Jennings Goes to School by Anthony Buckeridge

Author:Anthony Buckeridge [Buckeridge, Anthony]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 0-7551-0159-6
Publisher: William Collins & Co Ltd

Chapter 8

The Literary Masterpiece

Half-term came, and with it a break in the routine of going into class, and changing for football; of being called by one’s surname, and saying “Yes, sir.” For one weekend this could be forgotten, and yet it was impossible to forget. One weekend wasn’t long enough to change anyone from a unit in a boarding school to a member of a family; and new parents who arrived expecting to find their sons the same as they were at home, were puzzled and sometimes disappointed.

When half-term Saturday dawned, the boys rose eager and excited, and put on their best suits. Heads were sleeked with unaccustomed smears of hair cream, and Matron gave ear crevices a critical survey before she passed any boy as fit to go out with his parents. Matron’s inspection was thorough; she examined them tooth and nail, and woe betide any miserable specimen who tried to slip past with a missing shirt button, or high-tide marks at wrist or neck.

The Reverend and Mrs Darbishire arrived from the wilds of Hertfordshire, forearmed with questions about academic progress and winter-weight underwear.

Mr and Mrs Jennings motored over from Haywards Heath, eager for every detail of their son’s new way of life.

“I’m so excited about seeing him again,” Mrs Jennings said to her husband as the car passed through Dunhambury. “I’m just dying to hear all about it; we’ll let him talk while we just sit back and listen; won’t it be fun!”

“I expect he’ll be full of it,” replied her husband. “I’m looking forward to hearing how he’s getting on with his work. I’ll get him to let me know if he’s having difficulty with any of his lessons.”

“Do you think I ought to see Matron about his going to bed early if he feels tired?”

“Well, let’s see what he has to say first.”

But they were doomed to disappointment. Jennings had plenty to say, and didn’t propose to waste time talking about such dull subjects as algebra and cough-mixture; and all their efforts to probe what they considered to be the more important side of school life were promptly side-tracked. They had to listen, instead, to a long account of why Venables had had to come down to breakfast wearing his pyjama jacket because his shirt fell in the wash-basin.

“Yes, dear, I’m sure that must have been very awkward for him,” said Mrs Jennings; “but what we want to know is whether you’re settling down all right; how do you like being at a boarding school?”

“Oh, it’s all right, thanks.”

“And have you made lots of nice friends?”

“Oh, yes; they’re all right, thanks.”

“How about your appetite? Are you eating well?”

“Oh, yes, all right. I say; Atkinson’s got a super blister on his ankle.” Jennings felt it was time to turn the conversation to more interesting topics.

“How are you getting on in school; top of the form yet?” inquired his father.

“No, not yet. He’s going to have it lanced on Tuesday; and Matron says Atkinson’s blister is the—”

“How do you like learning French?”

“Oh, all right.

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