One wonders just what was happening in Miss Read's own life as she wrote this, and the immediately preceding [b:Farther Afield|669038|Farther Afield (Miss Read (Paperback))|Miss Read|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg|1668825]. Here's another story of a confirmed spinster (and also a complete loner) having to confront the realities of other sorts of lives. Miss Quinn is obliged to take over the running of her brother's household while his wife is in hospital, and she ruminates at length on the differences between her life and her sister-in-law's.