The year is 1952, and recently married Emily Palmer is the new Headmistress of Meadowfields School for Girls, a boarding school situated on the west coast of England. She takes the opportunity to modernise the school while still adhering to strict standards of discipline. Corporal punishment is an accepted part of school life, and the cane features prominently in correcting girls who misbehave or break school rules. Despite being a competent disciplinarian, Emily also has the best interests of the girls at heart.

Most of the pupils are from wealthy families, and many are most put out to have their bottom spanked and caned. There is often quite a queue of naughty girls waiting in trepidation outside the Head's office for a dose of the rod. Misdemeanours logged in the punishment book range from cheating, midnight feasts, smoking, throwing water bombs and being inattentive in class... such wrongdoings and subsequent corporal correction are all integral to growing up in a boarding school environment.

This book, along with its prequel, Emily Clarke of Meadowfields, depicts corporal punishment in a bygone era. Both books can be read as standalone novellas.