From the rural festivities in 'Village Christmas' to the poignant tale of a white robin, these two stories demonstrate the wry wit and light touch of Miss Read.

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...

In the growing warmth of early summer, Thrush Green shakes out its leaves and flowers. The inhabitants are delighted, farmers survey their promising hay fields, gardeners bustle with packets of...

Charles Henstock, vicar of Thrush Green, is living in his new vicarage after the old one burned down. In its place are eight retirement homes, but there’s a heated debate in the village about...

As the spring months unfold in the peaceful Cotswold village of Thrush Green, so do the dramas of village life. The arrival of a stranger from America excites much interest and consternation....

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...

Mrs Pringle, the lugubrious school cleaner, has always been a favourite character in the ‘Fairacre’ series. Here, through the eyes and anecdotes of the schoolmistress Miss Read, and others, we...

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...

Born into a home where food and clothing were hard-earned, where oil and candles were luxuries, Miss Dolly Clare – retired village schoolmistress and devoted countrywoman – looks back on a...

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...

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...

‘Storm in the Village’
Miss Read, the headmistress of Fairacre School, learns of a proposed new housing development that soon has the citizens of Fairacre up in arms.

‘The...

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...

In ‘Village Affairs', the people of Fairacre are up in arms about the possible closure of the village school. This anxious time for Miss Read is made bearable by the support of all her friends...

A weight-losing recipe sends a portly Victorian housemaid literally sky-high; Mrs Next-Door, the queen of copycats, drives her patient neighbour mad with rage; the tragic tale of the ghost of...