This book combines the trope of a new headmistress making changes with the building of a new boarding house, apparently constructed and filled remarkably quickly. Some of the girls don’t like the changes, and refuse even to set foot inside it, or to play its teams at sports. It’s mostly the older girls, which seems remarkably immature of them. And the younger girls all appear to love fagging for the older girls – really?! Also, some of the names are rather odd – Adair, Miff and even Winsome.
Having said all that, it does work pretty well. The characters are well drawn, and the story of the ongoing feuding and its development comes across quite convincingly even though it seems a bit pathetic that girls of 17 would make such a fuss about the new house. Of course, in the end everyone makes up and the school becomes united. Not bad. And I found this copy very cheap on Amazon, so I’m rather chuffed about that!
setinthepast 
Sound like a cute light story with a happy ending. I like that!
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FYI, ‘Adair’ and ‘Winsome’ were not particularly unusual in Clare Mallory’s writing days. As the headmistress of a girls’ school from 1942 to 1948, Winifred McQuilkan (the author’s real name) would have had access to plenty of inspiration for names to hand!
Also, when I was at high school, there was a Winsome a couple of forms ahead of me – that was in the late 1970s.
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That’s interesting, thanks. I’ve never met anyone called Winsome.
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I have – but for me, it’s a name I associate with the Afro-Caribbean community. The woman I met had grown up in a Black-led church, but is now an Anglican nun, rather to her surprise.
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