In a Class of Her Own

After the sudden death of her husband, Claire Shaw found her life in freefall at the tender age of thirty-seven. She had three children to bring up alone which meant that her teaching career became her lifeline. When her daughters and son all went off to university, Claire's house was empty and she had to think about finances even more. She started by accepting teaching jobs in the Middle East, America and Spain. This awakened the traveller in Claire and she had many adventures around the world, in places she lived and in countries she visited on holidays. She travelled to all the continents apart from Antarctica, absorbed herself in the many cultures and met wonderfully interesting new friends along the way.

In this book, Claire returns to the Middle East, where extraordinary things befall her, before she secures a job which brings much more to her life, in the twilight of her career, than she could ever have imagined was possible. Her life is also enriched by her six grandchildren and by many holidays to exciting destinations, some of which include meeting up with old friends. Finally for Claire, retirement becomes inevitable but it is not an ending. It is a new beginning.

Dorothy Cottrell was born in Scotland in 1953. Educated at Edinburgh and Leicester Universities, she began her career as a Mathematics Teacher. Being a widow with three children at university, she started teaching abroad and there began a series of adventures around the world. She is now retired and is living near family, including two of her six grandchildren, in northern Spain.