Showing results by author "Miss Read" in All Categories

Change occurs everywhere, even in the small fictional community of Thrush Green in the British Cotswolds. Dorothy Watson and Agnes Fogerty have taught at the school for as long as anyone can remember, but now they're thinking and talking about retirement. It won't be an easy adjustment for them, or the village residents. Whom can they find that can possibly fill the women's shoes? Meanwhile, the town wonders if the Lovelock sisters will keep their domestic help. And is that young man really an architectural student, as Agnes thinks?

The villagers of Thrush Green celebrate Christmas traditionally, in a way that has hardly changed over the generations. Children eagerly hang up their stockings, families go to church together and everyone enjoys the treats of the festive season. And when it snows as the carol singers make their way round the cottages on the green, it looks as if Christmas will be perfect this year. But not everything is as peaceful as it seems.

On a bright summer's day, old Miss Clare, now retired from teaching, awaits the visit of her oldest friend, Emily Davis. In between, she recalls the events in their 70-year friendship and country life in England during that time.

Fairacre is a village of cottages, a church and the school - and, at the heart of the school, its head mistress Miss Read. Through her discerning eye, we meet the villagers of Fairacre and see their trials and tribulations, from the irascible school cleaner Mrs Pringle, to the young school children, with their scraped knees, hopeful faces and inevitable mischief.

Nestled in the heart of the Cotswolds, Thrush Green is normally a peaceful place. But as autumn turns to winter, feelings are running high in the village. Miss Fogerty, a respected teacher at the village school for over thirty years, is troubled by the methods of the new young teacher. Dotty Harmer takes up driving, much to the concern of others, and it isn’t long before she is involved in an accident and a threatening court case.

There are new people on the Green... When old Admiral Trigg and his sister Lucy died, their house - Tullivers - stood empty for many months. Then one bright April day, some discreet onlookers saw a good-looking woman pushing her way through the nettles to the front door. Who was she? Was she on her own? Had she bought the house, and, if so, what kind of a neighbour would she be?

Here's a story that brings all the villagers of Fairacre together, as they face the prospect of developers who hope to build new houses on the fields adjoining old Mr Miller's farm. Everyone has an opinion, but not everyone is in agreement about the development. Under the watchful gaze of Miss Read, the school teacher, we meet old characters and new, from retired teacher Miss Clare and the surly Mrs Pringle, to the new assistant teacher, Miss Jackson, who brings with her problems of her own.

As spring begins at Thrush Green, a series of local dramas takes hold of the community. Plans for the fete are hotting up, the illness of Mrs Peters at the restaurant makes the future unsure for the staff, and there are problems at Rectory Cottages.

After the death of Emily Davis, school teacher and well-loved member of the local community, many of those who knew her cast their minds back to days past and to their memories of Emily. Dolly Clare mourns her loss deeply but remembers with joy and warmth the long friendship they shared. She is joined in her reminiscences by Jane Draper, who started her teaching career under Emily’s guidance, and by those further afield - from London to America.

The arrival of a stranger in the village of Thrush Green stirs up ripples of speculation and interest. Not only does the village find itself paying tribute to this stranger's hero (a missionary born and bred in Thrush Green) but his presence has a dramatic affect on Miss Dimity Dean's romantic prospects.

From organising the school summer fete - 'Because of our inability to recognise our climatic shortcomings from the outset, arrangements for outdoor jollities get completely out of hand' - to the sometimes rather odd passions of childhood - 'I collect stones with holes in them' - Miss Read captures the essence of rural life, and in particular of village schools, as only she can.

The first charming Caxley tale introduces the deep-rooted camaraderie between Septimus Howard, a calm and controlled man, and Bender North, a confident, successful but gruff ironmonger. Their argumentative sides often clash, displaying moments of fury and forgiveness with wonderful tenderness. Theirs is a friendship that survives misunderstandings, the tragedy of war, and the bitterness of loss. The story of their families continues through the generations. Read by June Barrie.

Summer at Fairacre charmingly recounts this bright, bustling season and the problems and possibilities that unfold against the backdrop of roses, skylarks and bees... Joseph Coggs finds a temporary home in the schoolhouse while his mother is in the hospital. Miss Read’s friend Amy mysteriously disappears. And, perhaps most difficult of all, Mrs. Pringle, the grumpy school cleaner, is unable to work because of her ‘bad leg’.

It's the May Day holiday, and a fair has come to the village of Thrush Green. The residents of Thrush Green all have their own views about the fair. For young Paul, just recovered from an illness, it is a joy to be allowed out to play at the fair; for Ruth, who returned to the soothing tranquility of Thrush Green nursing a broken heart, the fair is a welcome distraction from her own problems. And for Dr Lovell, the fair brings an unexpected new patient.

A mouse's appearance on Christmas Eve in a widow's bedroom leads to a chance encounter with a small boy. In 'No Holly for Miss Quinn'. And Miss Quinn's preparations for Christmas are made more difficult when her brother's children come to stay.

‘As I have been given a large and magnificent diary for Christmas... I intend to fill it in as long as my ardour lasts.’ Luckily, Miss Read’s ardour lasts all year, encompassing every aspect of Fairacre life. Whether embroiled unwillingly in her friend Amy’s marital hiccups, discussing the changing world with Miss Clare or the modern problems of good local education and rural impoverishment with the schools inspector and the doctor, she remains balanced, humorous and wise.

A new excitement comes to the village of Thrush Green when Harold Shoosmith, a distinguished bachelor who has chosen the village for his retirement, takes the corner house on the green. Harold is soon enmeshed in village politics and becomes involved in the private lives of his neighbours as well. His presence has a dramatic effect on Dimity Dean and Ella Bembridge and is the cause of a serious misunderstanding between the two friends.

Having enjoyed robust health throughout her career, Miss Read, the village schoolmistress at Fairacre, is looking forward to an energetic retirement in a few years' time. But, to her dismay, she is suddenly taken ill. She has no wish to give up her post yet, but memories of her former colleague collapsing in front of the schoolchildren haunt her. Is it time to say farewell to Fairacre?

When Charles Henstock, rector of Thrush Green, moves a mile downhill to the parish of Lulling, his many friends rejoice in his promotion, but an unfortunate skirmish with one of his wealthy parishioners over the Lady Chapel kneelers saddens him...

Illegal battering of gingernuts and conkers in a murky corner of the playground; a procession of bearers of lost property interrupting the telling of the story of Joseph; justice being firmly done on three malefactors who stole Mr Henry's eggs... Here are 40 delightful stories about life as a village schoolteacher, set against the changing seasons of the countryside.