The concerns of the adults are real enough and the village doesn't remain untouched by tragedy and the need for mutual support in shock. (Hankies ready – there will be tears.) As the series progresses each person becomes a friendly face in a world where many of us don't even know our neighbours. While the prose may not win literary awards (although someone who thinks of calling a child 'Heathcliffe Earnshaw' definitely deserves one), I know that Jack Sheffield is a writer to whom I'll return again and again as his narration and his acquaintances/creations like Lollipop Lil, Vera the school secretary and pigeon-fancier Ronnie provide a chocolate-like warm comfort in a world where that's difficult to find.
If this appeals, you may also enjoy [[Dr Finlay's Casebook by AJ A J Cronin]], an older but just as charming collection of fictional memoirs.
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