In Miss Buncle’s Book Barbara Buncle, who is unmarried and perhaps in her late thirties, lives in a small village and writes a novel about the village in order to try and supplement her meagre income. She thereby succeeds in taking charge of her own life. This is an entirely light-hearted, easy read, one of those books like Mariana, Miss Pettigrew, The Making of a Marchioness and Greenery Street which can be recommended unreservedly to someone looking for something undemanding, fun and absorbing – that is also well-written and intelligent and with an entirely original plot. DE Stevenson (1892-1973) sold 4 million copies of her books in the UK and 3 million in America; Miss Buncle’s Book is the first title by this unassuming, shrewd and kind-hearted author to have been reprinted in the UK for fifty years.
advertisement