Miss Read

Author profile

born

in South Norwood(Greater London), The United Kingdom

April 22, 1913

died

April 07, 2012

gender

female

genre

Literature & Fiction

About this author

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Dora Jessie Saint MBE née Shafe (born 17 April 1913), best known by the pen name Miss Read, was an English novelist, by profession a schoolmistress. Her pseudonym was derived from her mother's maiden name. She began writing for several journals after World War II and worked as a scriptwriter for the BBC.

She wrote a series of novels from 1955 to 1996. Her work centred on two fictional English villages, Fairacre and Thrush Green. The principal character in the Fairacre books, "Miss Read", is an unmarried schoolteacher in a small village school, an acerbic and yet compassionate observer of village life. Miss Read's novels are wry regional social comedies, laced with gentle humour and subtle social commentary. Miss Read is also a keen observer...more

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Miss Read's Books

Average rating: 4.19 · 10,422 ratings · 699 reviews · 87 distinct works · Similar authors

	Village School (Chronicles of Fairacre, #1) 4.08 of 5 stars 4.08 avg rating — 909 ratings — 11 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Thrush Green (Thrush Green, #1) 4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 avg rating — 546 ratings — published 1959 — 12 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Village Diary (Chronicles of Fairacre, #2) 4.21 of 5 stars 4.21 avg rating — 417 ratings — published 1955 — 14 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Storm in the Village (Chronicles of Fairacre, #3) 4.2 of 5 stars 4.20 avg rating — 335 ratings — published 1958 — 10 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Winter in Thrush Green (Thrush Green, #2) 4.2 of 5 stars 4.20 avg rating — 334 ratings — published 1961 — 10 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Christmas at Fairacre 4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 avg rating — 282 ratings — published 1992 — 8 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gossip from Thrush Green (Thrush Green, #6) 4.28 of 5 stars 4.28 avg rating — 271 ratings — published 1981 — 11 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	News from Thrush Green (Thrush Green, #3) by Miss Read, John S. Goodall (Illustrator) 4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 297 ratings — published 1970 — 13 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Summer at Fairacre (Fairacre, #16) by Miss Read, John S. Goodall (Illustrations) 4.34 of 5 stars 4.34 avg rating — 261 ratings — published 1984 — 10 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Return to Thrush Green (Thrush Green, #5) by Miss Read, John S. Goodall (Illustrations) 4.2 of 5 stars 4.20 avg rating — 230 ratings — published 1978 — 12 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Series by Miss Read

Fairacre Series (19 books)
by Miss Read
4.189724152453148 of 5 stars 4.19 avg rating — 4,749 ratings

Thrush Green (13 books)
by Miss Read
4.195666029318037 of 5 stars 4.20 avg rating — 3,138 ratings

Quotes by Miss Read

“A quarter past three," she exclaimed, catching sight of the bedside clock. "What a time to be drinking tea!"
"Anytime," Harold told her, "is time to be drinking tea.”
― Miss Read

7 people liked it

“Thoughts by a graveside are too dark and deep to be sustained for any length of time. Sooner or later the hurt mind turns to the sun for healing, and this is as it should be, for otherwise, what future could any of us hope for, but madness?”
― Miss Read, Village School

tags: comforting, inspirational

6 people liked it

“How lucky country children are in these natural delights that lie ready to their hand! Every season and every plant offers changing joys. As they meander along the lane that leads to our school all kinds of natural toys present themselves for their diversion. The seedpods of stitchwort hang ready for delightful popping between thumb and finger, and later the bladder campion offers a larger, if less crisp, globe to burst. In the autumn, acorns, beechnuts, and conkers bedizen their path, with all their manifold possibilities of fun. In the summer, there is an assortment of honeys to be sucked from bindweed flowers, held fragile and fragrant to hungry lips, and the tiny funnels of honeysuckle and clover blossoms to taste.”
― Miss Read, Village Diary

tags: biophilia, children, country, countryside, nature, plants, seasons

4 people liked it

See all Miss Read's quotes »

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