I read A Month in the Country by J L Carr at the start of March, after hearing it recommended as an enjoyable short read.

It is set just after the First World War and, as the title suggests, follows two former servicemen sheltering from their experiences and the world for a month in a small country churchyard in the village of Oxgodby. Tom Birkin is there to painstakingly uncover a medieval wall painting in the church and spends his days up scaffolding and his nights sleeping in the church tower, enjoying his respite, concentration and only the company of the awful vicar’s pretty young wife and fellow former soldier Charles Moon.

Charles has been hired to find the location of a grave but is actually on the hunt for some medieval remains and the two of them form a gentle friendship as they go about their work. Suspended in time before the season changes, life drifts quietly by, as the painting slowly returns and Tom contemplates his future.

This is a calm and gently read and I enjoyed it very much.