The School at the Chalet

Originally published in 1925, Elinor M. Brent-Dyer's The School at the Chalet is the first entry in one of the most popular British school-story series ever to see print, a series that ran for over forty years, and eventually grew to include close to sixty titles. As an American reader who had only recently become aware of the school-story, a genre that never really took hold in the United States, I had been looking about for a copy of this for some time, when I was lucky enough to happen upon this facsimile reproduction of the original edition, with cover art by Nina K. Brisley. Sadly, Brisley's four interior plates are not included in this Armada paperback, but the original text, as it existed prior to the 1967 revision, is whole and show more complete.

The story of Madge and Joey Bettany, two sisters who must find a way to support themselves when their brother Dick is stationed in India, it follows their adventures as Madge sets out to start a girls' school in the Austrian Tyrol, thus providing employment for herself and schooling for Jo. With the assistance of their long-time companion Mlle. La Pâttre, as well as the housekeeper/cook Frau Pfeifen, the Chalet School is soon up and running, attracting a range of students, both local and international.

The remainder of the book is centered on the day-to-day exploits of the students, particularly the tensions arising from the misbehavior of Juliet Carrick and Grizel Cochrane, whose rebellious antics create a number of confrontations with the prefects and headmistress. All is happily resolved by the end, of course, but it is still a pleasure getting to the conclusion. While certainly not what I would describe as a particularly gripping children's novel, The School at the Chalet is a pleasant and entertaining read, with a charming international character that no doubt accounts for its broad appeal. I myself was inspired with a desire to read further - in the unabridged versions, of course!

Addendum: Having just reread this, for a group discussion in the girls' school-story group that I run, I have to say that I was more conscious of Brent-Dyer's use of national stereotypes - from the emotional French to the obedient Austrians and Germans - this time around. I also was very much bemused by her characters' explanation of WWI (caused by the Prussians, apparently), although I imagine this would, regrettably, have been an idea current at the time of publication (1925). On the other hand, Brent-Dyer is clearly also trying to combat a certain kind of nationalism, in making her Head Girl and Prefects non-English, and showing Grizel Cochrane's insubordination to be less than admirable.

Altogether, The School at the Chalet stands up to a second reading: I found it just as entertaining as the first time I read it, and appreciated the opportunity to read it with more attention to historical detail. show less

Needing to support herself and her sister Josephine "Jo", Madge Bettany decides to open a school in an Austrian chalet in a location she and her sister enjoyed visiting in the past. A lot of time in this first installment was spent introducing readers to the girls attending, but readers are alerted to potential problems brewing when a couple of students show disregard for rules earlier in the book. Most of the big problems occur near the end of this installment, and readers know they'll be introduced to a few more students in the next installment. I don't think this book will translate well for 21st century girls, but older readers will appreciate the reminders of simpler times.

This is the first in Brent-Dyer's long boarding school series. I read these when I was a little girl in India and I loved them. Going back to them decades later, I wondered how it would hold up. Answer: not that well. The jolly-hockey-sticks tone and dialogue feels more forced now (although it didn't then and probably didn't in the 1920s when it was written). And even though I read a cleaned-up version, the ethnocentrism and emphasis on cultural traits (rather than individual attributes) was discomfiting and at times cringe-inducing. The story is told in episodes which don't really hang together or build toward anything. On the plus side, the relationships are believable and so are the schoolgirls. As trips down nostalgia lane go, it's show more not bad, but I wouldn't recommend it to new readers. show less

Good and entertaining - though I'd prefer if more of the classes and school itself were shown (as opposed to whatever happens in the area around the school), I really enjoyed this, especially the fact that Brent-Dyer focuses as much on the staff as she does the students. The premise is quite original since we see the founding of the school and the number of girls is quite small in this first book. That being said, all the characters seem exactly the same to me and the author's use of racial stereotypes was painful to read, though she does subvert them by having the prefects not be English and the school is very multicultural in its composition, there always seem to be an undercurrent of 'English is better anyway, and only if we don't show more have access to that should we go for something else' (when the prefects are chosen, the headteacher says she would have preferred English girls but they weren't good enough for the job, also, the students have to speak English around the school at all times even though the Chalet seems really international to me with some of them having French or German as a first language). I did enjoy the story as it's got enough school stuff to keep me happy but I do hope the next installments will be a bit more focused. show less

I've read this many times, both in hardback and paperback. Having recently acquired a hardback version for myself, I re-read it for the first time in over ten years, and very much enjoyed it. I

t's the first in a series of over 60 books, and introduces us to Madge, who starts a school for girls in Austria, and her young sister Joey. It seems quite dated now, yet the personalities of the people are realistic and the story quite exciting in places.

Re-read ten years later, and struck by what an excellent role model Madge would have been, and how forward-thinking and assertive she was, given that the book was first published in 1925.

Latest full review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2019/11/school-at-the-chalet-by-elinor-m-br...

A young woman with no parents, a brother abroad, and a sickly younger sister decides to open a boarding school for girls in the Austrian Tyrol. A little too heavy on the saccharine and too light on everything else for me.

Found in a charity shop, pounced on with glad cries, devoured in two hours flat. You understand.