Shocks for the Chalet School (by Elinor M Brent-Dyer)

In my gradual re-reading of the ‘Chalet School’ series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer, I reached ‘Shocks for the Chalet School’, 25th in the original series. I hadn’t read it since 2012, when I had an abridged Armada edition only. I was given a hardback by a relative who was clearing out someone’s attic, and out of curiosity, compared the two (off and on) as I read. I hadn’t recalled any of the plot. 

The story opens as Miss Annersley, Head of the Chalet School, receives a cable from Australia. That’s the first she learns of a new pupil: Emerence Hope, who is thirteen. She’s had an unfortunate upbringing with a mother who didn’t give her any boundaries at all, and a father who blew hot and cold, either neglecting her, or punishing. Her latest exploit was starting a fire, and her father has decided to send her to boarding school…

Since Emerence is already on her way to the UK, and the Chalet School has places (and her parents are very wealthy) she’s accepted, but has no intention of sticking to any rules. She wants to make friends, and can’t understand why everyone seems so well-behaved. Not that she’s completely without morals: truth is very important to her, and when she understands good reasons for regulations, she doesn’t mind following them. 

Then there’s another shock when an old well is discovered in the school grounds; I didn’t find that thread of the story all that interesting, with a lot of detail about water channels and springs, and a bit of history - I skimmed a bit here and there and wasn’t sure quite why it was included, unless for educational reasons. There are other subplots that seem somewhat unconnected too: a serious illness for Molly Bettany, a girl who suddenly leaves due to a bereavement, and mention of the new finishing branch of the school in the Swiss Oberland. 

There are ongoing incidents in the life of the school, including some prefects’ meetings, a party for the staff arranged by the prefects, and the inevitable Christmas play at the end of term, in a lot of detail. Emerence is an interesting character, but her story seems to trail away as she realises that her actions come with consequences, and befriends some of the girls in her form. 

It doesn’t usually take me over ten days to finish a Chalet School book; they were written for teenagers, and are fairly easy reads, which I usually complete in just a day or two. However it’s been a busy time of year and I didn’t have much opportunity to read - or, in this case, motivation. It’s not that it’s a bad book, but despite my not remembering much of the storyline, it didn’t particularly grab me. 

Comparing the hardback with the paperback was an interesting exercise, and there are some brief scenes and conversations that were cut out of the Armada edition. They didn’t affect the story as such; sometimes they were references to previous books, sometimes exchanges that added a bit of characterisation, but nothing of significance. I’m very glad I have the hardback, but it wouldn’t have been worth paying a lot for it. 

‘Shocks for the Chalet School’ is not one of the best of the series, in my opinion. But no doubt I’ll read it again in another decade or so. It has been republished in its full form by Girls Gone By but is not currently in print, and very hard to find second-hand. Armada paperbacks of this can be found more frequently, and since the story as such as unchanged, it would be worth acquiring one for continuity if needed, and if found inexpensively. 

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