I've read a few books by Miss Read, and this is the first one that disappointed me. Maybe because it was so simple? I like the host of characters that usually populate her books; there weren't that many here. Although there was at least one fabulous character name — Horace Umbleditch. The reliably lovely scenes of village life and nature were there. I was surprised by the two deaths. I think the message is that there are fragile things in life, and they are vulnerable to cruelty and things beyond their control.
A couple of passages I liked:
Horace Umbleditch proved to be an elegant man with dark hair and a gold-rimmed monocle swinging on a black silk cord about his neck. From Amy's description I had expected a somewhat pathetic figure, undernourished and shy, but the new organist, although enviably slim, was obviously fit and distinctly voluble. I could see that he would more than hold his own in the assembled company.
...
One of the comforts of middle age, i find, is the comparative peace of mind which engulfs one when one has finally decided what to put on. When young, one's evening can be ruined by the thought that one's shoes are the wrong colour, or one's hair needs shampooing. Advancing age has its modest compensations. ( )

Arrrgh! Do not read the jacket copy, if you plan to read this book. The book is a bare 120-some pages long, and the jacket spoilers an event that happens on page 90. Maddening. That aside, it was a lovely book- another in the long string of dear tales of Fairacre. Miss Read shepherds her class through the odd crisis. All the favorite characters appear. Formulaic? Maybe. Dreamy? Certainly. ( )