I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

A wildly popular book in England when first published in 1948, I Capture the Castle chronicles 6 months (in 1934) of 17-year old Cassandra Mortmain's life in the form of her diary entries. Within the book are the three notebooks in which she put sometimes funny, usually poignant and always insightful entries where she "captures" her ruined Suffolk castle she lives in and her eccentric, poverty-stricken family. During the turbulent 6 months, many changes happen to the Mortmains, and Cassandra grows tremendously. Always witty and entertaining, I Capture the Castle and its fantastic characters will surely capture your heart.