiday is the fourth novel of Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series of children's books.
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