🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Miss Read
Miss Read was a pen name for the English novelist Dora Jessie Saint. She most often wrote under the name of Miss Read, but also published books under the name of Shafe. Saint came up with the name of Miss Read by taking her mother’s maiden name. In addition to her work as a novelst, she also worked as a schoolmistress. Dora was born in 1913 in London, but due to her mother’s health, the family would move to the country when Dora was just seven years old. She would attend school there and became inspired when her own father became a schoolmaster to follow in his footsteps. She would go to teacher training at Homerton College, Cambridge to learn her craft. She would go to work in Middlesex, at Hayes and later at Ealing, until she met her husband, Douglas Saint.
All Book Series by Miss Read
Christmas at Thrush Green
Latest in the series · book 13 of 13 · published 2009
Miss Read's Country Cooking, Or, to Cut a Cabbage-Leaf
Series opener · book 1 of 6 · published 1969
Mrs. Griffin Sends Her Love and Other Writings
Latest in the series · book 6 of 6 · published 2013
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Miss Read?
Miss Read was a pen name for the English novelist Dora Jessie Saint. She most often wrote under the name of Miss Read, but also published books under the name of Shafe. Saint came up with the name of Miss Read by taking her mother's maiden name.
Which Miss Read series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Fairacre series, the earliest of Miss Read's multi-book series: it opens with Village School (1955) and runs to 20 books across 1955–1996, ending with A Peaceful Retirement (1996). Miss Read's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Miss Read written?
Miss Read has 54 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1955 and 2013. 37 of them belong to 5 named series — the largest being the Fairacre series with 20 books — and 17 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Miss Read's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Miss Read's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Fairacre (1955–1996, 20 books), Thrush Green (1959–2009, 13 books) and Caxley Chronicles (1966–1967, 2 books), plus 2 more.
How are Miss Read's books organised into series?
This guide splits Miss Read's 54 books into 5 named series and 17 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Fairacre (20 books, 1955–1996); Thrush Green (13 books, 1959–2009); Caxley Chronicles (2 books, 1966–1967); Fairacre Collections (1 book, 1994); Thrush Green Non-Fiction (1 book, 1988).