Catherine Maitland, the eponymous heroine of Catherine Goes to School, is named head girl of Shaftesbury House in Joanna Lloyd's third school-story set at Bramber Manor, and must contend with a number of crises in her final year, while also studying for a history scholarship to Cambridge. With four new girls - self-indulgent Lalage Peters, who had been to one of those "modern schools;" terrified Josie Scott, who hardly ever spoke; sulky Hazel Taylor, who'd attended many boarding schools, and had got into the habit of doing as little as possible; and Catherine's own younger sister Jill, happy and eager to please, despite a penchant for getting ink all over herself - and a strange mystery involving stolen items, it seemed at first as if Catherine's tenure as head girl would not prove successful. But Miss Burgess' choice turned out to be a wise one after all, for Catherine, although forgetful, also had a keen understanding of her fellow students, and an instinctive leadership ability...

Catherine, Head of House sees a return to the absolute hilarity of Lloyd's first title, after the slightly-less funny (although still entertaining) Jane Runs Away from School. The banter amongst the girls is just as delicious, the infighting and reconciliations - as in the "Civil War" which overtakes Shaftesbury House - just as satisfying, and the British slang - the girls have a tendency to feel "chocker" in this one - just as fascinating. Joanna Lloyd fans will be pleased, moreover, at the reappearance of Roy Bertram as captain of the house, and Jane Duncan and Agnes Maclean, as monitors.

Constance, the online friend who recommended this to me, has already provided a number of hysterical quotations in her review, but I thought I'd close with a few more:

"I do love you, Roy," said Penelope. "You are so just like the loyal friend in a school story. Though the whole school sent Catherine to Coventry you would remain staunch and true."
"It wouldn't be much good sending Kate to Coventry," said Daphne. "I mean she wouldn't notice she was there."

"Is she the one who looks as if she had just committed a crime and wishes she hadn't?" asked Florence. "Or the one who has committed one and is jolly glad about it, and will commit another for two pins?"
"I very nearly committed a crime this afternoon," announced Jane. "But I could not make up my mind whether to brain them with my crosse or drown them in the lake, and by the time I had made up my mind it was time to come in."

Now who could resist characters such as these...? ( )