The setting in the Ottawa Valley and inclusion of events such as the Almonte train wreck made the book enjoyable for someone from this area. However, in the end, Hay really does not have anything interesting to say.

Told by a niece of a Teacher on the Prairies and then moves to Ottawa. Lives encountered as students, friends and relatives. Murder of a young girl and the quest for who did it runs through the tale.

“Alone in the classroom” is an interesting twist of murder mystery and relationship novel. The novel deals with the life of Connie Flood, an eighteen-year-old-teacher who is working in a small town in Saskatchewan. While Connie is working in Saskatchewan a fifteen-year-old student, Susan, is sexually assaulted by the school principal. Connie develops a special relationship with one of her students, Michael, who is struggling in school. Seven years later in the Ottawa valley an eight-year-old girl goes berry picking and is found murdered. The narrator, Ann Flood, effectively connects these two mysteries. The appeal factors of this novel are realistic and well-drawn characters.

Good book

I agree with much of what has already been said, in terms of the main character. She was the weakest link in the book. I had no desire to read about her, and instead would have preferred the book to focus on her aunt and the main people in her aunt's life. While the first half of the book was very interesting, I found towards the end that the story became very disjointed and meandered all over the place. All in all I was disappointed with this book. Hay's previous book was much better. I would not recommend anyone read this.

The second book I've read of Hay's, after Late Nights on Air (which was superb). Like other readers, I found the narrator's story to be much less interesting than those of Connie, Parley and Michael, and didn't much like Anne anyway. Or at least I found her/the affair storyline to be selfish and stupid/implausible, respectively. As a result, that part of the story felt a little clunky and messy, detracting from the stories of Connie et al, and my reading experience overall.

Not my favorite from EH. Too many story lines, and in the end I couldn't care less about the main plot. The sub-plots definitely shone brighter for me than the main character, who was boring and self-centered.

This book began with some promise. However, as I continued on, I began scanning pages and skipping over others. Disconnected stories of people combined with fillers of , etc., contributed to making this something of a boring read. The only character who is lost amongst the others is Connie. I'm amazed at the number of holds on this book.

Hay's latest book is her best so far, but I still found the characters confused and confusing.

another great book by elizabeth hay...i love her writing, you can picture/smell/feel everything....almost poetic, succinct....great read