I continue my 2018 read through the Miss Read Thrush Green series as part of a monthly hashtag project called #missreadalong organised by @bookmusings and @bagfullofbooks over on Instagram. Last months read was ‘Gossip From Thrush Green’. If you are a fan of the Thrush Green series, you will be aware that gossip is always a part of the stories of folk in this little Cotswold community.
Reading this book in summer was lovely as so much of it is set in spring and summer. And as ever, the residents of Thrush Green are making the most of the weather, enjoying the produce from their gardens, and the tranquility that comes with warm summer days whilst indulging in some gentle pottering .
“Winnie had been in her garden picking roses and inspecting the raspberry canes. It looked as though there would be a fine crop this year, but rain would be needed to plump up the berries. The sky was cloudless, as it had been for a week or more, and despite the needs of the raspberry canes, Winnie could not find it in her heart to pray for a change in the weather”
Being summer it is also holiday season and we see Frank and Phylida , Dimity and Revd Charles, and even Jenny leave Thrush Green for a bit of rest and recuperation. The absence of each of them led to unexpected events. Whilst Jenny is away, the amorous Percy is making plans to entice her to be his wife. At Tullivers, Frank and Phylilida’s home, their temporary lodgers are making their mark and raising eyebrows amongst their concerned neighbours. When Charles and Dimity left Thrush Green for a much needed break, they had no idea it would be the last time they closed the heavy front door of the cold rectory that they called home.
Dorothy and Agnes, the school teachers have also left the cotswold country side for a few days, to spend some time by the sea. They are not only looking forward to the break but have plans to try and find somewhere to live more permanently. This has not gone unnoticed by their neighbours and is discussed with as much fervour as all the other comings and goings.
“We shall miss them both” Winnie Bailey said to Frank and Phil Hurst. “Miss Watson’s been a marvellous headmistress and dear little Agnes is real institution. It won’t be easy to replace two such dedicated women”
Comment at The Two Pheasants was less complimentary.
” ‘Time old Aggie packs it in” said one. “Why, she taught my mum as well as me! Must be nearly seventy…….Living at Bournemouth I hear’
‘I hear it was Barton.’
‘Well somewhere where all the old dears go. Bet that’ll cost ’em something to find a house in those parts.’
And this gloomy prognosis gave them a pleasurable topic for the rest of the evening”
Not much escapes the eagle eyed residents of Thrush Green and there is always much to talk about over morning coffee or afternoon tea. One of the biggest topics of conversation or gossip is the fate of the rector and Dimity after the demise of the rectory. Percy’s wooing is open to much scrutiny and dissection at both The Fuchsia Bush Cafe, the local hostelry, and over garden fences.
Gossip usually has negative connotations. In the world of Thrush Green gossip invariably leads to kindness and generosity in the community as the various members reach out to help and support each other. This is seen time and time again in these books and is one of the reasons I love them.
You can read my reviews of the other books in the Thrush Green series by Miss Read.
