Farewell to Fairacre: The eleventh novel in the Fairacre series

Description

Now that Fairacre school no longer faces the threat of closure, Miss Read is looking forward to a few more years of teaching before retirement. But best-laid plans often go awry. Unexpectedly her health begins to fail and she faces some tough decisions about her future. Meanwhile, rumours abound about Miss Read's old friend Mr Mawne - now a widower; a handsome newcomer to town takes a shine to the stalwart headmistress; Miss Read keeps a watchful eye on the courtship of a friend; and village life goes on.

Miss Read, or in real life Dora Saint, was born 17 April 1913. A teacher by profession, she started writing after the Second World War for Punch and other journals and as a scriptwriter for the BBC. She is the author of many immensely popular books, including two autobiographical works, but it is for her novels of English rural life for which she is best known. The first of these, Village School, was published in 1955 and Miss Read continued to write about the fictitious villages of Fairacre and Thrush Green until her retirement in 1996. She lives in Berkshire, and in the 1998 New Year Honours list was awarded an MBE for her services to literature.