Rev. W. Awdry's Railway Series Books Discussion

Most of the books in the RWS were pretty good, although I didn't really like Branch Line engines and Tramway Engines as much as the others. They weren't bad, but they were just okay in my opinion.

I also think that Duck and the Diesel Engine had some excellent illustrations, probably some of my favourite from the series.

I will agree to that; I liked the illustrations in Duck and the Diesel Engine too.  I find that John Kenney, while his style is not as celebrated compared to Dalby, he did a brilliant job with combining the color diversity set by Dalby, but making the engines look more... well, like engines. (for lack of a better term)

When I was younger, I preferred Dalby because the atmosphere of his illustrations felt sunny and bright.

Today, I prefer Kenney, probably because of his style. While the atmosphere feels a bit darker, it still feels nice.

One thing I find when it comes to the Edwards and their work, I find that given how unique their style was compared to Dalby, Kenney and Spong, you really cannot compare them to the rest. The others, on the other hand, are similar enough that comparisons are possible.

I wonder though... if Dalby did a better job with Percy, would he have continued doing the series?

It wasn't just Percy, it was a whole mix of things that only culminated with Percy. The Reverend didn't like Dalby's work that much, as he got some of the engines wrong. Dalby himself didn't put his whole heart and soul into it, as he felt that the books wouldn't last as long as they have. It was Percy that ended up making him leave, but don't think that it's solely because of that.

That does make sense; apparently Awdry was so frustrated with Dalby, on several occasions he did send actual photographs to Dalby to try and have him make the engines more realistic

(Part of the reason Henry had a rebuild)

I knew about the Henry rebuild part, but never about the photographs.

Awdry and Dalby also didn't get along all that well, which may (or may not) be another reason Dalby left.

Even so, his work is memorable, and tends to be remembered more than Kenney and Edward's work

Very true. He did illustrate 10/26 books by Wilbert Awdry (if you count re-illustrating the first book).

I sometimes wonder... if "the well didn't run dry" for Reverend Awdry, would he have still continued the series?