I was round at a friend's house this weekend and, in the hallway, they've got shelves of books. This was the same friend who lent me the amazing autobiography of Brian Keenan's years of captivity in Lebanon. Since reading that, I reckoned that pretty much anything off her shelves is worthwhile. I saw this on the Friday evening and, as it's off the 1001 list, nabbed it and had it finished by Sunday morning. Miss Jean Brodie is one classic character.

The story takes place in the gap between first and second world wars at a girls' school in Edinburgh. There, the unorthodox teaching methods of Miss Jean Brodie come under fire from the headmistress, Miss Mackay.

Brodie builds around her a set of girls who, initially, hang on her every word. Miss Brodie, you see, is in her self-proclaimed prime and, thus, all the girls have to do is follow her lead and they will become the creme-de-la-creme.

As the girls grow up, their relationships with and perspective on the figurehead Brodie change. That Spark achieves this portrayal of so many strong characters in a mere 127 pages shows her phenomenal skills as a writer. And the story is engaging throughout; she doesn't waste a page.

I won't spoil the ending for you. Safe to say that Brodie is well past her prime by the time it all ends. I was left looking forward to more from Muriel. ( )

Muriel Sparks paints an evocative picture of a girls’ school in the 1930s. Sparks herself was a teacher for a short time and Miss Jean Brodie is such a vivid portrait of an eccentric, unlikeable, self-absorbed woman that I can’t help but wonder if she knew someone a bit like this in real life.

There is plenty of humour, and perhaps the best thing about this very short novel is the dialogue, each phrase well chosen, and even better, well placed in a fast paced story which flits from the 1930s into the distant future, when Miss Jean Brodie passes away. All of these time jumps, and the seven years of The Brodie Girls are expertly performed by the author. ( )

A 1001 Book, I hadn't ever read it, but Miss Brodie is a well-known character, so it felt familiar. This is about the Brodie Set, a group of girls groomed by Brodie at an Edinburgh school, being taught in a rather unorthodox way. Life and experience are more prized than sums.

Brodie's set is not liked, other people seem threatened by it, they keep trying to break into it or break it up. In the end, it is one of their own who destroys it, leaving the reader to see who and why. ( )

Intricately put together, but alienatingly mannered and lacking in narrative drive. One of the many books that make me wonder whether people who describe it as "humorous" are doing so in order to appear clever, rather than because while reading it they actually, well, laughed. ( )

I just finished this 1001 book, and I felt quite disappointed. I thought the writing was at times repetitive, and the characterisation poorly executed, overall. For me, Jean Brodie's character was simply foolish and pathetic, but I think my memory of the film where Maggie Smith plays that part has influenced my judgment, as she was quite compelling in the role. The narrative was written in an interesting manner, as TQD says, signalling the outcome for the various characters. This device can be at times extremely irritating, but in this instance it works, as a linear narrative would have made the tale quite dull.

Having dissed the book, I must say that I was drawn in to it, despite my expectations not being met. ( )