"No matter how devoted, dedicated, conscientious and altogether noble a teacher is, I feel pretty sure that each and everyone feels the same sense of freedom and relief from her chains when the end of term arrives..."

So it is for Miss Read - but on the very first day of the long summer holiday she falls and breaks her arm. Instantly, all her plans for the holidays are in tatters.

But Miss Read's friend, Amy, comes up with a plan: and so it is that the two of them leave Fairacre for the island of Crete. The change of scene provides a welcome break for both women, giving Miss Read the opportunity to recuperate, and for them both to discuss the merits of single and married life. And when Miss Read returns, refreshed, to Fairacre, she is ready to tackle the problems which await her...