The Tale of Hill Top Farm (The Cottage Tales of Beatrix P) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Susan Wittig Albert (Author)
Key Phrases: three florins, town mouse, fallen apples, Miss Potter, Miss Crabbe, Miss Tolliver (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Endearing...resonates with charm...sleuth Beatrix positively shines. -- School Library Journal

Promiss to be a series with legs-and tails. -- Publishers Weekly

Review
Promiss to be a series with legs-and tails. (Publishers Weekly) Endearing...resonates with charm...sleuth Beatrix positively shines. (School Library Journal)

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (October 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425201015
• ISBN-13: 978-0425201015
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #121,075 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful English Cozy Mixes Beatrix Potter's Animal Tales with Murder, July 29, 2006

By	L. Kelly (Lakewood, CO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"The Tale of Hill Top Farm" is a delightful debut story in an engaging new mystery series by veteran mystery writer Susan Wittig Albert. Ms. Albert has done a fine job of blending biographical information from the life of Beatrix Potter (author of "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" and other children's tales) with a compelling murder mystery of her own imagining.

This story introduces the reader to the real Lake Country Village of Sawrey, along with a large host of imagined village inhabitants. As the story opens, one of the village's middle-aged spinsters is found dead in her cottage on the day right after her birthday. The venerable Miss Abigail Tolliver seemed healthy enough at her birthday celebration, and when the village doctor pronounces that she passed due to heart trouble, the local gossips are quick to suspect that Miss Tolliver was poisoned. When Miss Beatrix Potter arrives in town to survey her newly purchased farm, she finds herself looking for answers to the mystery surrounding Miss Tolliver's death. Other strange goings-on in the village include the loss of the Parish Village Register, which contains the church records of the village, and the mysteriouos disappearance of a large sum of money donated to repair the village school roof. The village animals also get involved in trying to solve these mysteries.

Just like the Peter Rabbit stories, all the village animals can talk, but not all the humans can understand them. The animals in this story are embued with much personality, as are the village locals.

I have thoroughly enjoyed Ms. Albert's China Bayles series, and I expect that this series will be one to savor as well.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beatrix Potter buys a farm..., September 4, 2007

By	Gayle Surrette "omnivorous reader" (Brandywine, Maryland) - See all my reviews

It's England in 1905, Beatrix Potter has purchased Hill Top Farm in Near Sawrey in the Lake District. Local farmers are upset that the farm is now owned by an outsider and a woman at that. On arrival, Beatrix Potter finds the woman she was to board with, Abigail Tolliver, has died unexpectedly and foul play is suspected. Beatrix rents a room at Belle Greene and begins to get a feel for her farm from Mr. Jennings who she hopes will stay on to run it for her. But the town is uneasy with Miss Tolliver's death, a missing painting, a theft at the school, a head teacher that seem bent on mischief and mayhem, and now a London woman owning a local farm.

Since the book is based on an actual historical figure, Beatrix Potter, the story must fit into the spaces in her life not covered by her diaries, writings, letters, and other documentation. I haven't read much about Potter and knew little of her except for her children's books and her love of nature, biology, and science. I was enchanted by the story. The character of Beatrix Potter is rich in contradictions and yet steeped in the traditions and strictures of her time. Albert has given us a woman who yearned for love, independence, and growth but who felt obligated to obey her parents every whim at the expense of her own happiness. Yet, Potter's mind is quick, concise, and her courage, especially when needed by others, is unfailing. I hope to be able to take advantage of some of the suggested resources listed in the back of the book to learn more of Beatrix Potter's life.

The story is a wonderful mix of characters including animals as well as humans. The point of view shifts from the animal views to those of humans with distinct and interesting contrasts for the same events. The mystery is low key and while the solution is fitting and satisfying it's not so much the mystery as the wonderful insights into small town mores and society. This is truly a town filled with believeable people living their lives in 1905 England.

Reading the story is a quite trip in time and a delightful vacation in another place with people you may end up caring about as if they were your own neighbors.

Book also contains a Historical Note, Glossary, List of Resources, and recipes for Tatie Pot, Sponge Cake, Elsa'a Grape's Gooseberry Sauce, Bertha Stubbs's Rhubarb and Strawberry Tart, Gingersnaps, and Mrs. Stokes's Treacle Pudding.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Cute but Slow, March 8, 2007

By	Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Beatrix Potter, successful author, has bought a farm in the Lake District of England. She loves the area and is hoping to use it to set up an independent life from her parents.

She expects peace and quite in the village of Near Sawrey. But on her first visit, she realizes that's not to be.

Miss Tolliver passed away rather unexpectedly on her birthday. Her death was a shock to all, and the village is buzzing. Additionally, things seem to be disappearing around the village, and Miss Potter gets caught up in the middle.

All this is on top of the personal problems Miss Potter faces. She's still reeling from the death of her fiance just a few months before. And, while she may own Hill Top Farm, she must figure out a way to live there while keeping the current farmers there to run it for her.

I went back and forth on whether I enjoyed the book or not. The pacing is slow, and at times I was ready for things to speed up. Yet at other times I got caught up in events and couldn't put the book down.

The characters were interesting. I especially like the portrayal of Beatrix. I completely believed her temperament from the little I know about this period of her life.

Since the book is about Beatrix Potter, there are lots of animals in the story. While they can't communicate with humans, they can talk to each other and actually play an important part in the story. It's handled in a believable way but might bother those who don't like that kind of thing.

There were parts that were enjoyable, but on the whole it was an average read.