April 23rd is St George’s day and is also regarded as Shakespeare’s birthday. A good month then to read a novel set in England. There are plenty to choose from in the ‘Literature in Education Collection’.
The classics are well represented by ‘Nicholas Nickleby’ or’ Hard Times’ by Charles Dickens, ‘The Professor’ by Charlotte Bronte or ‘Dr Wortle’s School’ by Anthony Trollope.
Why not try ‘Lucky Jim’ by Kingsley Amis, ‘An Academic Question ‘ by Barbara Pym, ‘ To Sir With Love’ by E.R. Braithwaite or ‘The Longest Journey’ by E. M. Forster?
Alternatively, read the futuristic ‘Never Let Me Go’ by Kazuo Ishiguro, ‘Jill’ the only novel written by the poet Philip Larkin, ‘Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit’ by Jeanette Winterson or ‘Almost English‘ by Charlotte Mendelson.
If you are in the mood for a gently humorous read then ‘The Village School’ by Miss Read or ‘The Little Village School‘ by Gervase Phinn certainly fit the bill.
Crime novels are always popular; read about what happens when a Ghanaian girl is sent to a boarding school in Devon in ‘True Murder‘ by Yaba Badoe. Or, for a more traditional example of the genre, you might like to read ‘Gaudy Night’ by Dorothy L Sayers.
Of course, you could also borrow a DVD if you would prefer to watch a film. ‘If’, ‘Another Country’, ‘The Browning Version’, ‘The History Boys’ and ‘The Happiest Days of Your Life’ are all highly recommended.
