I only read books that Jess recommends to me.  Because she knows me well, knows what I might like and has never steered me wrong.  She has me reading a super dark and heavy book that she has assured me will change my entire life.  My reward for all this life altering heaviness will be Miss Buncle’s Book, which she promises will pull me out of the dumps and back to a happy medium!

Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson

I was so delighted to discover this book, which was originally published in the 1930′s. I think it’d be the perfect gateway for those who want to get started on Austen, Dickens, Eliot, Gaskell and all the other great British classics you never read in high school. First, it takes place in the 20th century, so we’re not going so far back as to be a shock to the system. Cars and telephones exist, but people still have maids, they take the train into “town” and they invite each other for tea. Second, it’s just so much darn fun. By the end, you’ll feel confident and anxious to read some more popular Classics.

Miss Buncle’s Book is basically charm book-ified. Miss Buncle, of the title, has lived in the same tiny English village all her life. Her income isn’t quite what it used to be, so she writes a book in the hopes of making some extra cash. She doesn’t feel quite creative enough to invent a world in which to set it, so the book is about her village and all its inhabitants, though she’s changed all the names. When it’s published under the name John Smith, her little book causes such a ruckus among her neighbors, who immediately recognize themselves in the barely-disguised characters and set out to find the author hiding within the village. I found myself laughing the whole way through at the insane lengths her neighbors go to smoke out the traitor, all the while underestimating poor Miss Buncle. This book is guaranteed to brighten a winter weekend, which is roughly how long it’ll take to breeze through the pages!

Happy Reading,

Jessica