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Ivy Compton-Burnett (1884-1969) was a reclusive novelist who in the 1950s became known in literary circles as "the English Secret," and was considered austere and unassuming by all who had the rare fortune to meet her. Publicly, she was so modest that any... Read Full Overview

"The sight of duty does make one shiver," said Miss Herrick. "The actual doing of it would kill one, I think."

Ever anxious to keep up appearances, self-avowed intellectual and scholar Nicholas Herrick knows that to involve himself in the running of his own school would... Read Full Overview