The Chalet School triplets (by Elinor M Brent-Dyer)

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It’s only nine years since I last read ‘The Chalet School triplets’, one of the later volumes in the lengthy series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer. It's book 49 in the original list. But it’s not one I reread regularly when I was younger, and I found that I hadn’t recalled any of the story-lines.  

The last time I read this, I only had the Armada paperback edition. It was supposedly only shortened in minor ways, but ‘frequently’.  So I was very pleased when I was able to acquire a Girls Gone By edition in the intervening years, containing the full original text, with the bonus of a relevant short story at the end.

This book focuses on Joey Maynard’s oldest offspring, her triplets, who are now approaching sixteen. They are some of my favourite characters in the book, and I find them all three-dimensional and believable. They look quite different: Len is tall, slim and auburn, Con is shorter, with very dark hair, and even more slim. Margot has curly red hair, and is slightly more stocky, though there’s a discrepancy in the book making it uncertain whether she’s a little shorter than Len, or a little taller. It doesn’t matter: minor mistakes like these are common in these books. Somehow, they add to the charm. 

The Barnabas factor (by Derek Wood)

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It’s over twenty years since I read ‘The Barnabas factor’ by Derek Wood. It’s not a long book - not much more than 150 pages in my paperback edition - and I recalled finding it interesting and somewhat inspiring. The subtitle is ‘the power of encouragement’. 

I hadn’t remembered anything about the style or focus of the book, and was pleased to find that it’s quite a light-weight read, although the relaxed style doesn’t mean that the content itself is trivial. Far from it. The main principle is that people need to be encouraged. The focus is on the church, with specific mention of clergy and other leaders, but the suggestions would apply to anyone.

Each chapter is fairly short, looking at different aspects of encouragement. The word itself basically means to give someone courage - not necessarily to do something dangerous or scary, but to motivate them, or help them feel more positive about themselves. And, as the author suggests in several places, many people are more inclined to offer criticism or discouragement than to be positive about others. This may be out of a mistaken understanding of pride and humility, or just general embarrassment or awkwardness.

On the edge (by Sarah Turner)

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I liked ‘Stepping up’ by Sarah Turner so much when we read it for the local book group a couple of years ago that I put another of her novels on my wishlist. I was given ‘On the edge’ for Christmas and have just read it in the past couple of days.

It took me a few chapters to get into it, but once I was about a quarter of the way through it became difficult to put down. The narrator is called Joni. She’s nearly forty, and has been living with Lewis for the past ten years. Joni hates surprises, and likes to be prepared for any eventuality. She’s really eager to have a baby, and has planned every detail, including the most likely times for conception. 

But before we meet her, there’s an online group discussion, presumably something like Whatsapp although it’s not specified. Someone called Sue, who is not entirely au fait with groups or emojis, sets it up and invites Joni along with four other people. And she tells them that she’s been given the task of organising a week in Joni’s late grandmother’s house, where they have to follow some instructions before hearing her will.  

All my lies are true (by Dorothy Koomson)

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The first time I read Dorothy Koomson’s gripping novel ‘The ice cream girls’, I felt that there were some unfinished threads; I knew the author only wrote stand-alone novels, but wished she would write a sequel. So I was very pleased when I learned that she had done so, some years later. I was given ‘All my lies are true’ for my birthday a few months ago. I didn’t read it immediately, however; I waited until a few weeks after I had reread ‘The ice cream girls’, to remind myself of the characters and details of the story.

It probably isn’t necessary to have read it first, but I would definitely recommend it, even though this novel is complete in itself, and starts ten years after the end of ‘The ice cream girls’. This one mainly features Verity, daughter of Serena and Evan, who is now in her mid-twenties. She’s moved out of the family home but, until a year or so previously, was very close to her parents. But she’s grown more and more distant. Serena is sure she has secrets, but is pushed away any time she tries to approach the topic - or any other conversation.

As with other books by this author, the timeline moves back and forwards regularly, with each section headed by the date. So it’s not long before we learn that Verity has been dating a man in his thirties called Logan. He spends a lot of time in her flat, and they have declared their love for each other. But they haven’t told either of their families anything about their relationship, and neither of the has met the other’s family. 

Anne of the Island (by Lucy Maud Montgomery)

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I thoroughly enjoyed rereading ‘Anne of Green Gables’ a couple of months ago, and the first sequel, ‘Anne of Avonlea’ in June. So in the past few days I’ve reread the third book in the series, ‘Anne of the Island’, which I haven’t read since 2006. However, I must have read it more than once as a teenager or young adult, as much of the story was still familiar to me. 

This book, which was published in 1925, covers the four years of Anne’s university degree at the fictional Redmond college. She’s delayed her entry because Marilla’s eyesight is going. But Mrs Lynde is going to move in, so Anne is free to go. She’s going to be joined by some of her closest friends, and is pleased that Gilbert Blythe will be there too, in the same year. They had a friendly rivalry at school - once they put aside their feud - and are good friends. But Gilbert wants more than friendship, and Anne is not interested…

There’s not a whole lot of plot to this book. We meet some new folk, and in the second year we see Anne and three of her friends installed in a wonderful house known as Patty’s Place. It’s owned by two women who have decided to travel the world. 

All questions great and small (by Adrian Plass and Jeff Lucas)

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Two of my favourite modern Christian writers are Adrian Plass and Jeff Lucas. So when they write a book together, I acquire it as soon as possible. One of these books is ‘All questions great and small’, which I read and very much liked in 2016. Clearly, a decade later, it was time for a reread.

The book is presented as answers to questions which the authors were given on one of their tours. The introduction (or, rather, the Foreword) is written by someone who was part of the ‘Seriously funny’ team. She explains that Jeff and Adrian took it in turns to answer as many questions as they could, whether serious or otherwise.

Then the official introduction, written by Adrian, caricatures some typical enthusiastic Christian pat responses to questions. He points out that it’s too easy to become lazy when presented with doubts, or genuine queries about the Bible, or about living as a Christian in the 21st century. So in their tour - and in this book - they attempt to be completely honest. No question is considered unsuitable, or too silly. 

Shopaholic ties the knot (by Sophie Kinsella)

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I reread the late Sophie Kinsella’s ‘Shopaholic abroad’ last month. So I’ve just finished the third in the series, ‘Shopaholic ties the knot’, which I last read in 2012.  Yes, they are essentially quite silly, fluffy books. Yes, the protagonist, Becky Bloomwood, is by turns irritating, naive and over-emotional. 

But the writing is - in my view - excellent, and the stories, particularly this one, cleverly plotted. The story is, admittedly, unlikely, but at times it’s quite amusing. The opening scene could be from a comedy show: Becky is trying to fit a large, hundred-year-old cocktail cabinet into a taxi. She’s bought it at an antique store, and doesn’t want to pay their huge delivery bill because she only lives around the corner… 

It’s an excellent introduction to the insatiable shopping addict who can’t resist a bargain. Even though she and her boyfriend Luke have theoretically agreed that they don’t need any more furniture. And she’s not supposed to spend large amounts without discussing it first… but Becky is an incurable optimist. It’s one of her best attributes, although it also leads to extremely difficult situations at times. 

Third year at Malory Towers (by Enid Blyton)

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I loved Enid Blyton books as a child. I discovered more of them as I approached my teenage years, and as a teenager my favourites were the three school series. I liked them all, but Malory Towers had the edge. As an adult I would still occasionally dip into one or two of them for ‘comfort’ reading. I’d almost forgotten about them when my young granddaughter discovered them as audio-books. 

So, as I’ve been rereading many of my favourite authors over the past seven or eight years, I decided to reread Enid Blyton. I read and enjoyed ‘Second form at Malory Towers’ last month, and have just finished its sequel, ‘Third year at Malory Towers’, which I last read over twelve years ago. 

Darrell is the main character again; she’s now fourteen, and is in the third form, with Miss Peters as form mistress. Her best friend Sally is in quarantine, and her parents have agreed to pick up a new girl, an American called Zerelda whose grandmother is a friend of Darrell’s grandmother. 

Tell Mrs Poole I'm sorry (by Kathleen Rowntree)

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It’s been interesting rereading Kathleen Rowntree’s books in the order in which they were published. I have liked most of them at least somewhat, but in the later books I find much more sympathetic characters. The one I have just finished is ‘Tell Mrs Poole I’m sorry’, which I last read in 2017. I had vaguely remembered the main theme - and who Mrs Poole is - but none of the detail.

The main character is Liz, who is happily married to Nathan. They have two children: an adult son, who has left home, and a daughter, Rosie, who is eighteen, and in her last year at school. As the story starts, Liz is becoming quite worried about Rosie. They have always got along well, but suddenly Rosie has become withdrawn, abrupt and secretive. Liz suspects she’s involved with an unsuitable man, but any attempt to find out more is met with rebuff.

Unfortunately Nathan has been having some heart problems, and shouldn’t be stresse or angry. So Liz knows she has to get in touch with her two best friends, Nell and Chrissy to talk things through.  Chrissy is a mother of five, some of them still quite young. Nell is single, and a glamorous reporter and writer. But they’ve all been there for each other at critical points in their lives, so they both agree to take a short break.

Wide is the water (by Jane Aiken Hodge)

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I have been rereading the novels I have by Jane Aiken Hodge; mostly they were used paperbacks when I bought them. One of my favourites is ‘Savannah Purchase’, which I reread for the third or fourth time around a month ago, and which claims to be the first in the ‘Purchas’ series. The only other book I have in the series is ‘Wide is the water’, which I acquired and read for the first time in 2008.

What I had not remembered is that while ‘Savannah purchase’ is set in the Napoleonic period, early in the 19th century, ‘Wide is the water’ is around fifty years earlier, during the American war of independence. So it doesn’t include any of the same characters or their descendants. 

Moreover, given the number of references to events leading up to the story in this book, I assume that this book is in fact a sequel to one that I don’t have. It doesn’t much matter - the story is complete in itself. Possibly it would feel less complex if I were familiar with some of the characters, but I doubt it. Not being a history expert, nor really familiar with US history, a lot of this novel went rather over my head.

Finding freedom (by Joyce Huggett)

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I had very much appreciated the books I had previously read by Joyce Huggett, and I reread them from time to time. So when I saw another of her books, ‘Finding freedom’, on the shelves of friends who were giving away books, it was an easy decision to acquire it. Joyce Huggett and her husband lived in Cyprus for six years while we were here, but I don’t think I ever met her.

The subtitle of this book is, ‘becoming the person God made me to be’, and each chapter focuses on an aspect of freedom - from false expectations, from sin, from past experiences, and more. As with the author’s other works, this book is biblically sound, with plenty of scripture references. The writing is good, and well organised too. 

But I have to admit, I found it a bit heavy-going in places, and mostly not really relevant to me. Not that I disagreed with anything as such. But perhaps it’s intended for rather younger people, or those new to faith. The first chapter, for instance, simply covers the essence of the gospel - of the freedom we find when making a commitment to trust and follow Jesus. The author gives a few examples of people who experience release from past sins, and from feelings of guilt, often far in excess of what was done wrong.

Ordinary saints (by Niamh Ní Mhaoileoin)

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I had never heard of Niamh Ní Mhaoileoin, and only came across her debut novel ‘Ordinary saints’ because it was this month’s choice for our local reading group. We try to choose a variety of styles and settings, and I appreciate the chance to discover new authors and - sometimes - to be taken right outside my normal comfort zone.

I bought it for my Kindle when it was on special offer a few months ago, as it was hard to find a reasonably priced paperback edition, and I’ve just finished reading it. The style was mostly fairly light, and it only took me a couple of days. 

The main protagonist is a young, gay woman called Jay. And it opens quite dramatically, telling us that the first time she kissed a girl was the same evening that her brother died. The two events, we quickly learn, are quite unconnected. But Jay was at a party, and ignored repeated messages and phone calls from her parents. So she didn’t learn about the tragedy until the following morning.

The feud in the Chalet School (by Elinor M Brent-Dyer)

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As a teenager, I read all the Chalet School books by Elinor M Brent-Dyer at least once. I reread many of them again over the decades; I acquired some myself, and my mother managed to get the entire set, though some were abridged Armada paperbacks. I would dip into some of them whenever I visited, but inevitably some were read more often than others.

It’s nearly ten years since I last read ‘The feud in the Chalet School’, and I’m pretty sure it’s one of the ones I didn’t read very often. I had not recalled the story at all, or any of the new characters. I did vaguely remember one rather dramatic and dangerous escapade, but would not have known it was in this particular book.

The basic story involves another school, St Hilda’s, that starts in Geneva by a Miss Holroyd. She takes on three staff, including a matron, and begins with just thirty or so girls. They discover that the summer heat is too much, so for her second year she acquires the lease of a chalet in the mountains. Forty-seven girls are due to arrive when disaster happens. Miss Holroyd is taken to hospital, and the girls are taken on, temporarily, by the much larger Chalet School.  

The wisdom of Sally red shoes (by Ruth Hogan)

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I’ve liked the somewhat quirky novels I’ve read by Ruth Hogan, so I put another one on my wishlist a few years ago. I was given ‘The wisdom of Sally red shoes’ for Christmas 2023 and it’s sat on my to-be-read shelf all this time. I finally picked it up to read a few days ago. 

It took me a while to get into the book, which is written in a series of very short sections - some of them just a couple of pages. It focuses mainly on three diverse women, and I found it a bit confusing at first. 

There’s an elderly, somewhat eccentric woman who sings in an amazing voice to the crows in a park. Then she feeds them with bread crusts. She wears red shoes, hence her nickname which gives the title to the book. We never really get to know her, though she’s the first one we meet; but she’s instrumental in change for others in the novel.