The Head Girl at the Gables (Esprios Classics): Illustrated by Balliol Salmon

Angela Brazil (1868-1947) was the first of the British writers of “modern” School Girls’ Stories genre – written from the characters’ point of view. Along with her sister Amy, Angela then studied at Heatherley School of Fine Art in London. She was quite late in taking up writing, developing a strong interest in Welsh mythology, and at first wrote a few magazine articles on mythology and nature. It was possibly thanks to her sister Amy that she finally began work on a novel at the age of 35. Exceptionally with respect to many of her contemporaries writing in this vein, Brazil did not write any books in a series – each stood on its own with different characters every time. These were considered to deal accurately and sympathetically with the highs and lows in the lives of middle-class schoolgirls, including the tangle of emotional friendships.