Leadon Hill

Description

The quiet English village of Leadon Hill is ruled by Miss Mitcham - a tiny, sharp old woman who sees and hears everything from behind her lace curtains, and brutally tears apart the lives and reputations of those who cross her.Amongst her victims is Marcia Faversham, wife to the fussy and uninspiring John and mother to three young children - sporty, overconfident Hugo, gentle Moyna, and little Tim who has been weakened by polio. When John leaves for a four-month fishing trip, Marcia dares to hope for a little tranquility, but changes are afoot in Leadon Hill; the house next door has been let to Helen West, a young, bohemian woman from Italy, and Miss Mitcham sets out to make her life very unpleasant indeed . . .A deeply engaging portrait of village life with a matchless cast of characters, Leadon Hill bursts with all the light exuberance of Crompton's Just William.

Richmal Crompton (1890-1969) is best known for her thirty-eight children's books featuring William Brown, which were published between 1922 and 1970. Born in Lancashire, Crompton won a scholarship to Royal Holloway in London, where she trained as a schoolteacher, graduating in 1914, before turning to writing full-time in 1923. Alongside the William stories, Crompton wrote forty-one novels for adults, including Family Roundabout, Portrait of a Family, and The Holiday, as well as nine collections of short stories.

It is painstakingly and cleverly executed ... it is a book of exceptional interest and merit Times This is truly a brilliant and intriguing novel, almost on a level with Cranford Hull Daily Mail