William — The Dictator is the 20th book of children's

Children's literature

Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...

 short stories

Short story

A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

 in the Just William series

Just William series

The William Brown series, better known as the Just William series, is a series of thirty nine books written by English author Richmal Crompton...

 by Richmal Crompton

Richmal Crompton

Richmal Crompton Lamburn was a British writer, most famous for her Just William humorous short stories and books.-Life:...

.

This book contains 10 stories. It was first published in 1938, and the first published versions are now collectors

Book collecting

Book collecting is the collecting of books, including seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever books are of interest to a given individual collector. The love of books is bibliophilia, and someone who loves to read, admire, and collect...

 items and pretty rare.

This title and the stories contained within this book reflect a general theme of fascism

Fascism

Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...

.

He Who Fights

William's friends are away at the seaside, and in his boredom, he tries to make friends with Lucinda, newly arrived at the village. Lucinda is friendly with him only to 'show' her neighbour Ralph Montague, a red-haired boy, who had rejected her overtures of friendship, and wants him to fight that boy. William makes friends with Ralph independently though, the two boys being identical in taste and disposition. As they pass Lucinda she goads him to fight Ralph, and they do so. William is worsted, and Lucinda runs off in disgust. The boys continue their friendship to the detriment of the neighbourhood, until their teasing of a group of camping boys brings them to their nemesis. Bruised, they return home, with the excuse that they fought each other. William tries to use this as a means to get back into Lucinda's favours, but as the lady has seen Ralph's worse condition, he only gets attacked for having 'beaten' her idol.

What's In A Name?

The discovery of the empty Gorse View gives William hope for running his prize idea — a Boy Sanctuary laden with cakes, biscuits, buns and baths of lemonade — on a commercial basis. While discussing the matter, the Outlaws discover a drill of Fascists in black shirts, and decide to form their own coloured shirt band (The Greenshirts, marked by a green armband). Their manoeuvres are copied by Hubert Lane's Blueshirts, who also proceed on the Fascist agenda of setting up a Colony

Colony

In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....

in Hubert's aunt's house. The Outlaw's attempts at converting Gorse View into their 'Colony' is worsted by its sale. A windfall in the form of a picnic hamper, that fell out of a speeding car outside the house, promises to make their dreams of a Boy Sanctuary come true. While they are in the process of setting it up, the owner of the house turns up. She holds their attention with her tale of theft of her car, and the boy sanctuary is in the meantime raided by her daughter and her friends, who were expecting a party. All ends well as the Outlaws corner the abundant remains of the hamper, as the Laneites are crushed to see the prosperous Outlaw 'Colony'.

Agnes Matilda Comes To Stay

Mr. Brown's business has a daughter — Agnes Matilda — who comes to stay with the Browns for her health. A thoroughly spoilt child, she is a taxation to Mrs. Brown, but William has been bribed sixpence to stay away from her. On the last day of her stay however, rattled by William's disdain, she chooses to follow him on his trails. His attempts to dodge her fail, and disappointed, he and the Outlaws let her go along. When Ginger refuses to give her her catapult, she attacks him and William fiercely. They run into the Laneites, and William plans the ignominious rout of Hubert lane by a girl. He goads her to ask for Hubert's blow-pipe, and the violence of her attacks puts the Laneites to flight. The Outlaws trick her into a shed and lock her up, where she is discovered by a tramp. She assumes complete command over him, who then tries to get her back home. She is discovered by the Browns who are at that moment receiving her father. The father is happy to see his girl so flushed with health after her adventure, which results in profits for both Mr. Brown and William.