White Hell Of Pity: Norah Lofts

The village of Swything is a picture book place of green lanes, comfortable farm houses and a Saxon church. But the Bacons are anything but charming - slovenly, dirty and poor, with too many unattractive children - except Emmie. She was different. She knew there must be something better than her slatternly mother, who disliked all her children, but hated Emmie most because she was different. When Emmie was twelve, the miracle happened - a chance to learn about a very different world through her schoolteacher, Miss Stanton. There had to be something better than Ted Gibson, her mother's lecherous star-boarder, who was tired of her mother's favors and wanted to sample the daughters and Saul Fincham, the miserly farmer who overworked and underpaid her. There must be something better...