“A perfect book”—and basis for the Maggie Smith film—about a teacher who makes a lasting impression on her female students in the years before World War

The long-awaited biography of one of the great writers of the twentieth century - 'a wonderful blend of scholarly fact and juicy storytelling' (Mail on Sunday).

Four brand new tales are now added to New Directions' original 1997 cloth edition of Open to the Public.

"A substantial addition to Spark criticism, of which there has been surprisingly little published in recent years."--Aileen Christianson, University of Edinburg

Where does art start or reality end? Happily loitering about London, c. 1949, with the intent of gathering material for her writing, Fleur Talbot finds a job �