An idealistic tale of local government in a fictional area of Yorkshire. Set in the '30s, it captures an era of hope and despair. This book addresses a wide array of serious topics, from the poverty of unemployed ex-soldiers, to the prohibitive cost of public sanitation, via investment in adequate schooling for working-class girls. It also reflects the times it was written in; the snobbishness of the middle classes, the assumption that women will leave their jobs when they marry, and the underlying fear that a second world is brewing.

I've not read Winifred Holtby before, but very much liked her writing style. Though some of her views are dated, and perhaps naive, I found myself really enjoying a book which was essentially about the policies & processes of a local council. Don't be put of by its length- or the massive list of characters- this one is well worth reading!

I'll be taking this book along to a Bookcrossing meet-up in the Knights Templar. If nobody fancies taking it home, it will be left somewhere in the city for a stranger to find and enjoy.

Picked up at the Meet Up to wild release afterwards.

Left in the doorway of a Law Centre.